The General Partnership Liability (GPL) insurance market in 2026 has transitioned away from the soft market of previous years. Double-digit year-over-year premium decreases are now rare. While some asset managers with low-risk business models and minimal historical claims activity have seen modest premium reductions, the market overall remains relatively stable.
That's one of the takeaways from Gallagher's Guide to Insuring Fund Liability Risks for Venture Capital and Private Equity Firms, which helps asset managers understand the GPL insurance space. Leveraging decades of expertise in this space, we provide an update on the GPL insurance market and coverage, as well as the regulatory and litigation risk environment for asset managers.
Get the full Guide here and read the highlights below.
2026 GPL insurance market trends and coverage insights
GPL pricing remains under pressure from opposing market forces. On one hand, ample market capacity will continue to create strong competition among carriers, resulting in attractive terms and pricing. On the other hand, higher claims frequency in recent years has led some carriers to seek profitability improvements, potentially driving up premiums.
The most common sources of claims we're seeing are:
- Outside Directorship Liability (ODL) claims, involving portfolio company issues
- Regulatory investigations
- Rising hourly defense counsel billing rates
With this landscape in mind, for 2026 renewals, underwriters are expected to closely examine investment manager business models, portfolio company risks and claims histories.
Four ways to prepare for your GPL policy renewal
In upcoming renewal cycles, venture capital and private equity firms with clean risk profiles and favorable loss histories may still achieve flat or near-flat renewals. However, firms with claims or significant changes in exposure may face more challenging renewal conversations. For asset managers who have benefited from underpriced programs in recent years, a market correction may be on the horizon.
Here are four ways to prepare for your renewal:
- Engage in early and transparent discussions with your broker about renewal expectations.
- Consider alternative program structures.
- Make use of long-term incumbent relationships with carriers.
- Ensure a strong relationship with your broker.
Regulatory and litigation risk: A dynamic landscape
As the GPL insurance marketplace adjusts to the litigation and regulatory actions from prior periods, the risk landscape in 2026 is dynamic.
On one hand, federal financial regulators have signaled a pivot away from the perceived "regulation-by-enforcement" approach of the previous administration. While commentators expect regulators to pursue fraud cases, "broken windows" enforcement actions based on technical violations may decline.
At the same time, we do continue to see regulators pursuing technical enforcement investigations against asset managers, suggesting a fluid — and somewhat unpredictable — regulatory enforcement environment.
If there is indeed a downturn in federal enforcement actions, some predict that state regulators would step into the breach (although they have significantly fewer resources to devote to enforcement).
Access the full Guide to learn more about:
- Regulatory updates, including from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission
- How the evolving crypto industry affects asset managers
- Whether the broad GPL coverage we've seen over the past several years is sustainable
