securitization

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission has issued a letter providing no-action relief to insurance-linked securities (ILS) and catastrophe bond issuers seeking exemption from being treated as a commodity pool operator.

Recent proposals from the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), regarding tightening of money market fund (MMF) regulations, could impact the catastrophe bond and insurance-linked securities market. Most cat bonds, ILS and many collateralized reinsurance transactions utilise money market funds as collateral assets.

Yesterday, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enacted a rule as part of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act, or JOBS Act, which lifts the ban on general solicitation and marketing for investment funds and Rule 144A securities offerings. The change means that these once private offerings can now be broadly marketed as long […]

Back in October we wrote about an issue that had arisen which could affect issuers of catastrophe bonds and insurance-linked securities due to changing regulation in U.S. financial markets. Under the Dodd-Frank Act the definition of a ‘commodity pool’ was being expanded to include any entity which operates to trade in swaps. At the same […]

Once again the changing regulatory environment under Dodd-Frank brings some uncertainty to the insurance-linked securities (ILS) market. The latest stems from the Dodd-Frank Act’s expansion of the definition of a ‘commodity pool’ which can now be read to include any entity which operates to trade in swaps. At the same time the definition of a […]

Property catastrophe rates and reinsurance prices have been rising, particularly in loss affected lines of business, however despite the heavy catastrophe losses of 2011 we’re not really seeing the hard market that many predicted. In a recent post on the Willis Group blog Bill Dubinsky of Willis Capital Markets & Advisory raises an interesting point; […]

Standard & Poor’s has issued a press release which provides commentary on their approach to rating medical benefit linked securitization transactions such as the Vitality Re Ltd. and Vitality Re II Ltd. deals which were issued on behalf of insurer Aetna. The commentary provides some information on the factors that S&P consider during their analysis […]

Swiss based boutique finance and investment house Secquaero Advisors Ltd. has won an award for their successful securitization of  a €60m closed block of existing in-force unit-linked life insurance policies. The SQ ReVita transaction was completed in June this year and was seen as an innovative and secure transaction by investors and so received a […]

A new report published by ratings agency Standard & Poor’s suggests that the traditional life reinsurance market has been shrinking since 2003 and now participants in this market are seeking new, non-traditional ways to stimulate growth. Another trend which is leading S&P to suggest that non-traditional risk transfer could see growth in the life reinsurance […]

An open letter from the American Securitization Forum (ASF) to the U.S. government agencies concerned with the regulation of financial markets and the creation of the Dodd-Frank reforms requests that any new credit risk retention regulations should take into account the needs of niche securitization sectors. One of those niche securitization sectors mentioned in the […]