International Underwriting Association (IUA) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dave Matcham, has added his voice to concerned London industry players who say coming years will be crucial to strengthening London’s long-term relationship with emerging markets of Asia and Latin America, after the 2017 London Matters report revealed the city’s been falling behind in those regions.
The London Market’s share of emerging markets business premiums fell from $10.5 billion in 2013 to $9.3 billion in 2015.
Matcham noted that; “Clients naturally have a preference to buy locally if they can and many IUA member companies have increased their profile across a range of different markets in order to cater for this demand.
“However, London Matters shows that in recent years we have increased our already high share of global specialty markets, suggesting that for the most specialist risks our market is the place to look. As emerging economies mature their appetite for such cover will no doubt increase, so it is important that we push ourselves to reach beyond traditional markets.
“Similarly, London’s concentration of insurance expertise must be leveraged to innovate new solutions for emerging specialty risks. London Matters estimates that cyber premiums have grown by 74% over the past two years. If we can establish ourselves in the vanguard of such developing business, then our contribution to the global insurance industry can only be enhanced.”
The IUA – an avid supporter of the London Market Group’s agenda to promote business growth, said the data has uncovered real opportunities for the market to grow and develop into a global centre for specialised insurance business with a more diverse and dynamic workforce.
Matcham added; “London Matters 2017 reaffirms the importance of projects already underway to modernise and enhance our marketplace. I hope the report will serve as a warning that we should not relax our efforts, but rather reinvigorate our determination to succeed.”
