CEO, MARKEL GROUP, GLEN ALLEN
CEO, MARKEL GROUP, GLEN ALLEN
Gayner has led the Fortune 500 insurance company as sole CEO since early 2023, after serving more than six years as co-CEO with Richard Whitt III, who retired last year. Before joining Markel in 1990, Gayner was vice president of Davenport & Co.
Markel reported operating revenues of $15.8 billion in 2023, an increase from $11.7 billion in 2022.
Gayner oversees about 21,600 employees and three divisions: insurance, investments and Markel Ventures, which owns controlling interests in a portfolio of about 20 businesses. He made $8.1 million in total compensation in 2023.
In June, the company purchased a majority stake in Valor Environmental, a Florida erosion control and stormwater management firm, for an undisclosed amount.
In 2022, Gayner’s wife, Susan, retired as CEO of ParkLand Ventures, a Markel subsidiary that buys and operates manufactured housing communities. In 2023, the couple launched the University of Virginia’s Gayner Family Sustainable Investment Fund and Scholarship Program, where revenue from student-directed investments is used to fund scholarships.