Cytora strengthens executive team with senior hires from Hiscox and Coya

Today we’re delighted to announce the expansion of our executive team with two senior hires. Juan de Castro joins Cytora as Chief Commercial and Operating Officer, while Dr. Liuben Siarov joins as Chief Data Scientist, to lead data strategy and innovation.

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Both hires are set to help Cytora expand global operations and drive customer success, enabling insurers to transform their underwriting process by building a unified view of risk and distribution relationships.

We’re delighted to welcome both Juan and Liuben to the team at a really exciting time for Cytora,” said CEO Richard Hartley. “As we look to grow into new markets and expand our technology offering, their breadth of experience and industry knowledge is set to propel us – and our customers – to the next level.

Juan de Castro joins from Hiscox, where he was Chief Operating Officer and led the digital transformation of the insurer, having joined in 2014. Previously, he was a senior manager at McKinsey’s Silicon Valley office, where he led growth strategy and operational improvement engagements for Fortune 100 companies. He holds a Master’s degree from Stanford Graduate School of Business and a Computer Engineering degree from Universidad Complutense de Madrid.

Cytora is the pioneer in commercial insurance platforms, enabled by unique technology and data models,” said Juan De Castro, COO and CCO at Cytora. “I couldn’t be more excited to join such a great team, driving the commercial strategy and development of the business through marketing, sales, customer service and operations as we expand into new geographies.

Dr. Liuben Siarov has a track record building high-impact AI systems and organisations from scratch in exponential growth environments. He is former Chief Data Scientist at Coya, a German full-stack digital insurer, and was the co-inventor of one of the world’s most advanced credit risk comprehension and measurement systems at German lender Kreditech. He has a PhD in Sociology and a MA in Finance, both with a focus on risk management.

Financial services should be quick, frictionless, embedded, and highly personalised, and this is certainly the case in insurance,” said Dr Liuben Siarov, CDS at Cytora. “Artificial intelligence and autonomous systems are the only effective way to deliver this at scale. I’m excited to join Cytora in helping our customers do just that, and to help build the insurance of the future.

Cytora works with leading global insurers such as QBE, AXA XL and Starr Insurance Companies, and is backed by over $40m of leading venture capital.