February 2010/4

German reinsurers Munich Re and Hannover are understood to have exposure to the 15 February head-on collision between two passenger trains in Belgium.

Within three years of his death, Oliver Cromwell's body was being violently disinterred and the Stuarts were restored to the throne. It was almost as if...

Although last week's agreement between the "big three" brokers and US state regulators came close to abolishing Spitzer, contingent commissions look unlikely to ever recover to 2004 levels.

BMW today (22 February) announced a £3bn transfer of longevity risks from its UK pension fund, with reinsurance support provided by a consortium including Hannover Re and Partner Re.

Despite a modest investment setback in Q4, Fairfax Financial Holdings (FFH) added almost a third to its book value in 2009 as workers' compensation underwriter Zenith National Insurance (ZNT) was unveiled as its latest takeover target.

In an unexpected move, Endurance founder Kenneth LeStrange confirmed last week he will be replaced as CEO by his underwriting lieutenant David Cash, as the Bermudian (re)insurer basks in record results for 2009.

Bermuda continues to take steps to match regulatory frameworks in rival jurisdictions by releasing details on how it proposes to introduce group supervision.

Axis Capital could tolerate a full $399mn loss on its exposure to Blue City bonds - but Moody's has warned that additional losses from its credit/political risk book could cause a downgrade of its financial strength ratings.

Omega's long-running boardroom showdown became more personal in the last week when the firm named names in a strongly worded shareholder circular ahead of its upcoming special general meeting (SGM), and then reacted strongly to rating agency moves.

London is waiting to see where the next blow will fall after medical malpractice specialist Marketform acknowledged a $48mn adverse development in its Italian book of business earlier this month.

Credit default swap (CDS) spreads have widened in recent weeks for some (re)insurers identified with significant exposures to government bonds.

Sluggish rates, surplus capacity and depressed market valuations are deterring private equity from investing in the P&C (re)insurance sector, so the new $150mn investment by Corsair Capital is particularly notable.