German and global reinsurance player Munich Re has registered a protected cell insurance vehicle on the island domicile of Malta.
The Times of Malta first reported that the reinsurer registered a protected cell company a few weeks ago, which would be able to underwrite re/insurance business, and that this could provide Munich Re with a route to getting licence to operate as an insurer from the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA).
Munich Re already operates from Malta as a reinsurer, with an office on the island from which it underwrites multiple classes of reinsurance.
The Times of Malta could not source comment from Munich Re representatives on the island.
The vehicle, Munich Re PCC Limited, was registered on the 29th May and received approval to underwrite insurance business on the 15th June.
The Munich Re PCC is registered to underwrite two classes of business; life & annuity insurance, or so-called linked long term policies, which are life insurance arrangements often linked to collective investment schemes.
Protected cell companies allow for segregation of assets or liabilities, so have been used to enable multiple transactions to be effected in different cells of the same vehicle, but can also be used as an efficient vehicle through which to underwrite insurance or reinsurance for a single beneficiary company.
