June 2008/1

Arthur J Gallagher International has welcomed aboard Simon Matson, who was due to join the firm’s new joint venture onshore/offshore "boutique" energy subsidiary on 2 June, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Trading risk platform Insurance Futures Exchange Services (IFEX) is to facilitate margin trading during the North Atlantic wind season - in a move that may encourage greater activity on the derivative exchange.

Berkshire Hathaway was not immune to the twin assault of the softening market and credit fallout as first quarter net profits dropped by around 64 percent to $940mn.

Although RBS' preference is to sell its insurance operations in one fell swoop, The Insurance Insider understands that it is considering listening to offers valuing the broker-only insurer NIG at around £500mn.

The London market is reporting lighter sub-prime related claims experience than US insurers, due mainly to its "limited US portfolios", according to senior market sources.

The world's two largest reinsurers continue to divide analysts over their prospects as they look to ride difficult underwriting conditions and exposure to the wider global economic and credit environment.

Lloyd's publicly traded insurers echoed the themes emerging in Q1 results from their US, Bermudian and European (re)insurance rivals with a flurry of May trading statements that talked of softening rates, pressure on investment returns and higher than...

The insurance linked securities (ILS) sector is a rare jewel that stands out from the credit market turmoil, according to market leaders speaking at Trading Risk's inaugural Executive Briefing event last month.

London market brokers have been "named and shamed" over their failure to adopt a key electronic initiative that could speed up the payment of premiums from brokers to (re)insurers.

With almost $1bn of cat bond capital issued in May and another $500mn+ in the pipeline, the market is buoyant once again after the slow start to 2008

Benfield has confirmed a tie-up with Michael Cash that sees it invest $50mn in a fund managed by the former RenaissanceRe executive focussing on the collateralised catastrophe reinsurance and insurance linked securities (ILS) markets.

Former Quanta Syndicate among targets as Bermudian continues search for Lloyd's platform