AXIS Capital’s third-party capital partner fee income continues to rise

AXIS Capital, the global specialty insurance and reinsurance underwriter, has seen the fee income it earns through third-party strategic capital partner arrangements continue to rise in the third-quarter of 2026, with insurance-linked securities, quota share and the new Capacity Solutions division all contributing.

Recall that, in 2025 AXIS Capital benefitted from leveraging alternative capital through partnerships with third-party investors, with these activities generating $54 million of ILS style fee income for the company last year.

Then, in the first-quarter of 2026, AXIS Capital reported a year-on-year increase in strategic capital partner fee income, which reached $23 million, up from $16 million in the prior year period.

In the second-quarter of 2026, AXIS reported that fee income from third-party capital partner initiatives rose again to $22 million, compared to $20 million in the prior year.

Now, for the third-quarter of 2026, AXIS Capital reported that fee income from its so-called strategic capital partner activities reached $23 million, up from $19 million in the prior year.

For the first nine months of 2026 the fee income figure reached $67 million, compared to $55 million for the nine months ended September 30th 2025.

There’s been a steady increase every quarter for the last year or so now, as AXIS Capital has expanded activities with third-party capital providers.

One source of fee income is AXIS’ partnership with insurance sector focused investor Stone Point on the casualty sidecar structure Monarch Point Re launched in 2023, after a more than $400 million capital raise.

AXIS has continued to launch new underwriting entities to support Monarch Point Re, the most recent being collateralized insurer Monarch Point Re (ISA 2026) Ltd. launched for the current underwriting year.

AXIS reported the carrying value of its investment in the Monarch Point Re casualty sidecar like structure as having increased to almost $82.7 million as of September 30th 2026, up from almost $77.4 million at June 30th and almost $73.3 million at the end of March.

Which does suggest the Monarch Point Re sidecar is proving profitable for AXIS, as its equity stake valuation continued to increase, which likely suggests attractive returns for Stone Point as the investor behind the structure as well.

In Q3 2026, of the $23 million, of third-party capital feel income earned, $18 million was recognised by AXIS as a reimbursement of general and administrative expenses in its reporting.

The company said the increased fee income is helping to drive down the G&A expense ratio, a trend which has now been visible over a number of quarters as the ILS and third-party capital activities benefit the company’s financial results.

Once again this quarter, the AXIS Capacity Solutions business unit, which began operating in 2025, is also mentioned as a fee income driver.

AXIS Capacity Solutions works to develop structured and multi-line portfolio solutions at scale for capital partners, which is one way AXIS has been increasing its use of alternative capital to grow its business.

After the first-half of 2026, the AXIS Capacity Solutions division was reported to have contributed $338 million of gross written premium, with the company saying this new reinsurance capital helps optimise its net exposure and lower its balance-sheet volatility.

Now, after the third-quarter, the premium contribution to growth from AXIS Capacity Solutions has risen to $449 million, from open brokerage and selective delegated opportunities.

The company continues to expect $17 million of full-year fee income from the Capacity Solutions activities.

During the AXIS Capital third-quarter 2026 earnings call, CEO Vince Tizzio commented, “Through our AXIS Capacity Solutions capability, also known as ACS, we are matching our specialty underwriting knowledge with third-party capital. This is enabling us to serve clients with greater capacity while generating fee income for AXIS.”

CFO Matthew Kirk further stated on third-party capital activities at AXIS, “Fee income in the quarter was $23 million, including $18 million, which served as an offset to G&A expense, and $5 million reported as other insurance-related income. This compares to $19 million of fee income in the prior year quarter. Note that the G&A offset derives from ILS vehicles and ACS-related fee income.”

Utilising third-party capital within the business has been a driver of income for AXIS Capital and as one of the first-movers in areas such as casualty reinsurance sidecar structures the firm is well-positioned to continue finding new ways to harness investor capital within its business.