Category:

Reinsurance

Canada records 20-year high in outbound insurance M&A

International deals in insurers involving Canadian investors rose to $11.6 billion in 2020, the highest in at least two decades, according to data from Refinitiv.

That places Canadian investors as the third biggest investors in insurance deals, behind the UK and the United States, according to the data. Last year, Canadian investors were the fifth largest in the space.

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Insolvencies, Cyber Threats and ESG scrutiny drive 2021 risks for Directors and Officers: Allianz

“Many insurers are still digesting the effect of previous pricing inadequacy and exposure and loss trend increases from prior-year policies,” says Shanil Williams, Global Head of Financial Lines at AGCS.
“This is also at a time of great uncertainty around forward-looking exposure assessments, in particular the impact of Covid-19 on the economy in general and on specific industries. Combined with many ‘known unknowns’ like climate change, cyber risks or environmental, social or governance (ESG) factors, this has created a lot of nervousness in this sector. As a global D&O insurer, AGCS remains committed to working in partnership with our customers to ensure we have sustainable solutions for all parties involved,” said Williams.

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Benoît Ribadeau-Dumas to succeed Denis Kessler as CEO of SCOR

Augustin de Romanet, Lead Independent Director of SCOR, commented “Since 2002, Denis Kessler has shaped SCOR, turning it around in an outstanding way and subsequently establishing it as the world’s fourth largest reinsurer, with a rating of AA-. By choosing Benoît Ribadeau-Dumas, a very high-profile figure well known for his intellect and his leadership, the Board of Directors confirms its high level of ambition for SCOR.”

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$83 billion global insured cat losses in 2020, the fifth-costliest on record:Swiss Re 

”As with COVID-19, climate change will be a huge test of global resilience.Neither pandemics nor climate change are ‘black swan’ events. But while COVID-19 has an expiry date, climate change does not, and failure to ‘green’ the global economic recovery now will increase costs for society in future,”said Jerome Jean Haegeli, Swiss Re Group Chief Economist.

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Lloyd’s, Parsyl to insure emerging market COVID-19 vaccine rollout

The Global Health Risk Facility (GHRF), made up of 14 insurers and reinsurers, has been set up to address the challenges of transporting temperature-sensitive vaccines, and will be supported by $26.7 million in funding from the U.S International Development Finance Corporation, the companies said on Tuesday.

The DFC loan will be used to capitalize a new public-private Lloyd’s syndicate, which will start operating in January, and allow the GHRF to offer cost-effective insurance policies for shipments of vaccines and medical products to developing countries.

Syndicate 1796 is the first public-private partnership to address a global health emergency in Lloyd’s 330-year history, the companies said.

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Swiss Re Corporate Solutions to write direct insurance in S. Africa

Swiss Re Corporate Solutions Africa said it will underwrite some of the largest and most complex risks in South Africa across a broad spectrum of industries. With a focus on mid- and large-sized corporate customers, the company provides commercial insurance services primarily in the property, engineering & construction, energy (operational power including renewable energy & operational mining), casualty, bank trade & infrastructure, surety, and financial & professional liability lines of business.

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Global litigation financiers plan India entry to target company disputes

The concept of litigation finance is widely prevalent in Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States where such financiers pay legal fees and other costs of commercial lawsuits, arbitration or shareholder disputes and in return get a share of the award from a settlement or a win.
Some of the world’s top litigation financiers like Australia’s Omni Bridgeway and a unit of U.S. insurance broker Marsh Inc plan to tap the Indian market by funding the legal costs of disputes that embroil companies, executives told Reuters.

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When $2 trillion falls short, the next 2020 may be uninsurable

At the core is the reality that the global non-life insurance industry’s US$2 trillion in capital won’t last in a “black swan” event, such as a cyberattack or another pandemic, that hobbles the global economy.
Insurance markets for events, travel and business interruption have all been roiled by the virus. For those looking to protect against the possibility of pandemics, most will find that firms are offering few safeguards going forward.

Allianz, Europe’s biggest insurer, said it will focus on tightening up contracts to exclude pandemics. Munich Re has stopped selling business-interruption policies that cover coronavirus losses.

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