October 2009/1

Hong Kong-based investment company Primus Financial Holdings headed the consortium that won the battle to acquire AIG's Taiwanese life insurance unit, Nan Shan, for $2.15bn.

Achieving $3-4bn total ILS issuance for 2009 will be "quite a stretch" but "attainable", as a number of trends converge to boost interest in cat bonds in the fourth quarter, according to reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter (GC) and its capital markets arm GC

AJ Gallagher's London operation confirmed it has hired the trade credit team that defected from former HCC-owned broker Rattner Mackenzie before the entity was sold to Guy Carpenter - a move first revealed by The Insurance Insider.

Typhoon Melor has caused substantial disruption to a number of companies in Japan, after making landfall on 8 October near the city of Nagoya, with winds of 139 kph (86 mph).

North American commercial property and casualty insurance renewals are still at "deeply depressed rates", according to the latest Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) Benchmark Survey of Q3 activity.

Verisk Analytics - the holding company for the family of risk analysis and assessment firms that includes ISO and modelling firm AIR Worldwide - has staged a successful initial public offering (IPO) of shares.

An unimpressed Buffy sees third party capital on the rise in 2010...

Four ex-General Re executives have reached settlements in the civil action over a sham finite reinsurance transaction involving the Berkshire Hathaway-owned reinsurer and American International Group (AIG).

Despite the uncertainty thrown up by the Scottish Lion ruling, administrator PricewaterhouseCoopers is pushing ahead with the proposed solvent scheme of arrangement for Minster Insurance Company.

The scheme of arrangement for insolvent UK insurer Folksam that was first recommended in 2002 is set to be formerly proposed to creditors "within weeks", The Insurance Insider understands.

Mining conglomerate BHP Billiton - which experienced heavy losses in 2008, primarily as a result of flooding in Australia - has decided to self-insure for property and business interruption risks.

Expansive insurers Ironshore and CV Starr have continued to build out their platforms in the US.