Best of Artemis, week ending 29th April 2018

Here are the ten most popular news articles, week ending 29th April 2018, covering catastrophe bonds, ILS, reinsurance capital and related risk transfer topics. To ensure you never miss a thing subscribe to the weekly Artemis email newsletter updates or get our email alerts for every article we publish.

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Ten most viewed articles on Artemis.bm, week ending 29th April 2018:

1. Munich Re forecast bodes well for those that reserved prudently
   Global reinsurance giant Munich Re yesterday came out with a forecast for its first-quarter 2018, saying that it expects to achieve a consolidated result for the period of over €800 million, which would be the most profitable start to the year the company has experienced since 2014.

2. Vegard Nilsen named CEO at Securis, Procter to focus on investments
   Securis Investment Partners LLP, the London-based ILS investment manager, has named long-standing employee and previous Chief Operating Officer Vegard Nilsen as the firm’s new Chief Executive Officer, while co-founder Rob Procter continues as Chief Investment Officer.

3. 2018 hurricane season forecast to be average by Weather Company
   There is some divergence between forecasts for the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season, with some forecasters opting for above average levels of storm activity, while others like the Weather Company are opting for something closer to an average season.

4. Blue Capital among ILS funds hit by hurricane loss creep in March
   Stock exchange listed ILS and collateralized reinsurance investment strategy the Blue Capital Alternative Income Fund, suffered a -2.62% loss in March 2018, as hurricane Irma loss estimates were increased by counterparties, a factor that has negatively affected a number of ILS funds for the month.

5. Alternative capital grew 17% in 2017, drives reinsurance capacity higher
   Alternative reinsurance capital was once again largely responsible for the expansion of global reinsurance capacity in 2017, as insurance-linked capacity grew 17% to $88 billion by the end of the year, outpacing traditional reinsurance capital significantly, according to Willis Re.

6. TransRe to sponsor first cat bond, a $200m Bowline Re Ltd. 2018-1
   Transatlantic Holdings, the parent to Transatlantic Reinsurance (or TransRe), is set to sponsor its first catastrophe bond transaction this year, with the launch to investors of a $200 million Bowline Re Ltd. (Series 2018-1) deal, that will provide the firm with collateralized multi-peril reinsurance coverage.

7. Universal to pass on $50m hurricane Irma loss creep to reinsurance
   Florida headquartered primary insurance company Universal Insurance Holdings is set to pass on another $50 million of losses from hurricane Irma to its reinsurance panel, after its gross loss exposure to the catastrophe event increased during the last quarter.

8. Cincinnati’s Skyline Re cat bond buffer eroded by convective storms in Q1
   The privately placed $180 million Skyline Re Ltd. (Series 2017-1) catastrophe bond is once again experiencing a rising risk profile, as severe convective storm losses from the first-quarter of 2018 have eroded some of the aggregate buffering layers and retention sitting beneath the cat bond.

9. AXIS cedes significantly more premiums to capital partners in Q1 2018
   Bermudian insurance and reinsurance specialist AXIS Capital Holdings Limited has continued the trend of placing an increasing reliance on its “strategic capital partners,” ceding a much larger amount of premiums to them in the first-quarter while at the same time earning increased fee income.

10. Just 8% of Asia-Pacific disaster losses insured, economic loss to hit $160bn: UN
    The United Nations forecasts that economic losses from natural disasters and weather catastrophes in Asia-Pacific will reach a stunning $160 billion per-year by 2030, underscoring the size of the protection gap and the need for greater risk capital support as just 8% of those losses are covered by insurance currently.

This is by no means every article published on Artemis during the last week, just the most popular, some of which were published over a week ago. There were 28 new articles published in the last week. To ensure you always stay up to date with Artemis and never miss a story subscribe to our weekly email newsletter which is delivered every Wednesday.

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