May 2007/2

Bermudian (re)insurer Validus Holdings Ltd has increased the size of its pending initial public offering (IPO) to $350mn following its $382.2mn acquisition of Lloyd’s based Talbot Underwriting Holdings.

Lloyd’s announced today (6 June) that it is to return to the debt markets with a benchmark issue of between £300-500mn in Tier 1 perpetual subordinated debt.

Shareholders in Alea Group Holdings (Bermuda) Ltd failed to support the increased offer from the US private equity firm Fortress Investment Group (FIN) in a vote on 21 May, but the company said the deal...

Munich Re is leading an innovative $110mn reinsurance programme for the World Bank-sponsored Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF), which goes on risk for 16 countries in the region today (1 June).

Hiscox’s chief operating officer and G6 chair Sue Langley is leaving the insurer to join Lloyd’s as director of Market Operations and North America.

Swiss Re is to sell the UK life operation it acquired as part of its takeover of GE Insurance Solutions (GEIS) in 2006.

Paris Re, the former reinsurance arm of AXA Re, has confirmed plans to list on the Paris based, European Stock Exchange, Euronext, a year after it was acquired by a consortium of private equity firms.

Rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has updated its insurance capital model to include an explicit allowance for diversification.

Seven insurers have reached a $2bn settlement with World Trade Center developer Larry Silverstein bringing to an end more than five years of litigation between the parties.

Bermudian start-up Ironshore Insurance Ltd has confirmed its approval to write property, property catastrophe and casualty insurance on an excess and surplus basis in Florida, as first revealed by Insider Week on Monday (21 May).

A temporary restraining order has been issued against Bermudian (re)insurer Arch Capital Group (Arch) over its poaching of a 30-strong property fac team from US rival General Reinsurance Corporation (Gen Re), The Insurance Insider can reveal.

Ironshore Inc has confirmed its entry into the professional liability sector with a US platform, a move predicted by The Insurance Insider earlier this month.

Shareholders in Alea Group Holdings (Bermuda) Ltd will vote on an increased offer from Fortress Investment Group (FIN) next Monday (21 May) of 96.5p a share as the reinsurer's suitor attempts to fend off a rival bid.

The industry’s thirst for alternative reinsurance capacity continues to grow with the $120mn issue of notes under a $500mn shelf programme providing Swiss Re with retrocession cover for Japanese typhoons.

Smaller shareholders in Alea Group Holdings (Bermuda) Ltd may have got their wish with the news that the failed reinsurer has received an approach that might lead to a higher offer than the 93p a share offered by Fortress Investment Group (FIN).

Bermudian start-up Ironshore Insurance Ltd has taken its first step to a US presence after being approved to write property and catastrophe insurance on an excess and surplus basis in South Carolina.

Bermudian (re)insurer Validus Holdings Ltd has agreed terms for its acquisition of Lloyd’s based Talbot Underwriting Holdings, as predicted by The Insurance Insider.

RenaissanceRe is set to launch a second Starbound Florida-dedicated sidecar as evidence emerges that the impact of the state's hurricane catastrophe fund expansion earlier this year may be less severe than first feared.

Former Royal & Sun Alliance (R&SA) US subsidiary, Royal Indemnity, has been ordered to pay defence costs in its increasingly acrimonious asbestos dispute with General Motors (GM).

After a pause caused by events in Florida, the industry is again repackaging its risks onto the capital markets. Indeed, the number of shelf registrations reflects the vibrancy of the ILS market...

First quarter results from the big three brokers met with a mixed response, as Aon and Willis found favour for growing revenues and profits, while Marsh & McLennan Companies, Inc (MMC) traded down on sluggish results.

US insurers Chubb Corporation, The Hartford and WR Berkley reported profits up and premiums down for the first quarter of 2007, while the longevity of Travelers’ continued growth was also questioned.

Although the hard market has passed its peak, rates remain broadly stable in non-life reinsurance, according to German reinsurer Hannover Re.

Bermudian reinsurer, Paris Re has appointed underwriters as it prepares an initial public offering (IPO) later this year which could value the firm at $2-3bn, just one year after it was bought out from AXA SA.