Reinsurance News
Ryan Specialty completes acquisition of Keystone Risk Partners
3rd January 2022
International specialty insurance firm, Ryan Specialty Group, has now completed its acquisition of certain assets of the Media, PA based insurance operation Keystone Risk Partners, LLC. The acquisition was previously announced last month. Keystone Risk Partners offers a range of alternative risk products and services, including captive consulting and management, as ... Read the full article
Markerstudy to acquire BGL’s insurance arm for £400m: Report
3rd January 2022
UK motor insurance specialist Markerstudy is reported to be acquiring the insurance operations of BGL Group, which also owns price comparison giant Comparethemarket, in a deal worth £400 million. Sky News reported yesterday that Markerstudy is buying the BGL insurance operation with the support of a capital injection from its private ... Read the full article
Zurich frees $1.2bn of capital with sale of $9.5bn Italian life & pensions back book
3rd January 2022
Global insurer Zurich Insurance Group announced this morning that it is freeing up roughly US $1.2 billion of capital through the sale of its legacy Italian life and pensions book of policies. Zurich said that its subsidiary Zurich Investments Life S.p.A. is selling its life and pension back book, which includes ... Read the full article
AXA completes €690mn sale of Belgian banking operations
31st December 2021
French insurance giant AXA has sold 100% of its Belgian banking operations to cooperative bank Crelan for a total consideration of €690 million. The deal consists of €610 million in cash and the transfer to AXA Belgium of Crelan Insurance, the insurance company of Crelan valued at €80 million. In addition, AXA ... Read the full article
Post-pandemic GDP levels comparable to Great Depression: SCOR
31st December 2021
According to a new report from SCOR, the COVID-19 pandemic caused a sudden quasi-global economic standstill and consequently led to a significant drop in global GDP, at levels comparable to those observed during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The anticipation of such a massive drop in global GDP over a ... Read the full article
Lighthouse to grow insurance business using $65m capital raise
31st December 2021
Lighthouse Management, LLC has announced that it has successfully completed a $65,000,000 senior note issuance in a private placement. The capital from this transaction will be used to refinance existing debt at the firm's MGA and infuse growth capital into Lighthouse’s affiliated insurance carrier, Lighthouse Property Insurance Corporation, It will also be ... Read the full article
IRDAI views state-owned reinsurer GIC Re as “too important to fail”
31st December 2021
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has said that General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re), alongside Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and New India Assurance Co. Ltd., continue to be identified as Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs). D-SIIs are re/insurers that are believed to be "too ... Read the full article
DARAG Bermuda in second novation agreement with Cayman reinsurer
31st December 2021
Legacy acquirer DARAG has concluded the second novation agreement with a Cayman reinsurer to provide finality for its US liability books. The transaction has been written into DARAG Bermuda and is the second completed novation with this Cayman based reinsurer for newer years. The first agreement was announced in September last ... Read the full article
HSBC approved to take full ownership of HSBC Life China
31st December 2021
HSBC Holdings plc has underscored its commitment to expanding in China after its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, HSBC Insurance (Asia) Limited, received approval from the Shanghai office of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission to acquire the remaining 50% stake in HSBC Life Insurance Company Limited (HSBC Life China). The approval ... Read the full article
Pandemic triggers 12% contraction in LatAm market, MAPFRE finds
31st December 2021
The Latin American insurance market registered an 11.9% decrease in premiums during the year of the pandemic, to $134.4 billion, according to new data from MAPFRE. Of the total premium figure, 57% came from non-life insurance and the remaining 43% from life insurance, MAPFRE reported. The sector’s contraction was caused mainly by ... Read the full article
European insurers able to meet promises to customers: EIOPA
31st December 2021
The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has conducted a stress test, results of which confirm the European insurance industry’s ability to meet promises to customers even under extreme 1 in 1000-year events. Olav Jones, deputy director general of Insurance Europe, noted that the results of this exercise clearly demonstrate ... Read the full article
State of emergency declared in Colorado as wildfires destroy hundreds of homes
31st December 2021
Governor Jared Polis has declared a state of emergency after a rare wildfire spread through the state of Colorado on Thursday, leading to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people and the destruction of hundreds of homes. It's been reported that toppled power lines caused the grass fire around 11am ... Read the full article
China lowers entry barriers for foreign re/insurance brokers
31st December 2021
The China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission has moved to lower restrictions on the entry of foreign insurance brokerage companies. The CBIRC recently issued the "Notice of Clarifying Measures for the Opening of the Insurance Intermediary Market", which aims to further clarify the relevant measures for the opening of the insurance ... Read the full article
H2 catastrophe activity may drive stronger reinsurance pricing at Jan 1, says S&P
30th December 2021
With insurance and reinsurance industry losses from catastrophe events once again above the $100 billion mark in 2021, price increases at the key January 1st, 2022 renewals could be stronger than in previous years, according to S&P Global Ratings. In recent years, price momentum at 1/1 has disappointed reinsurers amid heightened ... Read the full article
Conduit to buy-back shares for its incentive scheme
30th December 2021
Recently launched property and casualty reinsurer, Conduit Holdings has announced that it intends to repurchase up to $10 million of its common shares in order to meet future obligations under its variable incentive schemes. The price has been reported at US$0.01 per share, with the scheme assumed to be for senior ... Read the full article