October 2008/2

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.

Speakers at the Isle of Man Captive Conference last week (10 October) expressed cautious optimism about the future of captives in the face of the current financial turmoil.

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.

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

The latest reported Hurricane Ike loss estimates have revealed continued industry pessimism about the eventual bill to be paid from the September storms.

As the (re)insurance industry gears up to report Q3 financials, earnings are expected to be dominated by deteriorating investment performance and continued catastrophe losses, this time from US hurricanes.

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.

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.

A survey of senior level members of insurance brokerage firms carried out by market data provider Advisen suggests that most brokers are "very confident" or "somewhat confident" in AIG after the $85mn federal bail-out, and only a small percent are advisin

Janet Edey and Mathew Carr, two underwriters with 35 years experience in D&O between them, have been appointed as joint leaders of Novae's Syndicate 2007 management liability unit.

Expansive Lloyd's insurer Hardy Underwriting Bermuda Ltd has hired a five-strong team from HSBC that will bring renewal rights to a portfolio of high net worth property business.

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).

The global stock market crash has caused Yamato Life insurance, Japan's nearly century old insurer, to file for bankruptcy last week with Yen 269.5bn ($2.7bn) of liabilities.

Bermudian-headquartered run-off specialist Enstar Group Ltd has announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Royston Run-Off Ltd, has won the race to buy Unionamerica Holdings Ltd, the discontinued UK-based operations of Travelers for $343.4mn.

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.

Ratings agency Standard & Poor's (S&P) has downgraded four cat bonds guaranteed by failed investment bank Lehman Brothers, signalling further contagion of the financial sector crisis in the insurance linked securities (ILS) market.

Troubled Australian insurer Insurance Australia Group (IAG) is continuing to seek potential buyers for its Singapore-focussed Lloyd's operation Alba, with AMTrust and Asia Capital Reinsurance Group (ACR) thought to have expressed an interest in the platfo

WR Berkley has hired an American International Group (AIG) financial institutions duo, The Insurance Insider understands.

Embattled US insurer American International Group (AIG) has borrowed $70.3bn on loans from the US government in the three weeks since its initial $85bn bail-out, according to reports.

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

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

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

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.