ILS

Reserve releases from a UK flood side pocket helped push Markel Catco's first-half returns up 8 percent year-on-year, the company said today.

Net profits at fronting carrier State National increased by 3.2 percent to $10.0mn in the second quarter, as ceding fees climbed by 3.3 percent to $16.9mn.

Plans to publish draft regulations for a UK insurance-linked securities (ILS) regulatory framework have been pushed back, The Insurance Insider has learned.

Glenn Jackson has joined independent broking house RFIB Group as a managing director of RFIB Americas

Endurance has attached its first layer of aggregate non-peak loss retro, said senior vice president of investor relations Gregg Schroeder on the carrier's second quarter conference call on Monday (1 August)

Validus recovered almost three-quarters of its Jubilee oil field loss from an industry loss warranty (ILW) payout, the carrier's second quarter results showed

Third-party investors in reinsurer sidecars and asset management platforms took a share of second quarter catastrophe losses, which in turn impacted the fee income of the managing carriers

A weather cat bond is being pitched to insurance-linked securities (ILS) investors for the first time since the late 1990s, sister publication Trading Risk reported last week

Validus expects the Jubilee oil field loss to cause industry losses of $1bn-$1.25bn and for rate increases to take place in the beleaguered energy market

Axis Capital increased its reinsurance cessions in the second quarter and has confirmed it is planning to expand its use of third-party capital

Tightening spreads on the cat bond market should lead to a pick-up in activity later in the year after a subdued second quarter, Aon Securities CEO Paul Schultz said in the company's latest insurance-linked securities (ILS) review.

Markel Catco said Canadian wildfire claims will lower the net asset value (NAV) of its Catco Reinsurance Opportunities Fund by 1 percent or about $3.5mn.