Archive for December, 2023

At a time when assets under management (AUM) have been climbing across alternative investment strategies and investors are carefully assessing their allocations and attracted to diversifying assets, the insurance-linked securities (ILS) niche has come out as top performer of the hedge fund world, Preqin has said.

With 2023 on-track to set a new record high for catastrophe bond issuance of over $15 billion, global reinsurer Swiss Re has explained how investor appetite is driving this trend and that the capital flows are helping to stabilise the reinsurance market.

R&Q Insurance Holdings Ltd., the specialty player that is planning a return to its original legacy insurance and reinsurance focus by selling its program business unit Accredited, has again spotlighted the importance of its legacy sidecar Gibson Re to the new strategic plan, but noted that access to third-party capital is critical.

Beazley has now successfully priced its debut 144A cyber catastrophe bond issuance, with the PoleStar Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) deal confirmed to provide the company with $140 million of cyber reinsurance, while the notes priced within but at the top-end of initial guidance.

Beazley, the London headquartered specialty insurance and reinsurance underwriter, remains on target to secure $100 million in reinsurance from its first ever Rule 144A property catastrophe bond, while pricing has moved towards the top-end for the Fuchsia 2023-1 issuance.

At the January 2024 reinsurance renewals, the expectation from market participants in Bermuda is that the areas that will see the greatest pressure on rates will be in the higher layers and retrocession, while the European catastrophe reinsurance renewals are expected to see increases, analysts at KBW have said.

Building codes in Florida are seen as a significant factor in reducing the potential insurance industry loss from hurricanes, with improvements in recent years seeing modelled loss estimates drop, reinsurance broker Lockton Re said this morning.

As we reported recently, US headquartered insurance holding company W. R. Berkley Corporation has continued to expand its Lifson Re collateralized reinsurance sidecar vehicle, which has been a key lever for the firm’s growth into property catastrophe risks at an attractive time in the cycle.

Interesting news as Vanbridge, a diversified insurance and capital solutions company owned by program specialist and broker EPIC, and GreensLedge, a global investment banking and advisory specialist, together launched an alternative letter of credit (LOC) facility tailored specifically for casualty insurance programs.

The marketplace for parametric insurance and reinsurance is expected to remain stable in 2024, while activity levels are anticipated to be buoyant, according to broker WTW.