excess mortality

According to Artemis’ sources, Swiss Re now looks likely to make just under $151 million in reinsurance recoveries from its mortality catastrophe bonds, with a 100% recovery anticipated for the $120 million Vita Capital VI deal and a recovery already thought made under the Matterhorn Re mortality cat bond notes.

The threat of loss to investors in mortality catastrophe bonds has increased in recent weeks, with Swiss Re’s Vita Capital VI deal marked down for a near total loss and one of the Matterhorn Re cat bonds sponsored by the reinsurer has seen its maturity extended, as mortality estimates have risen again, Artemis has learned.

The secondary market price for the Vita Capital VI Limited (Series 2021-1) mortality catastrophe bond transaction that was sponsored by global reinsurance firm Swiss Re has dropped, with the market seemingly anticipating an increasing chance of losses being paid under the terms of the notes.

According to our sources, the Vita Capital VI Limited (Series 2021-1) mortality catastrophe bond transaction that was sponsored by global reinsurance firm Swiss Re, is viewed as at-risk of attaching after preliminary data showed an increase in weighted mortality rates in 2022 for the US and the UK.

Hannover Re made an additional recovery from its pandemic retrocession arrangement in the third-quarter of 2022, as the long-standing capital markets backed mortality swap continued to demonstrate its value for the firm.

Hannover Re benefited from an increased recovery under its long-standing capital markets backed mortality swap arrangement by the end of the first-half of 2022, with the financial benefit from the retro hedge reaching EUR 88 million by the end of the period.

Global reinsurance firm Hannover Re has been placing tranches of mortality swaps into the capital markets for almost a decade and in recent quarters this strategy has paid off for the company, as its COVID pandemic losses drove its mortality rate higher and triggered recoveries under the swap arrangements.

According to Artemis’ sources, the issuance of a $100 million mortality catastrophe bond, sponsored by Securian Financial Group life insurance subsidiary, Minnesota Life Insurance Company, has now been cancelled after investor feedback related to concerns over COVID-19 pandemic related exposure.

Securian Financial Group life insurance subsidiary, Minnesota Life Insurance Company has returned to the insurance-linked securities (ILS) market to sponsor its second mortality catastrophe bond transaction, seeking another $100 million or more of capital markets backed extreme mortality reinsurance with a La Vie Re Limited (Series 2021-1) issuance.

Swiss Re has successfully upsized its new Vita Capital VI Limited (Series 2021-1) mortality catastrophe bond transaction to $120 million, just below its revised upper-end target for the deal.