Reinsurance News
elesco acquires StarStone’s Dubai MGA and Zurich airline & products book
4th February 2019
Specialty underwriting platform elseco has entered into an agreement with global specialty insurer StarStone to acquire Malakite Underwriting Partners Ltd., its Dubai-based managing general agent (MGA), as well as the renewal rights to StarStone's Zurich airline & products portfolio. Under the terms of the strategic partnership, StarStone will continue to provide ... Read the full article
Pioneer combines financial institutions operations into single platform
4th February 2019
Pioneer Underwriters has unified its financial institutions businesses into a single global underwriting operation, led by Richard Coello. The team will now be responsible for all financial institutions business written by Pioneer, utilising the same capital base to write business from its offices in London, Brussels and New York. Coello has served ... Read the full article
AXA XL affiliate signs MoU with ThermoChem Recovery
1st February 2019
New Energy Risk (NER), a provider of performance risk solutions for breakthrough technologies and an AXA XL affiliate, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with ThermoChem Recovery International, Inc. (TRI), designed to accelerate project development, increase profits and provide certainty of execution. NER has completed due diligence on TRI's range of biorefinery-technologies, ... Read the full article
Munich Re takes stake in German Research Centre for AI
1st February 2019
Global reinsurance giant Munich Re has become a shareholder in the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI), a leading European institute for the research of robotics, smart factories and immersive quantified learning. The partnership hopes to create new impulses in the fields of artificial intelligence and data analytics, and will ... Read the full article
Ryan Specialty seals Boston Insurance purchase
1st February 2019
Chicago-based Ryan Specialty Group, having announced the purchase of independent wholesale insurance brokerage Boston Insurance Specialists (BIS) last week for an undisclosed fee, has completed the deal. A family owned business started in 2001 and led by founders Debbie Murphy and Peggy Giancola, BIS’ specialty product solutions include Property, Casualty, Professional ... Read the full article
Aon reports strong organic growth across business segments in Q4
1st February 2019
Global insurance and reinsurance broker Aon saw its total revenue increase to $10.8 billion for the full-year 2018, which includes 5% of organic revenue growth. The global re/insurance brokerage has announced its results for the fourth-quarter and full-year 2018. Concerning revenues, the broker states that total revenues for Q4 increased 3% ... Read the full article
Willis Re bolsters Australia division with senior appointments
1st February 2019
Willis Re, the reinsurance arm of global insurance broker Willis Towers Watson, has announced some leadership changes within its Australia division, including the appointment of John Philipsz as Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Willis Re Australia, effective immediately. Philipsz will be based in Sydney, and will continue to push the ... Read the full article
AXA’s Jad Ariss named Secretary General of The Geneva Association
1st February 2019
The Geneva Association, a leading international insurance industry think tank, has appointed Jad Ariss Secretary General, effective 1 March. Ariss joins The Geneva Association after a distinguished and diverse career of which his multiple senior positions at AXA are a centrepiece. Ariss joined AXA in 1995 as Chief Financial Officer of AXA ... Read the full article
Cyber and business interruption top global risk rankings: Allianz
1st February 2019
Cyber incidents and business interruption (BI) are tied as the most concerning risks for global businesses in 2019 and beyond, according to the results of the latest Allianz Risk Barometer report. The annual survey by Allianz, which questioned 2,415 experts from 86 countries, found that 37% of respondents identified cyber as ... Read the full article
Miguel Baptista named Chief Data Officer of Hyperion X
1st February 2019
London-headquartered Hyperion Insurance Group has named Miguel Baptista the Chief Data Officer of Hyperion X, its recently launched business targeting key areas of data, analytics and digital platform delivery. He joins from biopharmaceutical company MSD where he served as Senior Director of Information Platforms. In his new role, Baptista will oversee Hyperion ... Read the full article
More price action required across most re/insurance lines: AXIS CEO Benchimol
1st February 2019
Price action in reinsurance lines was evident in some areas at the January renewals with little reductions and response to loss activity. However, global catastrophe pricing remained a disappointment for AXIS Capital at the recent renewal, with President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Albert Benchimol calling for more price action ... Read the full article
BGC Partners completes Ed acquisition
1st February 2019
Global broker and financial technology firm BGC Partners has completed its previously-announced acquisition of Ed, the re/insurance brokerage. The deal sees an expansion of BGC’s insurance division which was established last year after it acquired Besso Insurance Group Limited, a Lloyd’s of London broker with operations in the UK, Brazil and ... Read the full article
Global Atlantic invests in InsurTech accelerator
1st February 2019
Life and annuity re/insurance firm Global Atlantic Financial Group has invested in Global Insurance Accelerator, an InsurTech-focused business accelerator. Global Atlantic’s investment will help fund the GIA’s annual mentor-driven program, offering six of the company’s staff members the opportunity to participate as mentors. “We have been aware of the GIA for a number ... Read the full article
Ricardo Borges takes leadership of THB Europe
1st February 2019
Specialist insurance and reinsurance broker THB Group has now completed the leadership transition of its THB Europe division, which includes the retirement of Joaquim Caria. Caria has been facilitating a "smooth transfer of responsibility" to the firm's Managing Director Ricardo Borges since he was appointed in August 2018, and has now ... Read the full article
M&A levels to continue amid adverse market conditions: JMP Securities
1st February 2019
Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity is to continue at heightened levels through 2019 as re/insurers try to find opportunities for growth against a backdrop of adverse market conditions, according to analysts at JMP Securities. JMP explained that consolidation would offer an attractive route to growth for many companies due to ongoing ... Read the full article