First Thoughts — The Lloyds of London Building

Chris Lytton writes about his experiences of the ‘inside out building’.

Anyone who has been fortunate enough to have entered the Lloyd’s of London building will be unlikely to forget the incredible atmosphere that hits you as you enter the famous ‘inside out building’. As you head onto the trading floor a wave of nostalgia, historical influences and pure energy hits you all at once as you watch the brokers milling around the underwriters boxes.

Lloyd’s of London, known by most as ‘Lloyd’s’, is an insurance and reinsurance market, which was originally founded back in 1686 in the Lloyd’s Coffee House. Whilst trading continued throughout the years, insurers and reinsurers moved to 12 Leadenhall Street in 1928 which was the first official Lloyd’s building, however, rapid expansion meant that a second home was required in conjunction with the first with some underwriters adopting 51 Lime Street over the road.

By the 1970’s the London market had once again outgrown its surroundings and in 1978 the current Lloyd’s of London building was commissioned to be built. The new building, designed by architect Richard Rogers, was finally opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 18th November 1986. The building consists of over 12,000 square metres of glass, over 30,000 square metres of steel cladding and over 30,000 cubic meters of concrete.

Many famous dignitaries have visited the building in the past, with one particularly famous moment being when the then Mayor of London Boris Johnsons visited in June 2013. As Boris stood in the centre of the ground floor underwriting room to greet all the Lloyd’s underwriters and brokers who had gathered to hear him speak, he looked up towards the heavens taking in the crowds lined up the escalators for countless floors, and announced that it reminded him of the scene out of the Oscar winning film ‘The Shawshank Redemption’.

Whilst other grander and larger buildings continue to rise from the ground to tower above Lloyd’s, the building itself remains the focal point of The City of London, acting as the centre point for the busy insurance market which surrounds it.

Now in 2019 Lloyd’s as a marketplace faces the greatest challenge in its entire history, as it looks to try to stay relevant in this modern age by adopting new technology. Perhaps the larger challenge is managing its syndicates as they look to post profits in a catastrophe prevalent time, when markets abroad are beginning to challenge the London markets claim of ‘superior insurance management’. Throughout all these challenges perhaps it would be wise for the heads of the corporation and its workers, along with the underwriters and brokers who work within its walls, to take a moment and walk around Lloyd’s, taking in the vast surrounding histories, paintings, artefacts and stories that are widespread throughout the building and be inspired by the markets continuous ability to adapt and modernise whilst always keeping its true founding identity of honesty, integrity and hard work.

Chris is an Assistant Underwriter at Markel International.