April 2009/4

Broking giant Willis Group’s French-based affiliate, Gras Savoye & Cie, is reportedly looking at alternative investment solutions over a put option purchased by the former in 1997, which could oblige it to increase its stake in France’s largest broker...

Munich Re has checked its bullish stance on rate prospects, as the reinsurer's chairman described a "satisfactory" first quarter while acknowledging that its optimism late last year was still to filter through to widespread rating improvements.

Lloyd's is set for a gain after making a tender to repurchase up to £100mn of the approximate £1.1bn in long-term corporate debt it manages - which in turn forms part of the central assets the Society holds on behalf of the market.

After being buoyed by comments from the G7 group of most industrialised nations on Friday (24 April) that the world economy was showing early signs of recovery, global stock markets slipped downwards again this morning amid fears of a swine flu epidemic.

UK independent broker Heath Lambert has lost another major account after rival firm AJ Gallagher (UK) captured French inter-dealer broker Viel & Cie (V&C), The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Willis Group's first quarter results, due out this week, will be scrutinised carefully by investors for the performance of its US operations, following last year’s $2.1bn acquisition of Hilb, Rogal & Hobbs (HRH).

Investors are poised for a hectic period of first quarter reporting from the global (re)insurance sector that will reveal whether the wide-scale pain inflicted on balance sheets in 2008 has eased in the early part of 2009.

Nick Jones, former head of Heritage's worldwide property division and lead underwriter on the insurer's Lloyd’s Syndicate 1200, is set to resurface in the Lloyd's market as the head of RenaissanceRe's (RenRe) planned new syndicate, according to market sou

Bermudian reinsurer Platinum Underwriters posted a 19.3 percent year-on-year decline in its first-quarter net income to $84.9mn.

Reinsurance Group of America (RGA) saw its first quarter net income drop $8.2mn compared to Q1 2008 to $23.3mn.

The Association of British Insurers (ABI) is demanding a complete reassessment of the UK's flood risk, and in particular surface water drainage (SWD), as part of the consultation process for the draft flood and water management bill released by the govern

Recently launched European catastrophe information aggregator Perils has appointed Glacier Group executive Dr Luzi Hitz as CEO.