January 2006/4

Lloyd’s insurers Talbot Underwriting and Cathedral Underwriting have pointed out that they have not currently agreed to back the $250mn+ London market space consortium being supported by Liberty Syndicates, despite the suggestion to the contrary in...

World’s biggest insurer American International Group (AIG) announced last night (18 January) that its executive vice chairman and chief operating officer Donald Kanak is leaving the company at the end of the month, after less than a year in the role.

Seven changes are expected to Converium’s board of directors when shareholders meet in April for the company’s Annual General Meeting.

Swiss Re is planning to shed 10-15 percent of its workforce after completing the takeover of GE Insurance Solutions (GEIS) in a $7.6bn deal.

French reinsurer SCOR has hinted at a strong renewals season saying the group has improved its "positioning" by experiencing "satisfactory conditions on all the markets (excluding the United States) on which the Group operates".

Insurance giant ZFS is mulling over a significant German acquisition, according to sources. The Zurich-headquartered firm – which has been widely tipped to participate in M&A activity this year – is thought to be considering a mid-tier...

Management at HCC have confidently predicted that the firm will achieve, or better, its consensus earnings of $2.55 per share for 2006.

Hurricane-hit US insurer Allstate has trebled the cost of its reinsurance programme from $200mn to $600mn as it changes strategy to prevent a repeat of 2005’s losses having the same negative impact.

Allied World Assurance Company’s (AWAC) move towards independence has cost it a ratings downgrade amid rumours that it is set to become the last of the so-called “Class of 2001” to go public with an IPO.

On 1 January Richard Harrison was promoted to divisional managing director for marketing. Harrison was joined by executive director Malcolm Kingsbury, assistant director Mark Hennis, sales director Steve Horner and chief...

The International Underwriting Association (IUA) has set up a network for the project managers driving the London (re)insurance market towards contract certainty.

Reinsurance broker Benfield Group predicted better than expected revenues for 2006 on the back of rising reinsurance rates in 2006 and 2007. In a 12 January trading statement, the broker said that it now expected 2006 turnover to grow...