September 2003/4

Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has criticised proposed International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) describing them as costly to implement and likely to lead to greater earnings volatility.

Troubled French (re)insurer SCOR has rallied against AM Best after having its financial strength ratings downgraded last Wednesday, as the industry continues to lay down battle lines between itself and ratings agencies.

Post-9/11 start-up Endurance officially opened the new offices of its FSA licensed London subsidiary on Friday morning (12 September).

As delegates gathered in Monte Carlo last Tuesday (9 September), Lord Levene, Chairman of Lloyds called for a return to underwriting for profit to stabilise and strengthen the international insurance industry.

Buyers and sellers in the reinsurance industry expect rates in some short tail business to fall in 2004, according to a Europe-wide survey by Aon, the world’s largest reinsurance broker.

Five insurance companies filed suit in the US last week against a host of alleged WTC conspirators ranging from Osama bin Laden to the Saudi government.

Bermudian reinsurer Partner Re faces “only modest” claims from Hurricane Fabian, the category 3 storm which struck the island on 5 September.

Recently announced Lloyd’s liability start-up Illium Syndicate 4040 is on the fast track to making its underwriting debut after deciding to buy a majority stake in the existing Lloyd’s managing agency of run-off specialist Omni Whittington.

Lloyd’s insurer Advent Capital (Holdings) plc revealed a welcome return to profit after the devastations of the 2001 underwriting year.

Lloyd’s insurer SVB showed signs of a continuing turnaround last week, announcing a trebling of operating profits and combined ratio recovering to below 100 percent.

Senator Orrin Hatch has not given up on his asbestos reform proposals and believes the measure may still make it to the Senate floor this year, despite being overshadowed by Iraqi funding, energy policy and Medicare concerns.

Against the backdrop of US tort reform, some US insurers are lobbying to increase Equitas’ burden of asbestos claims, warned the run-off reinsurer’s new chief executive Scott Moser last week.