June 2013/3

US reserves adequacy has continued their long-term decline, studies of the 2012 year end US statutory Schedule-P filings reveal

Rating agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has outlined its view of the common causes of failure at insurance companies based on its experience covering the sector.

Investors should be mindful of the "book value headwinds" created by rising interest rates, according to JMP Securities analyst Matt Carletti.

Only three representatives of the giant continental reinsurers made it to the top 50 this year, with Swiss Re CEO Michel Lies placing 31st with total compensation of $7.2mn and Scor CEO Denis Kessler ranking 43rd with total pay of $5.9mn.

Only one broking executive was among the industry's top 10 earners this year, with the retiring Brian Duperreault of Marsh & McLennan Companies making it to seventh place.

The CEOs of the quoted London market (re)insurers were rewarded with substantial increases in remuneration last year after their companies reported strong 2012 results, combined with increased share prices.

The total remuneration of the 16 CEOs in our Bermuda composite grew by 38 percent in 2012, bringing the total to $128mn, according to data compiled by The Insurance Insider.

The 50 highest paid executives in our universe of publicly listed P&C (re)insurance carriers and brokers earned total compensation of $497mn in 2012, almost $10mn on average per person, our annual four-page survey reveals...

We analyse all the major capacity changes on the Citizens' 1.6 programme...

After the summer sales in Florida, with rates typically slashed by 15-20 percent, catastrophe reinsurers are returning to something like normality with the renewal of Australian cedant Suncorp, which looks set to renew its vast cat treaty at a risk-adjusted rate reduction of around 5 percent.

QBE underwriter Thomas Beasley is set to move from the insurer's flagship Syndicate 386 to Amlin, where he will reunite with former QBE colleague Martin Boreham.

Liberty Syndicates is in line to pick up M&A underwriter Richard Winborn from Zurich Financial, The Insurance Insider understands.