November 2006/3

Hiscox $360mn sidecar Panther Re receives rating; Alchemy Partners looks to Lime Street for gold; R&SA in line with Q3s; buys UK agency; Endurance pulls out of offshore energy; UK trial date set for ‘Independent Three’; FSA accepts sidecar applications...

Creditors for all 16 of the participants in the proposed WFUM pool scheme of arrangement met in London on 27 October.

Willis Group Holdings became the latest of the international brokers to respond to the post-Spitzer pinch, announcing the loss of 400 jobs as part of an efficiency drive on 25 October.

Despite the whispers of smooth-talking bankers, merging two insurance companies is rarely easy – and this is often multiplied in the case of Lloyd’s insurers where management egos and the existence of obdurate Lloyd’s Names add further complications.

Marsh Inc’s chief executive Brian Storms parted company with another senior executive early in November as the broking giant announced it was to make its President William (Bill) Malloy redundant.

Start-ups and pre-emptions suggest 2007 expansion