Hiscox’s Kiskadee reaches $1bn ILS assets target ahead of plan

Kiskadee Investment Managers, the Hiscox owned insurance-linked securities (ILS) fund and reinsurance linked investment strategies unit, has reached its target of $1 billion of ILS assets under management ahead of target, passing the milestone in June.

Specialist global insurance and reinsurance group Hiscox had expected that the Kiskadee platform would reach $1 billion of ILS and reinsurance linked assets at some point in 2016, but the rate of growth at the unit has exceeded expectations and Kiskadee Investment Managers AuM passed $1 billion around the recent June reinsurance renewal.

Helping Kiskadee to achieve this growth was the launch of a new private mandate, or fund-of-one, for a single institutional investor. This mandate resulted in an increase in overall AuM of almost $135m for the ILS investment management team at Hiscox.

Taking this new mandate into account, alongside the over $750m of assets in the two flagship Kiskadee funds, the Kiskadee Diversified Fund and the higher risk/return Kiskadee Select Fund, as well as the $100m or so in the Cardinal Re special purpose reinsurance vehicle, gives the manager more than $1 billion of ILS assets at this point.

Michael Jedraszak, CIO, Hiscox Re ILS, explained; “Our Kiskadee platform has reached $1bn (assets under management) ahead of plan and we’re pleased to see to see good growth across all our flagship funds, including the addition of a new mandate.

“Such further AUM growth underscores the appeal that the Kiskadee platform has to investors.”

Kiskadee Investment Managers and the Hiscox Re ILS team have been able to leverage the underwriting breadth and expertise of the Hiscox Group in order to gain access to risk from programs that may otherwise have been difficult to underwrite, as well as to bring some interesting risk combinations to its investors.

“We are delighted to have been able to harness the capabilities embedded in the Hiscox Group to build innovative products with significant investor appeal,” Jedraszak said.

The steady growth since launch at Kiskadee has been impressive, reflecting significant ongoing investor appetite for the Kiskadee funds and strategies, with the Hiscox relationship clearly an attraction for investors.

Kiskadee more than doubled its assets managed in 2015, rising from $400m at the January 2015 reinsurance renewal to $850m at the January 2016 renewal season, and now hitting its $1 billion target less than half-way through 2016.

With further opportunities for growth likely to come through the rest of the year and at the January 2017 reinsurance renewals it will be no surprise to see the AuM figure climb further at Kiskadee.

Also read:

– Hiscox Re underwrites 37% more premiums for Kiskadee in Q1 2016.

– Hiscox expects $1bn+ of ILS assets for Kiskadee in 2016.