June 2009/4

RAA: $58bn in US premium ceded offshore in 2008; AWAC launches side 'A' D&O excess product; Ace enters $500mn LOC agreement with Deutsche Bank; Heath Lambert gains two new clients

Donald MacDonald, the deputy managing director of Willis' UK reinsurance unit, has resigned, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Ratings agency Fitch has downgraded its Insurer Financial Strength ratings for Brit Insurance Holdings' principle insurance subsidiary - Brit Insurance Ltd (BIL) - to 'A' from 'A+'.

Offshore domicile Guernsey has seen a significant increase in enquiries relating to setting up captive and insurance cell operations in the last three months, chief executive of Guernsey Finance Peter Niven told The Insurance Insider.

Former Gen Re executive John Houldsworth was handed two years' probation and ordered to pay a $5,000 fine but was spared a custodial sentence for his role in a fraudulent $500mn reinsurance deal...

The US Supreme Court has reinstated an approximate $500mn settlement in an asbestos lawsuit against US insurance giant The Travelers Casualty Companies (Travelers).

Air France will give about EUR17,500 ($24,000) as an advance to the families of victims on Air France Flight 447 from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, which crashed on 1 June.

The head of Swiss Re's capital markets unit has become the most high profile casualty in the ongoing overhaul of the reinsurer’s insurance-linked securities (ILS) operations...

President Barack Obama's far-reaching proposals to overhaul US financial regulation were given a cautious welcome by interest groups anxious to avoid formal federal oversight of the sector.

The schedule of the already delayed Equitas v Brandywine LMX spiral clash in the UK High Court suffered a further setback last week, after expert underwriting witnesses failed to give evidence for undisclosed reasons.

The on-off takeover saga of Lloyd's insurer Chaucer took a decisive step forward today with a formal, all-paper offer by rival Brit Insurance this morning, but its modest terms has provoked Russian-backed private equity firm Pamplona Capital...

Results from The Association of Insurance and Risk Management (AIRMIC)'s inaugural directors' and officers' (D&O) benchmarking survey has revealed variations of up to 30 percent in prices and terms for similar firms.