September 2005/4

Embattled UK quoted reinsurer Alea Group Holdings (Bermuda) Ltd has cancelled a rescue fund raising plan following AM Best’s decision on 23 September to downgrade the firm’s financial strength rating from A- to B++.

Three Japanese insurers will receive large cash settlements from Deloitte & Touche LLP because of the company’s auditing role in the collapse of controversial US aviation reinsurance company Fortress Re.

The world's largest insurer AIG yesterday (20 September) released its estimated catastrophe losses for the third-quarter, primarily due to Hurricane Katrina, of around $1.1bn post-tax.

Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has downgraded its rating on Lloyd’s reinsurer Advent Underwriting following news that its losses from Hurricane Katrina are equivalent to 40 percent of its total capacity.

First hints of Katrina litigation and political pressure on insurers The first evidence of the likely upcoming political pressure against insurers to pay claims in the wake of Hurricane Katrina became evident last week when Democrat Mississippi...

Industry legend Maurice “Hank” Greenberg gave his strongest hint yet that he plans to return following his ousting from insurance giant American International Group Inc in March. In an interview with Reuters last week, the 80-year old said...

But hurricane season far from over... Hurricane Ophelia will create insured losses of no larger than $800mn, according to the latest estimates from catastrophe modelling firm AIR.

Morgan Stanley analyst William Wilt has advised investors to remain selective as new capital opportunities arise with (re)insurers in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. In a research note released on 13 September Wilt warned that “trading on reinsurers...

Recent estimates from the US Minerals Management Service (MMS) have revealed the continuing impact of Hurricane Katrina on oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico.

Stephen Way, CEO of HCC Insurance Holdings, has hit out at (re)insurers for publishing inaccurate loss estimates in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Speaking to Insider Week, Way said it was a “cop out” for certain companies to report their market...

As the reinsurance industry converged on Monte Carlo for the annual reinsurance Rendez-Vous last week, conversations seldom strayed far from Hurricane Katrina. But amidst the champagne and conjecture, there was a general consensus that rates would...

New York attorney general Eliot Spitzer has formally charged eight former Marsh & McLennan executives after an investigation into bid rigging and price fixing. William Gilman-executive marketing director and enforcer of Marsh’s placement service...

Margins up at Equitas On 12 September, Insider Week stated that Equitas’ insolvency margin had increased. This was incorrect. The opening paragraph of the story should have read: Equitas announced its annual results for the year ended 31 March 2005...

Arab Insurance Group (ARIG) announced the formation of Islamic reinsurer Takaful Re today (19 September) with $125mn of paid up capital and up to $500mn of authorised capital. Based in the Dubai International Financial Centre, Takaful Re will be the...

Chaucer announced record interim results today (19 September) with pre-tax profits up 79 percent to £35.8mn for the six months ending on 30 June 2005. The results were well ahead of forecasts and largely due to excellent performance in the motor...

Bermudian reinsurer Montpelier Re acted swiftly to restore its Hurricane Katrina battered balance sheet by raising some $600mn from selling its stock at $24 per share. The “class of 2001” reinsurer saw its share price plummet 17 percent...

The former GoshawK chief executive Chris Fagan is set to acquire the run-off Bermudian reinsurer Overseas Partners Re Ltd (OP Re) with backing from Japanese private equity house Nikko Principal Investments Ltd.

AM Best has become the latest ratings agency to reassess its stance on (re)insurers affected by Hurricane Katrina. Its most significant move was to downgrade the financial strength of Olympus Re to B+ (Very Good) from A- (Excellent), while...

Broker Glencairn has today opened a new South African office in Johannesburg and launched a new company providing a broking service to Southern African clients. The move follows Glencairn’s 2003 management buy-out from Glenrand MIB group, since...

Lloyd’s-backed electronic data transfer platform Kinnect unveiled a double whammy last week in the form of the resignation of Toby Davies and Iain Saville as CEO and executive chairman respectively.

Following a mandated 12 September deadline to provide loss estimates, Lloyd's vehicles have continued paint a picture of the scale of the claims they are facing. Meanwhile other (re)insurers, led by those based in Bermuda, have begun to release...

Berkshire Hathaway looks set to acquire Sompo Japan Insurance Inc’s run-off portfolio, Insider Week can reveal. According to sources, Berkshire Hathaway has trumped UK run-off acquisition specialists Ruxley Ventures who had tabled an alternative...

London headquartered reinsurance specialist BMS Group has appointed Andrew Harrris as the new chief executive of its Singapore based operation, BMS Asia Intermediaries Pte Ltd.