Reinsurance News

FEMA commences procurement of 2020 NFIP reinsurance renewal

19th November 2019

The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has started its procurement process for the renewal of a flood reinsurance programme, designed to protect against flood risks in the U.S. that are insured by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). FEMA has returned to the traditional market for its NFIP reinsurance program ... Read the full article

S&P upgrades Mapfre Re ratings on more diverse earnings

19th November 2019

S&P Global Ratings has upgraded the long-term issuer credit and financial strength ratings of Mapfre Re from ‘A’ to ‘A+’, based on improved underwriting earnings diversification. The rating agency also raised the long-term issuer credit rating on parent company Mapfre S.A from ‘BBB+’ to ‘A-‘, and assigned a stable outlook to ... Read the full article

Sompo International names new CEO amid restructure

19th November 2019

Sompo Holdings is to transfer all overseas group companies under Sompo International Holdings by 2020 and will appoint Mikio Okumura to oversee the strategy’s execution as Chief Executive Officer. This move is designed to establish a more integrated global platform and expand overseas business. Once this integration is completed, Sompo Holdings says ... Read the full article

Homeowners sector increasingly targeting insurtech efficiencies: AM Best

19th November 2019

Companies in the US homeowners market are increasingly relying on insurtech to boost efficiency and agility in the face of challenging market dynamics, according to analysts at AM Best. Analysts observed that effective use of technology in this sector has helped to lower transaction costs and expand access to customers. The cost ... Read the full article

Lloyd’s urges people to speak up against unacceptable behaviour

19th November 2019

The specialist Lloyd's of London insurance and reinsurance marketplace has launched a new campaign designed to encourage people to speak out against unacceptable behaviour. The campaign, #SpeakUp, has been launched by Lloyd's in order to underline the importance of speaking up and to provide clear guidance on how people can take ... Read the full article

Sompo International profits hit by large losses in H1

19th November 2019

Bermuda-based property and casualty re/insurer, Sompo International, increased its profits only marginally during the first half of the 2019 fiscal year, due to the impact of large losses on the business. The company, which represents part of the overseas operations of Japanese re/insurer Sompo Holdings, posted a profit of US $190 ... Read the full article

Willis Re Securities completes €120m cat bond for Covéa

19th November 2019

Willis Re Securities, a division of re/insurance broker Willis Towers Watson, has announced its role in structuring and placing Hexagon II Reinsurance DAC. This transaction provides French insurance group Covéa with a single €120 million tranche of fully collateralised protection against windstorm and other weather-related events for a four-year period. The structure ... Read the full article

Moody’s outlook negative for European insurance in 2020

19th November 2019

Moody’s outlook for the European insurance sector in 2020 is negative, reflecting growing profitability and solvency pressures due to low interest rates, macroeconomic uncertainty, and rising environment, social and governance (ESG) risk. Analysts believe that low interest rates have weakened insurers’ Solvency II ratios in 2019, with many experiencing declines of ... Read the full article

MS&AD takes $1.6bn hit on MS Amlin’s Lloyd’s, European profitability

19th November 2019

MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings has announced that MS Amlin's European primary insurance and Lloyd's business have been less profitable than it anticipated when acquired, and as such, an impairment loss of 175.4 billion yen (USD 1.6 billion) has been recognised as an extraordinary loss. The announcement comes as part of the ... Read the full article

AIG adds Barrett as global head of multinational, general insurance

19th November 2019

Insurance giant AIG has appointed Allison Barrett global head of multinational, general insurance. Barrett joins on December 9 and will be based out of the firm’s New York office, reporting to Michael Price, head of global service businesses & global Chief Operating Officer, general insurance. She joins from Willis Towers Watson, having ... Read the full article

Global Risk Partners acquires London broker Gauntlet

19th November 2019

Global Risk Partners (GRP), an investment vehicle aimed at insurance brokers and managing general agents, has acquired Gauntlet Insurance Services, a private client broker that specialises in high value assets. Based in London, Gauntlet is responsible for covering assets valued at more than £8 billion, such as historic, fine town and ... Read the full article

AXA to underwrite THB’s Fleet UK product

19th November 2019

Global insurer AXA is to underwrite Lloyd’s wholesale broker THB’s Fleet UK product, as part of a new partnership deal. THB says the decision to pair with AXA originates from wanting to partner with a fleet insurer that values underwriting expertise, as well as AXA’s commitment to offering flexible solutions for ... Read the full article

Allianz AGCS announces launch of new value-added services

19th November 2019

Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS), insurance giant Allianz's corporate insurance arm, has announced the establishment of AGCS Services, a new business initiative designed to provide value-added services to its corporate clients. AGCS explains that the offering includes risk consulting, captive fronting and crisis management solutions, and will initially be launched ... Read the full article

Flood insurtech Neptune files patent for Triton technology

19th November 2019

Neptune Flood, an all-digital flood platform that leverages data analytics to provide agents and direct buyers the ability to rapidly quote and bind a policy, has filed a patent application for its Triton technology. Triton powers Neptune’s residential flood insurance product’s ability to executive a series of risk, pricing, disaggregation and ... Read the full article

Social inflation pushing up costs in US liability insurance: Swiss Re

18th November 2019

Social inflation has emerged as a key factor pushing up loss costs in US liability insurance and could mean “significant pain” for the market in the coming years, according to a new report from Swiss Re. Analysts expect the issue to become an increasingly common theme in the next two years, ... Read the full article