June 2005/2

Fellow Lloyd's insurers Hardy Underwriting Group plc and Omega Underwriting Holdings plc remain in merger talks despite the failure of two approaches.

Jeremy Pinchin, the head of Reinsurance and Claims at the Society and a senior member of the Franchise Performance directorate, has resigned from Lloyd’s.

Switzerland based (re)insurer Zurich Financial Services (ZFS) has appointed Jane Tutoki as its new group chief claims officer for the general insurance business.

The Association of Lloyd’s Members welcomed the possible arrival of English Limited Liability Partnerships as an alternative investment vehicle for private Lloyd’s investors at its national conference last week.

Reinsurance broker Benfield Group has warned that 2005 profits will be lower than last year because of an increasing cost base.

The FBI has placed insurance fraud high on its agenda because of the size of the industry, according to its 2005 Financial Crimes Report released last month.

Ratings agency AM Best has upgraded the financial strength rating of London (re)insurer QBE to "A" (Excellent) from "A-" (Excellent) and the company's issuer credit rating to "a+" from "a-", citing a stable outlook for both ratings.

American International Group (AIG) disclosed last week that Howard I Smith, the company's former chief financial officer, has resigned from its board.

A positive trading update from Lloyd’s (re)insurer Wellington was enough to give the company’s share price a small fillip to close up 4.61 percent at 107.75p Wednesday last week.

A week after publishing a relatively upbeat trading statement, London-listed Bermudian Alea had its "A-" AM Best financial strength rating and "a-" credit rating put under review with negative implications on Friday (10 June).

French reinsurer SCOR last Friday (10 June) announced restructuring plans, reflecting the change in its profile brought about by the so-called “Moving Forward” plan actioned by the group in August last year to continue its recovery.

FM Global announced last week its first involvement with catastrophe bonds after Goldman Sachs placed a $300mn bond covering earthquake activity in the Northwest region of North America.