November 2007/3

The proposed Scheme of Arrangement for Sphere Drake, part of the WFUM pool, was sanctioned in the UK High Court last week (6 November).

UK corporate financier Sir Laurie Magnus said the British government needs to reduce Britain's corporation tax rate to around 20 percent to ensure the City retains its status as a world (re)insurance hub.

Financial markets have been gripped by a new wave of fear in recent weeks, with Wall Street reacting to concerns about monoline bond insurers’ exposures to sub-prime losses, which could spark a credit crisis across the municipal bond market...

Administrators of loss-hit Kamp Re 2005, Zurich Financial Services' (ZFS) catastrophe bond, are believed to have filed a partial loss on the bond last month, invoking the option to elect a 36 month extension period on the original maturity date of 14 Dece

London-based brokers Benfield Group and Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) saw their share prices drop at the back end of last week after being hit by weak equity markets.

American Financial Group, Inc (AFG) is to become a significant capital provider to the Lloyd's insurer Marketform Group Ltd, and its Syndicate 2468 in 2008, Insider Week can reveal.

French (re)insurance giant AXA posted life and savings new business volume of EUR5.6bn in the first nine months of 2007, up 26 percent on the previous year’s nine months, or 10 percent on a comparable basis...

Insurance giant American International Group (AIG) reported operating results for the third quarter below analysts’ expectations, compounded by losses in its AIG Financial Products (AIGFP) division, which suffered a $352mn pre-tax charge on credit default

German giant Allianz saw a 20.7 percent hike in third quarter net profits to EUR1.92bn, despite a fall in operating profits, driven by catastrophe losses in its property and casualty insurance business.

Allianz continued its strategic stake-building in the UK distribution chain this month, with confirmation that it has acquired a 10 percent minority share of Yorkshire-based broker The Oval Group, as predicted by The Insurance Insider in September.

Investors approved of Kiln's decision last week to return £60mn of capital to shareholders - part financed by the sale of its 20 percent interest in US insurer WR Berkley's European operation.

Tawa plc, the UK quoted run-off consolidator owned by the French billionaire Francois Pinault, acquired the US firm PXRE Reinsurance Co (PXRE US) last week from parent Argo Group International Holdings Ltd in a $114mn transaction.