April 2008/4

German insurance giant Allianz SE has acquired a majority stake in two Turkish insurers from Koc Holding in a deal worth over EUR370mn.

UK-based wholesale broker Price Forbes & Partners is planning to launch in Bermuda in the second quarter of this year.

Peter Harmer, CEO of Aon UK, is to become chairman of the London Market Reform Group (MRG).

Shares in bond insurer Ambac Financial Group plummeted after the company revealed a net loss of $1.66bn for Q1 2008 compared with a prior-year profit of $213mn.

Bermudian cat specialist IPCRe reported a rise in first quarter net operating profits from $68.5mn to $92.8mn, despite an active period for natural catastrophe and large risk losses.

US insurer Chubb Corp has been criticised for its "low quality earnings" and unsustainable reserve releases by analyst David Small of Bear Stearns.

Lloyd's (re)insurer Amlin plc posted a 10 percent fall in gross written premium (GWP) for the first quarter of the year compared to the same 2007 period driven by renewal rate reductions, the company confirmed.

The sale of its London-headquartered reinsurance operations pushed US broker Arthur J Gallagher to a loss of $6mn for the first quarter despite a 10 percent rise in its revenues.

Reserve redundancies in the property and casualty (P&C) industry have passed their peak and have fallen by $1bn over the past year, according to research by analysts at Morgan Stanley.

US reinsurer Transatlantic Re reported first quarter profit of $115.7mn, an 8 percent rise from the same period last year.

First quarter profits at Platinum Underwriters have soared by more than 40 percent on the comparable prior-year period.

US insurer Safeco Corporation, which last week agreed to a takeover by rival Liberty Mutual, reported a drop in quarterly profits for the fifth consecutive quarter as higher cat losses and lower premium income took a toll.