ILS

Bermudian reinsurer Alterra has announced an initial net pre-tax loss of $60mn to $100mn as well as a potential $25mn cat bond exposure from the Japanese earthquake and tsunami

This year's catastrophe losses in the traditional reinsurance markets have created an opportunity for the cat bond market, Willis Capital Markets & Advisory says in a first quarter update on the insurance-linked securities (ILS) sector.

Serial (re)insurance entrepreneur Don Kramer is talking to institutional investors about opportunities in the insurance-linked capital markets sector, The Insurance Insider's sister publication Trading Risk revealed.

Bermuda-based retro and industry loss warranty (ILW) fund Aeolus is raising additional capital to deploy ahead of the US wind season, while its corporate restructure is on track to complete later this year, according to sources.

Cat bond traders expressed satisfaction with secondary trading liquidity in the immediate aftermath of the 11 March Japan earthquake, with many spying yield opportunities in distressed bond prices.

Alterra has doubled the capacity of the latest incarnation of its New Point sidecar with a $100mn kick-start from private equity firm Stone Point Capital in order to exploit the improving retro market.

Start-up collateralised reinsurer Catco is raising more money to invest in the upcoming mid-year renewal season and says it does not expect any losses on 2011 catastrophes to date

Global reinsurance broker Aon Benfield has launched an earthquake model for Cyprus, which the firm said helps to bridge a gap in the market where no viable alternative models exist.

Alterra Capital Holdings has launched the first post-Japan property catastrophe sidecar in partnership with private equity firm Stone Point Capital and up to $200mn of committed capital

Raising new funds could be a challenge for many collateralised reinsurers as questions remain over how much of their capital has been tied up in recent disaster losses, Willis Re said in a report on the April reinsurance renewals.

The 11 March Tohoku earthquake and tsunami appear set to activate a number of cat bonds providing second-event cover, including Swiss Re's Vega Capital 2010, Flagstone's Montana Re 2010 and Platinum's Topiary Capital.

Japanese carrier Zenkyoren is likely to receive the full $300mn coverage from its Muteki catastrophe bond for losses suffered in the Tohoku earthquake, according to Moody's.