Covid-19 news

The Covid-19 pandemic has compounded an already firming reinsurance market environment at the renewals, causing challenges in completing placements and driving double-digit Florida rate increases, according to Guy Carpenter.

Cat bond issuance has continued apace in recent weeks, with total catastrophe bond and related insurance-linked securities (ILS) issuance for 2020 so far now reaching almost $8.25 billion, according to Artemis’ Deal Directory data.

The CCRIF SPC (formerly known as the Caribbean Catastrophic Risk Insurance Facility) is set to extend discounts on premiums and other coverage benefits to certain of its members with the support of the World Bank, to assist them in continuing with their parametric disaster insurance protection, even despite the fiscal hits from Covid-19.

The German government is helping African countries to continue benefiting from parametric drought insurance protection under the African Risk Capacity (ARC), with around EUR 19 million being donated to help fund their participation during a time when fiscal budgets may be stretched by the pandemic.

Our latest video interview is with Niklaus Hilti, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Credit Suisse Insurance Linked Strategies, who kindly joined us to discuss the current status of the ILS investment space and reinsurance market trends.

Expectations for further strong rate increases at the July 1st reinsurance renewals are clear, with analysts from KBW explaining that the market is discussing increases of between +5% to +15% for U.S. southeast property catastrophe reinsurance programs, with retrocession rates seen up even more at +20% to +25%.

Reinsurance pricing is expected to rise strongly at the July 1st 2020 renewals, with retrocession likely to be an area of particular increase, according to Lorenzo Volpi, Head of Business Development at Leadenhall Capital Partners LLP.

The insurance and reinsurance industry in Germany has reportedly come together to discuss and strategise the launching of a EUR 10 billion pandemic risk fund, to provide risk capital in the event of future pandemics, with insurance-linked securities (ILS) one of the funding avenues being explored, it has been reported.

Lancashire Holdings, the specialty insurance and reinsurance group with a third-party capital management platform, is set to raise around $365 million through a share placement, citing opportunities in the currently hardening market environment.

This week our new video interview features RMS’ Jin Shah and Jeff Waters, who joined us to discuss the 2020 Atlantic hurricane season and how technology and analytics can help insurance, reinsurance and ILS market participants be better prepared and respond as storms threaten.