August 2015/3

Share price data on The Insurance Insider's universe of P&C (re)insurers

P&C (re)insurance stocks traded up last week as The Insider 30 climbed by 0.64 percent, outperforming the FTSE100 and Euro Stoxx 600 but on par with the performance of the S&P 500.

American International Group (AIG) has lost a bid to minimise its exposure to a potential £11mn professional indemnity claim, in what has been dubbed a landmark ruling in the UK's Commercial Court.

Flood Re is one step closer to implementation after the UK state-backed entity started the on-boarding process that ensures industry participants have the information and access required to test the programme.

UK watchdog the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has published its final version of the Senior Insurance Managers Regime (SIMR), which will introduce what experts have described as a far more complex set of rules for insurers.

Global reinsurers shrugged off cyclical market pressures during the second quarter, as a number of carriers bolstered their top lines despite ongoing softening of pricing and terms.

Operating returns for Bermudian (re)insurers flattened during the second quarter, as a number of non-cat and smaller cat losses hit the bottom line.

Bermudian carriers booked varied top-line movements during the second quarter, although it was clear that (re)insurance market pressures were felt across the board.

Short-tail carriers reported contrasting top line movements in Q2 as Validus and RenaissanceRe benefited from recent diversifying acquisitions while Lancashire booked significantly lower gross written premium (GWP), in part because several multi-year contracts were not up for renewal.

Returns for the short-tail (re)insurers slid well below their five-year average in the second quarter as a sharp drop in underwriting profits was only partially offset by an improvement in investment results.

Underwriting results sharply deteriorated in the second quarter for The Insurance Insider's shrinking composite of short-tail specialists as compounding rate reductions combined with an above-average period for losses.

Mike Millette's new investment vehicle, Hudson Structured Capital, is expected to target a range of reinsurance sectors as well as transport structured finance, sister publication Trading Risk reported last week.

Miller Insurance Services partner Simon Clarkson is set to join AJ Gallagher's specialist energy insurance brokerage Alesco, The Insurance Insider has learned.

Quindell names CEO; Montpelier Re loses Pollett; NAIC signs Bermudan MOU; Kuwait Re under review; Indonesia plane found; Catco strengthens;  PRA cyber questionnaire; Heritage to write in NC; Integro adds aviation division; Prima Italian quake bond; Torus US appoints CEO; GRP moves into UK retail; Iranian sanctions lifted

The global commercial insurance market saw its ninth consecutive quarter of rate softening in Q2, although some specialised lines are still holding their ground, according to a new report by broker Marsh.

The Turkish Catastrophe Insurance Pool (TCIP) will close its Bosphorus cat bond on target at $100mn, after having earlier indicated it might expand the bond to $200mn.

State National expects that Nephila will use less of its capacity in 2015 than previously forecast, as it reported $3.2mn in ceding fee income over the second quarter from the fund manager

Catco's London-listed Catco Reinsurance Opportunities Fund has delivered a 4.47 percent increase in net asset value during the first half of the year, compared to 4.3 percent in H1 2014.

The auction of Wells Fargo's $600mn-surplus US crop insurer could offer Bermudian carriers diversification that will help them fight against dwindling reinsurance returns and narrowing global specialty insurance margins.

The Australian government is considering creating a reinsurance pool as a way to reduce home, contents and strata insurance for cyclone-prone regions in Northern Australia.

Willis Re has hired Keith Lippmann and Brian Flasinski from Guy Carpenter's Philadelphia office just weeks after being raided by its larger rival in the city for a trio of senior executives, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Validus can front business for PacRe to allow the hedge fund reinsurer to access business without a rating, CEO Ed Noonan told The Insurance Insider.

Lloyd's is close to making an application for an insurance licence in Tanzania, following a market group tour of east Africa, The Insurance Insider has learned.

Montpelier Re's Lloyd's CEO Richard Chattock and head of global property treaty Paul Hopwood are among the senior departures from the Bermudian following its $1.9bn acquisition by Endurance, The Insurance Insider can reveal.