November 2005/5

Bermudian (re)insurer XL Capital today (1 December) announced mammoth capital raising plans which will see it sell $2.15bn in ordinary shares along with $650mn from an offering of equity security units.

UK listed broker Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc (JLT) has ended its year-long search for a new group chief executive with the internal appointment of Dominic Burke to the position. In an announcement this morning (1 December), the company also...

Despite assurances by senior management that XL Capital would fight to hold on to its ratings, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) dealt the company a blow late Monday (28 November) with the news that it was downgrading the (re)insurer by a notch.

Chances of 2005 profit slim, as 2006 capacity up 7 percent to £14.7bn Losses to the Lloyd’s market from the trio of devastating hurricanes this year will top $5bn, according to latest estimates revealed early this morning (30 November).

Lloyd's reinsurer Advent Capital has agreed a £15mn unsecured debt facility with a US investment bank in addition to the heavily discounted £30mn equity issue the firm announced last week.

Last Wednesday (23 November) saw a gala night of charity white collar boxing as The Insurance Insider, hosted “A Hard Market?” on behalf of the London insurance industry. Staged at the Honourable Artillery Company in London the night featured nine...

Lloyd’s insurer Ascot has reacted swiftly to the loss of former non-executive Richard Brindle to Bermudian start-up Lancashire with the appointment of two new non-execs, Ian Martin and Martyn Hedley. Former broker Hedley is a veteran of 40 years in...

European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes has delayed her inquiry into commercial insurance markets until next year because of the renewal season. Kroes, who announced in June that she was to examine business insurance practices, has said her...

Numis Securities has upgraded its earnings forecasts on Lloyd’s (re)insurers Amlin and Hiscox following their plans to form Bermudian (re)insurers. In a research note, Numis analyst Nick Johnson said he viewed the decisions “to expand outside...

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has written a letter to the CEOs of broking firms in order to “remind you of your responsibilities to implement appropriate processes to enable your firm to manage conflicts of interest effectively”.

The fast-expanding broking group Integro Ltd has established a London market foothold with the acquisition of Lloyd’s broker Humphreys Haggas Sutton & Co. As predicted by The Insurance Insider in September, Integro has completed the purchase the...

Lord Levene used his ‘Chairman’s View’ lecture to the Insurance Institute of London speech at Lloyd’s on 24 November to announce a three-year strategic plan for market reform to be published next January. The chairman also used his lecture to warn the...