September 2006/2

Lloyd’s this morning announced half-year pre-tax profits of £1.35bn – marginally down on the £1.38bn booked at the same stage last year – as strong underwriting results in benign conditions were offset by a fall in investment income.

Highfields continues SCOR sidecar dispute; Spitzer drops key Greenberg charges; Fairfax restates; ACE acquires minority stake in Russian Re; AM Best removes Hannover Re from review; Greenlight Re receives Best rating; et al

The growing interest in acquiring non-life insurance businesses in run-off was demonstrated by two major sales last month coupled with the emergence of a new corporate investor looking to profit from parent companies keen to offload unwanted subsidiaries.

If Converium can sell-off its discontinued US arm, Converium North America, then it may spark an upgrade by Standard & Poor’s back to the longed-for A- territory.

Levene makes tax call for London’s competitiveness; Beazley boosts cat capability with Berkshire Hathaway tie-up; Gibson returns to Highway; LMA launches wordings repository; Fitch affirms Lloyd’s A rating; et al

UK professional indemnity (PI) rates are under pressure and nowhere is this more keenly felt than solicitors’ PI.

The hard-pressed retrocessional sector – which was decimated by 2005’s storm losses – is now dependent upon securitised capacity for 30-40 percent of its market, a figure likely to reach 50 percent by the end of next year.

With the limitations of traditional reinsurance pushing cedants to look for other options they must get comfortable with their understanding of the basis risk associated with the alternatives, according to Rolf Tolle...

Reinsurers who fail to meet the challenge of cycle management risk being downgraded, said rating agency Fitch as it released its report on the sector at the beginning of September.

Analysts offered a muted response to SCOR’s interim results despite a 42 percent rise in net profits at the French (re)insurer, sending the share price of the company down 6 percent.

Marsh & McLennan and Willis Corp revealed last month that US regulators have eased restrictions on them charging contingent commissions, or Placement Service Agreements, when the broker is acting as agent of the (re)insurance seller, rather than as a repr

Two months after Jardine Lloyd Thompson’s (JLT) proposed takeover of rival Heath Lambert fell through, analysts have turned their attention to the quoted UK broker’s prospects as an independent entity.