Reinsurance News
Cigna exploring sale of its group benefits insurance business: sources
22nd August 2019
US health insurer Cigna Corp is considering a sale of its group benefits insurance business as part of a shift in focus towards healthcare cover, according to sources at Reuters. Reports from people familiar with the matter said a potential sale of the unit, which offers disability insurance, life, and accidental ... Read the full article
UK motor claims inflation up 8.6% with more pressure to come: WTW
22nd August 2019
Motor claims payout inflation in the UK rose by 8.6% in 2018, with further pressure expected throughout 2019, according to the latest benchmarking analysis from broker Willis Towers Watson (WTW). Analysts found that the average cost per claim now comes in at £4,791, having increased for the fourth consecutive year Gross accidental ... Read the full article
HDI Global adds Zurich’s Yves Betz to management board
22nd August 2019
HDI Global SE, the industrial insurer of the HDI Group, has announced the appointment of Yves Betz to its management board, who will take over responsibility for the company’s business in Europe and North and South America. As of 1 December 2019, he will succeed Stefan Sigulla, who is stepping down ... Read the full article
HSBC considering a bid for Aviva’s Asian operations, reports suggest
22nd August 2019
London-based banking giant HSBC Holdings Plc may be considering a bid to take over the Asian operations of Aviva Plc as part of a push for further business diversification in the region, according to reports from Bloomberg. Sources at the publication said HSBC was in the early stages of weighing an ... Read the full article
R&Q enters legacy reinsurance deal with Bermuda captive
22nd August 2019
Randall & Quilter Investment Holdings Ltd. (R&Q), the Bermudian specialist non-life re/insurance investor, has announced a new legacy reinsurance deal with a Bermuda domiciled captive. The agreement will see R&Q assume the legacy liabilities from the Bermudian captive of a US based airline. R&Q’s A- rated carrier and wholly owned subsidiary, Accredited ... Read the full article
China Pacific Insurance invests in B3i
22nd August 2019
The China Pacific Insurance Group (CPIC) has joined firms such as AXA, Munich Re, SCOR and Swiss Re in becoming a shareholder of the Blockchain Insurance Industry Initiative (B3i). B3i believes this investment from CPIC extends the breadth of the shareholder community and strengthens its representation across the global insurance market. GU ... Read the full article
Advanced analytics unlocking “new frontiers” of risk for P&C re/insurers: Swiss Re
22nd August 2019
The use of increasingly advanced analytic capabilities is enabling property and casualty (P&C) re/insurers to “unlock new frontiers in risk assessment and mitigation,” according to a new sigma report from Swiss Re Institute. The study explored how insurance and reinsurance companies can use analytics to support growth through new market opportunities ... Read the full article
HK airport protests highlight exposure risk for re/insurers: Russell Group
22nd August 2019
The recent standoff at Hong Kong International Airport between Chinese authorities and protesters has underscored the potential airport ground accumulation exposures faced by international re/insurers, according data from risk management firm Russell Group. By quantifying aerospace industry and portfolio peak exposure, Russell Group showed that 69 aircraft with a combined value ... Read the full article
Hamilton “greatly enhanced” by Pembroke, Ironshore acquisitions: KBRA
21st August 2019
Kroll Bond Rating Agency (KBRA) has underscored the inherent benefits of Hamilton Group’s acquisition of Pembroke Managing Agency and its platform at Lloyd’s, as well as Dublin-based carrier Ironshore Europe DAC (IEDAC), from Liberty Mutual Group. KBRA believes the deal, which is expected to provide Hamilton with an opportunity to ... Read the full article
Axinan first Southeast Asian insurtech to secure Labuan license
21st August 2019
Singapore-based insurtech Axinan has become the first Southeast Asian company of its kind to secure a combined general and reinsurance license from Labuan FSA, the financial regulator for Labuan International Business and Financial Centre. The license, obtained via its subsidiary Axinan Labuan Limited, will allow the firm to underwrite general and ... Read the full article
Specialty insurer JenCap Holdings set to acquire Aran Insurance Services
21st August 2019
Specialty insurer JenCap Holdings LLC (JCH) has announced an agreement to acquire Aran Insurance Services Group, a specialty program administrator with offices in Arizona, Colorado, Massachusetts, and New York. Founded in 2009, Aran has been built into a successful platform under the leadership of Tim Kenny and John LaCava. The acquisition marks ... Read the full article
SSL Endeavour bolsters leadership with two senior appointments
21st August 2019
SSL Endeavour, the specialist independent Lloyd’s broker and delegated authority expert, has announced the appointments, with immediate effect, of Jonathan Palmer-Brown and Hugh Crossland as group Non-Executive Chairman and group Chief Financial Officer respectively. Jonathan Palmer-Brown joins with over 50 years’ experience, having first entered the London market in 1968 with ... Read the full article
Modest shift in asset allocation for US Life Insurers in 2018: Fitch
21st August 2019
US life insurers in 2018 continued to shift towards less liquid asset classes in search for yield, according to Fitch Ratings analysts. Insurers are believed to have increased allocation to commercial mortgage loans and collateralised loan obligations (CLO) over the year in order to mitigate the impact of a protracted low ... Read the full article
XL Innovate leads auto insurtech Zendrive’s $37m funding round
21st August 2019
Data and analytics firm Zendrive has raised $37 million in a Series B funding round led by XL Innovate, AXA XL’s venture capital insurtech fund. The funding round also saw the involvement of Hearst Ventures and existing investors including ACME Capital, BMW iVentures, NYCA, SignalFire. Zendrive plans on using the funds to ... Read the full article
DARAG names James Insley CFO, as Halley departs
21st August 2019
Legacy acquirer DARAG Group Limited has announced the appointment of James Insley as Group Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective from September 2. He will succeed outgoing CFO James Halley, who is due to leave the business in mid-September. Insley joins DARAG from the Warranty Group, where he most recently served as European ... Read the full article