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).

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

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

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.

A joint venture between global interdealer broker ICAP and JLT Group has once again underlined the growing co-operation between the reinsurance industry and the capital markets in trading risk.

European giants Allianz, AXA and Zurich Financial Services (ZFS) reported strident 2006 figures and increased dividends as they benefitted from clement natural catastrophe conditions.

Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffett said that with falling rates in “super-cat” insurance as a result of the “flood of capital” post-Katrina, the company has “sharply reduced” wind exposures.

US giant American International Group (AIG) continued the capital management theme as it reported a rise in its 2007 net income and announced an $8bn share buyback scheme.

Bermuda’s Class of 2005 – the group of (re)insurers launched in the wake of Hurricane Katrina – will face tougher conditions than their predecessors as they look to broaden scope in response to limited opportunities in the property cat market.

After a month digesting unpalatable developments in the “Sunshine State”, the (re)insurance industry was at least served up a sliver of good news late February, as it emerged the Florida State Board of Administration...

Florida reins in cat fund expansion; GE loses asbestos claim; Scottish Re ‘disappointed’ with $233.8mn loss; US plans long-term TRIA extension; Greenberg appointed ACE chairman...

German reinsurer Hannover Re completed two more innovative securitisations that laid-off its recoverables and property catastrophe exposures to the capital markets.

The reporting season may have crossed the Atlantic from Hamilton to London but the pattern has remained the same as few catastrophes and low claims fuel record profits.

Hub International became the latest sizable broker to be acquired by private equity investors when the Chicago-headquartered firm agreed to a $1.7bn deal ($1.8bn including debt) with Apax Partners and Morgan Stanley.

Aon has confirmed the arrival of Steve Redgwell as head of broking for its Commercial Insurance division.

The renewed interest of insurers in obtaining UK brokers has pushed up the deal values in broker mergers and acquisitions (M&A), according to Deloitte.