August 2007/5

Newly-listed Tawa plc has raided outsourcing firm Axiom Consulting as it strengthens its asbestos, pollution and health hazard (APH) team.

London market back office service provider Xchanging plc has entered into a retail investment account management partnership with Allianz Global Investors.

Despite the fact it was the third-most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall since records began Hurricane Dean's "extraordinarily fortunate track" left (re)insurers facing only modest losses.

Last week saw the first trade on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) of a Re-Ex Index catastrophe derivative, and a joint venture to launch a specialist insurance derivatives broker.

Marsh & McLennan (MMC) is holding to its commitment to return funds to shareholders when it announced on 24 August that it would buy $800mn of its shares from a "financial institution".

French reinsurer SCOR Group revealed a 55 percent increase in its gross written premium during the first half of this year, primarily driven by its acquisition of the life reinsurer Revios.

The unravelling of the "Spitzer" agreements made by the former New York attorney general and the global brokers in 2005 continued last week with news that Willis Group could also start charging fees to insurers.

The $45mn loss of a plane in Japan last week has pushed the airline sector closer to a tipping point, according to aviation analysts Ascend.