Gallagher Securities, the capital markets and advisory division of Arthur J. Gallagher & Co., has reported rising institutional investor interest in insurance-linked assets, with investors increasingly favouring structures that offer scalability, transparency and direct participation in underwriting performance.
In its latest report, Unlocking Insurance Capital: The View from Investors, Gallagher Securities said 60% of surveyed investors expect to increase their allocations to insurance-related assets over the next two years.
The company noted that investors are placing greater focus not only on the amount of capital available, but also on the structure and deployment of that capital.
According to Gallagher Securities, catastrophe bonds continue to attract the strongest interest, with 79% of respondents planning allocations to the asset class. The company said investors are drawn to catastrophe bonds because of their standardised structures, defined downside exposure and post-event transparency, which support efficient scaling and clearer risk assessment.
Gallagher Securities also identified growing demand for sidecars and structured balance sheet solutions, with 53% of investors indicating plans to allocate capital to these structures. The report stated that these arrangements appeal to investors seeking closer alignment with underwriting outcomes and access to more specialised or less commoditised areas of risk.
Interest in direct investments into insurance company equity or debt was notably lower. Gallagher Securities found that only 21% of respondents were targeting these strategies, reflecting the higher operational involvement and governance considerations associated with ownership-based investments.
Jason Bolding, CEO of Gallagher Securities, said: “We’re in a market where capital wants access to high quality underwriting, and insurers want stable, scalable capacity. The value comes from building the bridge between the two.”
Gallagher Securities said investors continue to be attracted to insurance-linked assets because of their low correlation with wider financial markets, diversification benefits and ability to provide exposure to underwriting returns as a separate source of performance. The company added that many institutional investors now view insurance-linked assets as a longer-term strategic allocation within alternative investment portfolios.
The report showed that property catastrophe risk remains the leading area of investor interest, with 72.9% of respondents identifying it as a preferred line of business. Cyber risk ranked second at 27.1%, followed by casualty business at 22.9%, reflecting continued interest in diversification across insurance-related exposures.
Gallagher Securities said the insurance-linked investment market is becoming increasingly sophisticated, with investors placing more emphasis on transparency, governance and structure-specific return expectations.
The company noted that investors are now applying more detailed return benchmarks and allocation criteria across catastrophe bonds, sidecars and direct insurance investments.
Gallagher Securities and Gallagher Re said insurers are operating in a supportive funding environment in 2026, supported by growing pools of non-traditional capital across reinsurance, insurance-linked securities and private investment markets. The companies said insurers are increasingly incorporating alternative capital into long-term strategies alongside traditional reinsurance arrangements.
The findings were based on a Gallagher Securities survey of more than 60 institutional investors with existing exposure to insurance-related assets, together with a series of interviews conducted during late 2025 and early 2026.
