25th April 2018
Willis Towers Watson, a global re/insurance advisory, broking and solutions company, has appointed Jim O’Connor as head of Specialties Broking, Jon Drummond as head of Casualty Broking, and Amelia Valz as head of Construction Professional Liability Broking, all for North America. These appointments are part of Willis Towers Watson’s ongoing investment ... Read the full article
25th April 2018
Insurance broker Marsh has announced a collaborative partnership with IBM, ACORD, and ISN, which will leverage blockchain technology to provide commercial solutions for proof of insurance. The companies believe blockchain technology will streamline the certificate of insurance process, which is currently manual, and allow clients to more easily hire contractors and ... Read the full article
25th April 2018
W.R. Berkley Corporation (WRB) has appointed James B. Gilbert as an Executive Vice President, and named Brian P. Douglas to succeed him as President of BerkleyNet Underwriters. Gilbert will now oversee a number of WRB's operating units, applying his 30 years’ experience in the property and casualty (P&C) re/insurance industry to ... Read the full article
25th April 2018
Swiss Re Corporate Solutions has launched a new global initiative in collaboration with World Bank Group member IFC, pharmaceutical and life sciences company Bayer, and irrigation manufacturer Netafim, which aims to support smallholders grow their farms into sustainable, commercially viable businesses. The initiative, called Better Life Farming, will offer risk transfer ... Read the full article
25th April 2018
Arch Credit Risk Services, a unit of Arch Capital Group, has agreed to provide Munich Re with mortgage credit assessment and underwriting advisory services on a multi-year basis. The services provided by Arch will relate to Munich Re’s involvement in Credit Risk Transfer programs offered by U.S state-sponsored loan companies The ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
The reported return on equity (RoE) for the Willis Reinsurance Index declined from 8% at the end of 2016 to 3.4% at year-end 2017, as higher natural catastrophe losses and a rising expense ratio contributed to diminished profitability, underlined by a combined ratio of 104.8%, according to Willis Re. The reinsurance ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
Tel Aviv, Israel headquartered cyber risk modeller, Kovrr, has announced the launch of a predictive cyber risk modelling platform for the property and casualty (P&C) insurance and reinsurance sectors, designed to enable re/insurers to better manage and underwrite cyber risks. According to Kovrr, on a daily basis it analyses millions of ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
International life and health reinsurer, Reinsurance Group of America (RGA), has announced the appointments of John J. Gauthier and Hazel M. McNeilage to its Board of Directors, effective July 2018. The pair join RGA as independent directors, and their addition takes the total number of RGA directors to 11. Gauthier brings almost 30 years ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
Bermuda domiciled insurer and reinsurer, Arch Reinsurance Ltd. (Arch) has entered into a reinsurance transaction with Catalina Holdings (Bermuda) Ltd subsidiary, Catalina General Insurance Ltd (Catalina), which sees the latter assume a portfolio of U.S. property & casualty (P&C) liabilities in run-off from Arch. The U.S. P&C legacy portfolio assumed by ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
Keefe, Bruyette & Woods (KBW) has reported that reserve releases in 2017 were much higher than expected, particularly in property & casualty (P&C) and workers compensation lines, calling into question the current reserve adequacy of many business lines and compromising underwriting results. KBW observed that at year-end 2017, the P&C industry’s ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
BMS Group Limited, an independent specialist insurance and reinsurance broker, has appointed Kristina Juul and Richard Force as Divisional Directors in its energy broking division, which was launched in February 2018. Both Juul and Force will report to James Chicken, the newly appointed Managing Director of the energy division, who ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
April 2018 marked the month that Canada exceeded 100 catastrophes over the span of a decade, with combined losses estimated to have cost the Canadian re/insurance industry around CAD $17.4 billion (USD $13.6 billion). Catastrophe Indices and Quantification, Inc. (CatIQ), Canada’s loss index provider, stores insured loss catastrophe data back to ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
Castel Underwriting Agencies Limited, part of Barbican Insurance Group, has upgraded Weald Risk Partners, originally a division within the Castel Specialty portfolio, to a standalone underwriting cell. Weald Risk Partners, which will underwrite on the Castel club-style managing general agent (MGA) formation platform, writes forestry physical damage business internationally. The cell will ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
Lloyd’s has announced that it has started the process of hiring staff for its new Brussels subsidiary, in preparation for a January 2019 launch date, according to Lloyd's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Inga Beale. Current vacancies include a number of roles across finance, operations, compliance, HR, and underwriting, all of ... Read the full article
24th April 2018
Bermuda domiciled reinsurer, Somerset Reinsurance Ltd., has named Joshua Braverman as its new Chief Investment Officer (CIO) and as a member of its executive leadership team, taking overall responsibility for the company's asset management activities. The appointment also sees Braverman chair Somerset Reinsurance's Investment and Investment Advisory Committees, and he will ... Read the full article