Catastrophe bond news

Managers of large multi-asset class investment funds are showing signs of concern that correlation levels between asset classes may break down, with their portfolio adjustments suggesting a shift towards assets that can protect investments.

Global insurance and reinsurance broker Willis Group has expanded the reach of its Willis Capital Markets & Advisory (WCMA) unit by opening a new office in Sydney, Australia, to support the firms Asian expansion ambitions.

Rating agency Standard & Poor’s had to consider three unmodelled perils when applying a preliminary rating to the latest catastrophe bond to come to market, U.S. primary insurer Chubb’s $225m East Lane Re VI Ltd. (Series 2015-1) multi-peril cat bond.

CGSC North America, part of the independent Cooper Gay Swett & Crawford global wholesale, underwriting management and reinsurance broking group, has hired a senior appointment in its business development team to focus on the reinsurance convergence market.

Trading of catastrophe bonds in the secondary market was a little slower last week, with just four bond trades recorded by FINRA’s TRACE system. However the focus remains on higher coupon cat bonds, as some investors snap up any that are offered in the market.

The Kane SAC Limited Note Program has facilitated another private catastrophe bond issuance, with the issuance of a $50.2m 2015-1 series of insurance-linked notes that have also been listed on the Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX).

Here are the ten most popular news articles, week ending 22nd February 2015, covering catastrophe bonds, ILS, reinsurance capital and related risk transfer topics. To ensure you never miss a thing  subscribe to the weekly Artemis email newsletter updates.

While some areas of the mainstream media and certain financial experts continue to describe catastrophe bond investors as yield hungry, this simplistic view ignores the benefits the insurance-linked asset class can bring to a portfolio.

Cyclone Marcia has undergone a period of rapid intensification as it approaches the Queensland, Australia coastline, with forecasters now predicting a Category 5 landfall with wind gusts as high as 180mph anticipated.

Challenge and its variations are words used frequently in the Swiss Re annual results documents and letters to shareholders. The reinsurance firm clearly feels the market pressures, as all reinsurers do, but it feels well positioned to meet one challenge in particular, that posed by abundant capital.