April 2011/1

Guernsey has received increased interest from captives and reinsurers looking for a new domicile after deciding not to seek Solvency II (SII) equivalence, according to Peter Niven, CEO of promotional agency Guernsey Finance.

The UK government has unveiled implementation plans for new bribery laws and published final guidance for all commercial organisations with a UK presence on complying when the legislation comes into effect on 1 July.

Raising new funds could be a challenge for many collateralised reinsurers as questions remain over how much of their capital has been tied up in recent disaster losses, Willis Re said in a report on the April reinsurance renewals.

The 11 March Tohoku earthquake and tsunami appear set to activate a number of cat bonds providing second-event cover, including Swiss Re's Vega Capital 2010, Flagstone's Montana Re 2010 and Platinum's Topiary Capital.

The number of "open years" at Lloyd's has fallen by over 90 percent in the last six years, figures presented by the Society show, with all non-life syndicates prior to 2006 now closed.

The proportion of Lloyd's underwriting capital provided by Names has continued to shrink, the Society's annual results show.

The poor performance of motor underwriters has cost Lloyd's more than £500mn - which is equivalent to almost a quarter of the market's pre-tax profits in 2010.

Lloyd's ultimate losses from the first Christchurch earthquake last September are expected to come to £428mn ($684mn), which is the biggest single insured loss estimate for the event.

Premiums in Lloyd's expansive aviation segment have grown by more than 60 percent in five years, while annual re-rating pressures continue to provide a challenging environment for underwriters.

The energy sector at Lloyd's performed well in 2010, despite a number of man-made losses throughout the year.

Bermuda has outperformed Lloyd's for the second consecutive year, according to Lloyd's own figures.

Lloyd's last week delivered a £2.195bn profit for 2010 in a 43 percent drop on 2009 results, led by falling investment income, cat losses and a woeful showing from motor syndicates.