AFL Insurance Brokers (AFL) has launched a new wholesale property division, appointing former Lockton head of broking Neil Crouch to head up the practice.

Crouch will be responsible for leading the broker’s expansion in the property market, initially focusing on North American and Caribbean business. He moves over to AFL after more than a decade at Lockton.

AFL executive chairman Toby Esser said that adding a “property practice is a natural next step for AFL’s business profile”.

“Current market conditions make it a compelling case to enter this class, where there is a need for proactive products and services that fully harness the highly skilled underwriting capacity at Lloyd’s,” the former Cooper Gay CEO said in a statement.

As part of its expansion plan, the broker noted that it is also working to expand in energy, financial lines, surety and trade credit and is exploring Insurtech collaboration options through its incubator division.

AFL said that it “aims to achieve significant growth over the next two years through organic growth and strategic bolt-on deals”.

Last month, Esser’s start-up Next Generation acquired a controlling interest in the company, with Esser joining the firm as executive chairman in a bid to grow the independent Lloyd’s broker and marking his return to the London Market following his departure from Cooper Gay.

At the end of September, AFL hired Dominic Quick and Simon Pearce from Tysers to spearhead the launch of a new energy practice.