April 2008/3

Munich Re warned its first quarter 2008 profits are likely to be down on last year's, following "major losses" in the first three months of the year.

Lloyd's insurer Omega Insurance Holdings Ltd announced last week that it had terminated talks with potential suitors interested in acquiring the company.

Insurance Australia Group's (IAG) share price rocketed last week as the Australian insurer rebuffed a series of merger approaches from rival QBE Insurance with shareholders speculating that the firm is a prime candidate for takeover.

Analysts and investors will scour XL Capital's first quarter financials tomorrow for further guidance on the Bermudian's exposure to the sub-prime fallout, as well as the potential impact from the spate of large risk losses hitting the sector in the perio

Credit crunch-hit Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) could sell insurance subsidiaries Direct Line and Churchill to raise up to £5bn, according to industry commentators.

Profits for the US property & casualty industry fell by almost $5bn to $66.5bn last year compared to the prior year period, according to rating agency AM Best.

There is almost a 100 percent chance of a major earthquake in California within the next 30 years according to the latest findings from the US Geological Survey (USGS).

Bermudian (re)insurers wrote $115.8bn in gross premiums in 2007 up from $100.7bn in 2006 despite falling rates, according to The Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA).

Lloyd's became the first admitted reinsurer in Brazil on 17 April despite doubts over whether the long-awaited deregulation would go ahead.

Specialist corporate finance firm Benfield Advisory has developed a new parametric reinsurance product, aimed at transferring workers' compensation catastrophe (WCC) coverage to reinsurers and the capital markets.

Former Wells Fargo executive LoriAnn Lowery has been appointed by Lloyd's as its new president of North America.

UK financial services group Prudential Plc has delivered a 13 percent increase in new business, at £729mn for the first quarter of 2008, despite a "challenging" economic environment.