October 2006/3

A tsunami is expected to hit northern Japan and Russia today (15 November), the US Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has warned.

Munich Re, the world’s second largest reinsurer, raised its full year earnings forecast and announced its first ever share buy-back today (7 November) as it became the latest industry carrier to benefit from the benign claims season.

US and EU Legal Developments

Lloyd’s post-Equitas open year liabilities increased by £0.3bn last year and have become the “elephant in the room” of UK run-off, according to Philip Grant, chairman of the Association of Run-off Companies (ARC).

Broker announces further restructuring with 750 job cull Marsh & McLennan Inc (MMC) revealed on 19 September that it is mulling the sale of its Putnam Investments subsidiary.

In a strategic volte-face, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc (JLT) announced last month the sale of its US property casualty and employee benefits operations to Alliant Insurance Services Inc for $100mn (£53.3mn) little more than three years after revealin

Bermuda-headquartered Catlin Group confirmed on 27 September that it is entering into a catastrophe swap agreement that would provide it with coverage of up to $200.25mn for global natural catastrophes.

In addition to Thunderbird Re, Lloyd’s syndicates may have a new form of exclusive contingent capital available to them for next year in the form of a Bermuda domiciled special reinsurance vehicle, Syncro Ltd.

Despite the growing popularity of sidecars, executives in the London market are not convinced about their merits, according to findings by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) for its 2006 London Insurance Market survey.

Energy underwriters face further pain out of last year’s devastating KRW hurricanes with at least $1bn of additional pipeline losses still to come through.

Up to $500mn of retrocessional capacity will be withdrawn from the market following the completion of Swiss Re’s acquisition of GE Insurance Solutions earlier this year.

The French investment bank IXIS is raising funds to float a new $1bn company on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM) to invest in the burgeoning insurance-linked securities sector.