cyber ILW

Given the enormous economic loss potential associated with cyber risks, rating agency Standard & Poor’s feels it inevitable that insurance and reinsurance firms will look to both the government and capital markets to help in boosting available cyber risk capacity.

Global insurance and reinsurance group Allianz has been testing out the securitisation of cyber risks and there transfer to capital markets investors, but the firms CFO explained recently not to expect an explosion of such activity, as it is “not priority number one.”

Reinsurance giant Munich Re aims to keep a 10% share of the growing global cyber marketplace and so far says that alternative sources of capital are not impinging on the cyber sector, with little competition seen from ILS market sources.

We’re delighted to have partnered with the Institute of Insurance Economics at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland to promote and publish a survey on the transfer of cyber risks using insurance-linked securities (ILS).

Leading international insurance and reinsurance firm MS Amlin, part of the MS&AD group, is investing in cyber reinsurance MGA Envelop Risk.

Norsk Hydro has said today that its costs from the cyber attack by malware or ransomware are estimated at up to US $41 million just from the first week since the event occurred.

Norsk Hydro, one of the world’s largest aluminium manufacturing firms, was hit by a cyber attack recently, as malware or ransomware caused the company to shutter and reduce operations at a number of locations.

The Finance Minister of Singapore has announced the launch of the world’s first commercial cyber risk pool, a facility for providing cyber insurance to corporate buyers in the Asia region that is expected to be backed by both insurance-linked securities (ILS) and reinsurance.

Global catastrophe risk modeller, AIR Worldwide, has announced the development of a new probabilistic cyber model that market participants state will reinforce their ability to develop and deliver innovative solutions such as cyber ILWs and insurance-linked securities (ILS) for cyber risk.

The enhancement of the PCS Global Cyber Index to include cyber catastrophe is in response to client demand, and is another positive step in helping the international risk transfer industry both understand and address the growing cyber threat.