Underwriting discipline has propelled the property and casualty insurer to No. 1 in industry profitability. By Andrew Bary

Evan Greenberg created the world's top property and casualty insurer by engineering the merger of Ace, which he headed, with Chubb a decade ago. The combined company, called Chubb, is best known for its leadership in high-end homeowners' insurance with its Masterpiece policies.

Since the merger, Chubb has consistently beaten its peers in profitability as measured by underwriting performance. That speaks to the strength of the culture that Greenberg fostered.

Pricing is weakening in parts of the P&C market after several years of strength, and a "soft market" threatens to erode future profitability. In April, Greenberg criticized rivals contributing to what he called a "dumb" downward pricing trend in property insurance coverage.

Chubb likely will fare better than peers given its underwriting discipline. Warren Buffett is a fan; Berkshire Hathaway is Chubb's biggest shareholder, with an 8% stake.

Greenberg shares some traits with his famous and formidable father, Maurice "Hank" Greenberg, 101, who built American International Group into a top P&C insurer and ran private insurer Starr until two years ago. Greenberg is passionate about Chubb and, at 71, has no plans to retire.

Write to Andrew Bary at andrew.bary@barrons.com

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June 19, 2026 21:31 ET (01:31 GMT)

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