Speaking to this publication alongside Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Economy Oleksandr Griban, Marsh McLennan CEO John Doyle said that working to create a data platform was the “the first of many steps in front us”.
“We want a broad functioning insurance market in Ukraine, and in the near- to mid-term we’re going to need a public-private sector partnership to get things going.”
Doyle was speaking after Marsh McLennan presented a proposal to the Ukrainian and G7 governments for the creation of a multi-billion war risk insurance pool that would provide a supra-national backstop to insurers to give them the confidence to provide meaningful war capacity.
Griban told this publication that the war insurance pool represented a parallel initiative to one announced earlier this week alongside BlackRock to create a Ukrainian Development Fund.
The deputy minister of economy said that as the country looks for investment in the future, it would want to be able to present support from both the development fund and insurers as part of its roadshows.
Questioned about early engagement with carriers, Doyle said that insurers “want to be supportive”.
“They certainly recognise the broader purpose behind the initiative.”
He said the next step may be to bring on board some cornerstone carrier support, which would likely be well-established insurers with a “multi-national view”.
Asked about the war pool, Griban said that the project was still at the conceptual stage but pointed to UK terrorism backstop Pool Re as a possible model.
On future milestones, the Ukrainian minister said that he hoped the data platform – which Marsh McLennan is working on pro bono – could be up and running in three to six months.
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak yesterday announced a new framework for war risk insurance in Ukraine at the Ukraine Recovery Conference, which is being held in London.
The framework will outline support for de-risking measures with a view to boosting investor confidence and guide collaboration with commercial insurers.
In a separate development, Aon and Lloyd’s have launched an initiative to facilitate (re)insurance capacity to aid Ukraine’s recovery, partnering with Vienna Insurance Group. The project does not include war coverage.
