February 2004/3

US insurer Allstate narrowly beat analysts’ projections as it announced a 71 percent increase in net income per share and a 22 percent rise in operating income per share for the fourth quarter 2003.

Willis Group finished 2003 with a healthy organic growth of 15 percent for the year as it revealed total revenues had grown 20 percent to $2076mn.

Benelux financial services group Fortis announced a $22 per share price for the IPO of its US insurance unit, Assurant on Thursday (5 February) last week.

Allianz Australia agreed last month to pay A$120mn to the creditors of HIH, the Australian insurer which collapsed in 2001 with debts of around A$6bn.

A new report by Risk Management Solutions (RMS), a provider of products and services for the management of catastrophe risk, estimates that approximately $1.8bn of catastrophe-linked securities were placed in 2003, with the trend towards innovative transa

Swiss Re has agreed to buy the life insurance business of Chicago-based CNA for $690m in cash.

Accounting irregularities have been found at the predecessor firm of China Life, the Chinese life insurance company that held the world's largest IPO in December 2003.

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has issued prohibition orders against six former directors of the European division of Chiyoda Fire and Marine Insurance, now known as Aioi Insurance Company of Europe Limited.

Lloyd’s insurer SVB has launched a new specialist service company, Novae Underwriting, to target the UK SME liability market.