Archive for June, 2021

Reports that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) might not challenge Aon’s acquisition of rival Willis Towers Watson (WTW) have turned out to be completely false, as the DOJ has now sued to block the merger, saying it would create a “broking behemoth” and stifle competition.

Lloyd’s, the London insurance and reinsurance marketplace, has secured a £650 million cover for its Central Fund, with £450 million of it provided by an investment bank and fully collateralised, according to a report.

Price guidance has fallen for the Wrigley Re Ltd. (Series 2021-1) catastrophe bond transaction, that is being issued to provide parametric earthquake insurance protection to Gryphon Mutual Insurance Company, a real estate captive insurer owned by investment giant Blackstone.

Insurance and reinsurance broker Aon has announced the launch of a new Florida hurricane catastrophe risk model developed by its specialist Impact Forecasting unit, as it seeks to provide an alternative view of the risk to market participants.

White Mountains is anticipating “measured growth” in 2021 from the insurance-linked securities (ILS) fund manager Elementum Advisors in which it holds a significant interest, according to its CEO Manning Rountree.

The acceleration of activity in the global catastrophe bond market over the last few months could now drive an opportunity for a number of multi-strategy investment funds to expand, as the availability of paper has increased even causing some investment managers to lift the shutters on closed funds, we understand.

Major insurance and reinsurance companies that had been pulling-back on peak US wind over recent years are being seen to stabilise their exposures in reaction to the higher-priced opportunity coastal risk presents, according to analysts and our sources.

Severe storms and flooding that impacted the Victoria region of Australia over the last week is likely to result in some reinsurance recoveries for the largest domestic insurers, with their natural hazards budgets all but used for the year.

Global reinsurance broker Lockton Re, part of the independent Lockton broking group, has named Jonathan (Jonty) Davies as CEO of its newly launched Bermuda office.

As climate change becomes a topic of increasing focus and with regulations poised to get tighter, the ability to customise parametric insurance solutions suggests that going forward, the product set is going to expand, according to industry experts.