March 2007/2

Insured losses from Hurricane Dean will be in a range of $0.75-1.5bn substantially less than first feared due to the storm’s “extraordinarily fortunate track”, according to modelling firm Risk Management Solutions (RMS).

Integro Ltd, the US insurance broker formed in response to the regulatory scrutiny in to the broking industry, is to recruit between 50-100 executives to build a new global wholesale and facultative reinsurance group, The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Strong performance from Lloyd’s insurers in calm cat conditions has led the Society to report pre-tax 2006 profits of £3.7bn for the market.

Yesterday’s (27 March) closing of the Equitas deal with Berkshire Hathaway has already begun to pay dividends for Lloyd’s, with Fitch Ratings upgrading its insurance financial strength rating on the Society from A to A+.

Xchanging, the outsourcing firm which runs the London market’s back office, has confirmed its plans to float on the London Stock Exchange.

Lloyd's insurer Hardy Underwriting Group has revealed that it will stay in London, but that the possibility of moving to a low tax jurisdiction remains firmly in its sights.

The spectre of asbestos has returned to haunt reinsurance giant Munich Re as it revealed in its full annual report this morning (20 March) a $600mn strengthening of loss reserves for related claims.

Ark Syndicate 4020 has become the latest start-up to gain Lloyd’s approval, with 2007 stamp capacity of £114mn and backing led by Jeff Greenberg’s Aquiline Capital Partners LLC.

Lloyd's has received the long-awaited approval for its new Chinese onshore reinsurance operation from regulators today (14 March).

Kiln plc has become the latest Lloyd’s company to announce plans to redomicile in Bermuda and launch an insurer on the island.

Guy Carpenter has become the latest reinsurance broker to launch an index-based property catastrophe reinsurance product as an alternative to traditional risk transfer.

Aon Re Global has agreed to pay Benfield Group £9.525mn to settle the litigation which sprang from the defection of Elliot Richardson, and his facultative team, last year.