The track record of private insurance-linked securities (ILS) fund strategies continues to attract greater attention, and while capital raising is more challenging in private ILS and blended strategies, in comparison to pure catastrophe bonds, conditions in this part of the market continue to improve, according to industry experts at the Artemis ILS NYC 2026 conference.
Artemis’ tenth conference in the ILS NYC series took place in New York on Friday, February 6th, 2026, and was attended by more than 450 people, with the majority of the ILS market represented.
The opening panel was moderated by Lorenzo Volpi, Deputy CEO and Managing Partner, Leadenhall Capital Partners LLP, who was joined by Jessica Laird, CEO, Nephila Capital; Michael Stahel, Partner/Portfolio Manager, LGT ILS Partners Ltd.; Eveline Takken-Somers, Head of Insurance Linked Investments, PGGM; and Dr. Raffaele Dell’Amore, Investment Managing Director, Global Head ILS Research, Cambridge Associates.
Panellists discussed the impressive track record of private ILS placements, highlighting that, despite market softening, the premium environment remains healthy. Ultimately, speakers expect the strong performance of the private ILS space to persist as long as portfolio discipline is maintained.
It was also noted that capital raising is still more of a challenge in private ILS and blended strategies when compared to pure catastrophe bonds, but panellists emphasised that conditions are improving, noting that the track-record of private ILS fund strategies is now attracting more attention.
The importance of transparency and trust in building investor confidence was also discussed, as was the need for continued client education in order to win private ILS allocations.
To hear more about private ILS market conditions and what drives interest from the investors base to this segment of the market, watch the full video from the Artemis ILS NYC 2026 conference.
