October 2006/3

Price Forbes Ltd, the London-based international wholesale operation owned by Marsh & McLennan Companies Inc, has been spun-out of the broking giant via a management buy-out, The Insurance Insider revealed on 21 September.

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.

Review recommends freeing up of agency agreement and sidecar-style Names’ syndicates Lloyd’s has unveiled plans to overhaul its annual venture in a bid to tackle complaints that its current structure adds costs and restricts management flexibility.

But dollar fluctuations continue to deliver mixed results to bottom line figures

Leading brokers Marsh and Aon have highlighted concerns over a rapidly softening UK professional indemnity (PI) market.

Up to $500mn of retrocessional capacity will be withdrawn from the market following the completion of Swiss Re’s acquisition of GE Insurance Solutions earlier this year.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

This month, The Insurance Insider has two reasons to celebrate. It is not only our 100th issue – a feat in itself – but also ten years since the publication was born.

Paris-based investment bank Calyon has completed a $63mn securitisation, Pinnacle, once again demonstrating the industry’s growing enthusiasm to sell-on risk to the capital markets.

Aon Re Global appears to have pulled off a coup with the hiring of Elliot Richardson, currently head of facultative reinsurance at rival Benfield Group, to run its global Fac operation.

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.

The Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) decision to look more closely at brokers’ commission disclosure has been broadly welcomed by the London market.