December 2001/1

A Tidal Wave of Capital - David Schiff pours on the cold water The capital markets are efficient - in an irrational way. Capital flows towards opportunities that offer superior returns. Paradoxically, those superior returns can fail to materialise if t

As corporates reinforce their dominance of the capital base, the number of syndicates falls below 100 with Names facing a realistic chioce of twenty The Lloyd's market for 2002 is beginning to take shape. Some managing agents have taken advantage of th

Reinsurance is back in favour and, with generous subsides, Zurich's unwanted R/I division should enjoy a successful floatation. For sale. One reinsurance company no longer wanted by owner. Embarrassing exposures to Unicover after failed fronting arrang

English can often be misleading, so we have rustled up a guide to aid understanding to the minefiled of Lloyd's business jargon. This month it's the opaque business desription:

Zurich deny cover on WTC shopping mall Zurich are denying they insured the WTC shoping mall after the leaseholder Westfield America Inc claimed for losses arising from the 11 September attacks.

Equitas are still facing a rising tide in asbestos claims according to their results for the first six months of 2001.

Unsurprisingly, syndicates specialising in aviation and property excess of loss have demonstrated the worst deterioration in forecasted results since the 11 September attacks, according to research by Leadenhall Insurance Consultants.

The Munich Re subsidiary American Re has reported a net loss of $506.5mn for the third quarter of 2001.

Lloyd's insurer Goshawk is doubling its size and establishing a £100mn capitalised Bermudian reinsurer Goshawk Re to exploit the post 11 September market.

Fresh from its dispute with Lloyd's, Moody's has been attacked by Hannover Re after downgrading the reinsurer from Aa3 to A2.

A week after Axis Specialty confirmed it had raised $1.6bn and will begin underwriting from its Bermuda base in December, its chief executive John Charman and his former employers ACE have settled their dispute over Charman’s termination agreement.

Wellington Underwriting plc has announced that the Group's managed syndicate 2020 plans to double its underwriting capacity to $1bn for 2002, and that the Group was examining the options available to raise the capital needed to support the growth of the b