Swiss Re Corporate Solutions has withdrawn from the cargo insurance market as it works to trim its marine portfolio, The Insurance Insider understands.
While the carrier will no longer accept primary market cargo business, it will continue to write hull risks, according to sources.
The class withdrawal comes as Swiss Re works to reduce gross premiums written at its Corporate Solutions division by about 20 percent, or $900mn, after the specialty lines unit reported a $403mn H1 loss.
While Swiss Re CorSo has pulled back from the class it is understood to be developing a digital platform for the placement of cargo risks.
The platform is intended to slash expenses and will be unveiled on Swiss Re’s Investors’ Day in November.
In an investor presentation published alongside its results for the first half of the year, Swiss Re said it was seeking to prune marine premiums written by more than 50 percent.
This publication revealed last week that the carrier had withdrawn from space, general aviation and US medmal business as it worked towards the $900mn reduction target.
Swiss Re has initiated a major overhaul of its Corporate Solutions arm under new CEO Andreas Berger after continued underperformance.
Berger stated on Swiss Re’s second-quarter conference call that the carrier had already limited its activity in several markets.
Alongside a $600mn capital injection and the pruning of the portfolio, Swiss Re plans to restructure and increase the reinsurance it buys for Corporate Solutions.
Part of this was a $100mn adverse development cover already purchased from Swiss Re’s P&C reinsurance arm, but Berger said the unit would also look to bring down the attachment point of its main property cat tower from $300mn to $200mn in the second half of the year.
Swiss Re declined to comment on the class withdrawal.