The investment in Hiscox allowed Graphite to gain exposure to the Lloyd's underwriting market. Following its disastrous performance in the 1980s, Lloyd's was keen to attract corporate capital into more conservatively managed underwriting businesses.

Hiscox Dedicated was a Lloyd’s of London company established to participate in the underwriting capacity of the four in-house Hiscox syndicates. The Hiscox syndicates had a good performance track record and a combined capital of £376 million, making them the fourth largest managing agency group. Two syndicates were Marine and two were Non-Marine.

The Hiscox Dedicated vehicle was intended to be a cost efficient method of participating in Hiscox managed syndicates. The Hiscox group had a superior track record and out-performed the Lloyd’s market in six of the seven years before the investment. Additionally, the Hiscox syndicates’ underwriters focused on specialist lines and therefore influenced the terms and conditions of the risk. The overall returns from Lloyd's were expected to improve as the market conditions for insurance became more favourable.