October 2008/2

London and international broker Thompson, Heath & Bond has appointed John Goldsmith, former chairman of the London (re)insurance broker Dennis M. Clayton (now part of Towers Perrin), as non-executive director of the firm.

Start-up energy specialist insurer Torus Insurance Holdings Ltd has confirmed the appointment of Clive Tobin as the Group's CEO, effective 1 January 2009, as revealed by The Insurance Insider in June.

A US congressional committee criticised former AIG executives last week during a hearing to examine the regulatory mistakes and financial excesses that led to the $85bn September bailout of the insurance giant.

A fundamental disagreement over the issue of mandatory commission disclosure lies at the heart of last week's decision by the London Market Insurance Brokers' Committee (LMBC) to break away from the British Insurance Brokers' Association (BIBA) and form a

Shares in Swiss Re and XL Capital rebounded today after a week when the legacy of expansion out of traditional (re)insurance into areas worst impacted by the credit crisis decimated shareholdings in the companies.

London and international broker HSBC Insurance Brokers Ltd. has opened a branch office and received regulatory approval from the QFC Authority to provide insurance broking services to corporate customers within Qatar.

Jardine Lloyd Thompson has announced that Warren Dann will join its Global Risk Solutions (GRS) division as sales leader on 16 October.

The notional value of the global weather derivatives market has tripled in three years to $32bn for 2007-8 and is expected to see 30 percent annual growth "for the next several years", according to a report from the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Aon Ltd, the UK operation of the Chicago-based global broking giant, has agreed a deal to buy niche trade broker Supercover Holdings Ltd, as it continues to snap up specialist firms to boost distribution.

A UK commercial court judge continued to weigh up issues of fraud definition and jurisdiction as both sides in the long-running dispute between Randall and Quilter (R&Q) affiliate Cavell USA and private equity-owned Seaton Insurance Co and Stonewall Insur

A financial report from Atlas partners LLP has alluded to factors that point to the end of the soft market.

Global stock indices rebounded from their spiralling falls last week on news of a central bank co-ordinated rescue plan to provide emergency funding to countries hit by the credit crunch.