Liberty Mutual has announced the successful renewal of its expiring Limestone Re 2018-1 placement, securing $240 million of reinsurance capacity from the capital markets for its U.S. property catastrophe program and global treaty property reinsurance business.
The new transaction, which utilises the Limestone Re capital markets platform, is comprised of $135 million of Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) listed 2019-2 notes issued by Limestone Re, a Bermuda domiciled segregated account company. The remainder of the capacity has been provided by private placements.
James Slaughter, Executive Vice President (EVP) and Chief Underwriting Officer (CUO) of Liberty Mutual’s Global Risk Solutions strategic business unit, said: “This result reaffirms the quality of risk which insurance-linked securities (ILS) investors can access via Limestone Re. The risk quality, matched to the Company’s global reach and excellent track record, continues to differentiate Limestone Re as a partner of choice for ILS investors.
“Third-party capital will continue to be a growing presence in the (re)insurance market, and the Limestone Re platform remains an integral component of Liberty Mutual’s strategy for accessing this capital.”
The transaction successfully replaced the expiring Limestone Re 2018-1 placement, and had an overall lower target size as a result of a revised portfolio composition.
Liberty Mutual announced that it completed a $150 million Limestone Re sidecar transaction in January, 2019.
Arno Gartzke, Vice President and Director ILS, Liberty Mutual commented: “The continued support from our key capital markets partners enabled a successful placement despite a challenging ILS market, and provides a robust foundation for the Limestone Re platform going forward.
“The strong performance of previous Limestone Re placements relative to the broader ILS market through 2017 and 2018 is reflected in this solid base of support.”
