August 2008/4

Aon Corp has triumphed over its rival Guy Carpenter for the £844mn prize of Benfield Group, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Troubled Australian insurer Insurance Australia Group Ltd (IAG) has slumped to a A$261mn loss after taking a A$350mn charge in relation to the impairment of its UK assets.

Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc (MMC) has appointed Vanessa Wittman as the group's new CFO, ending its search to replace the outgoing Matthew Bartley.

Allianz has a 10 percent share of the slip for the Spanair McDonnell Douglas MD-82 that crashed at Madrid airport on Wednesday, claiming 153 lives.

One of the more intriguing elements to Aon's takeover of reinsurance rival Benfield Group is the respective firms' facultative reinsurance operations.

Ratings agency Moody's Investors Service has affirmed the A3 insurance financial strength (IFS) ratings of Flagstone Reinsurance Ltd and its Flagstone Reassurance Suisse SA following the firm’s move to centralise its operating platform in Switzerland.

SCOR has had its Insurer Financial Strength (IFS) rating upgraded a notch to A by Fitch Ratings as the agency said the French reinsurer's past legacies are unlikely to return to haunt it.

Slow-moving Fay is expected to make a fourth landfall in Florida after becoming just the fourth storm in recorded history to hit the state's peninsula with tropical storm intensity three separate times.

Premium growth in the emerging markets of Eastern Europe saw Vienna Insurance Group post a 34 percent increase to EUR288mn in its first half profits.

Amlin plc became the latest (re)insurer to report a drop in profits as a result of the difficult investment climate.

Strong underwriting performance boosted overall profits at Australian insurer QBE Insurance Group during the first half of 2008.

Run-off specialist Enstar has completed the acquisition of failed (re)insurer GoshawK Insurance Holdings plc after securing ownership or offer acceptances for 89.4 percent of its issued shares.