Insurance news

• XL Catlin promotes Lyons as casualty underwriting duo exits

  11-04-2016 20:27
  XL Catlin has promoted Colm Lyons to the position of chief
  excess casualty officer in Dublin, replacing Donnacha Smyth, who
  has left the company to join Aspen.As sister publication Inside FAC
  revealed earlier today (11 April) Smyth departed the carrier at the
  same time as New York-based Lorraine Seib, president of global
  excess casualty insurance, who is also going to Aspen.In his new role, Lyons will report to Bob Shine, acting head of
  global excess casualty and chief...
  
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• XL Catlin names new excess casualty chief

  11-04-2016 20:27
  XL Catlin has promoted Colm Lyons to the position of chief excess
  casualty officer in Dublin, replacing Donnacha Smyth who has left
  the company to join Aspen.
  As sister title Inside FAC revealed
  earlier today (11 April) Smyth departed the carrier at the same
  time as New York-based Lorraine Seib, president of Global Excess
  Casualty Insurance, who is also going to Aspen.
  In his new role, Lyons will report to Bob Shine, acting head of
  Global Excess Casualty and chief...
  
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• Swedish AP3 fund lifts ILS assets by 50%

  11-04-2016 20:27
  The Third Swedish National Pension Fund (AP3) reported total
  insurance-linked assets of 2.7bn krona ($331mn) at the end of 2015,
  up from 1.8bn krona in 2014 and 1.6bn krona in 2013, sister
  publication Trading Risk has reported.
  However, according to the fund's 2015 annual report, the
  figure is still substantially down on the 5.2bn krona held in
  2012.
  AP3 is one of five funds - known as AP funds - that manage the
  capital buffer of Sweden's state income pension...
  
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• Stone Ridge ILS funds hit $4.4bn

  11-04-2016 20:27
  The net asset value of Stone Ridge's ILS funds increased to
  $4.4bn at the end of January, boosted by an increase of over 20
  percent in the assets of the Reinsurance Risk Premium Interval
  fund, sister publication Trading Risk
  reported last week.
  According to Stone Ridge's latest financial reports, the
  Interval Fund held total net assets of $2.85bn at 31 January, a
  21.8 percent increase from $2.34bn in the three months up to 31
  October.
  The Interval Fund principally invests...
  
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• Skuld hires Aspen marine hull head

  11-04-2016 20:27
  Norwegian protection and indemnity club Skuld has hired
  Aspen's head of marine hull Paul Fry and his deputy Sarah
  Wilson to join its Lloyd's business, The Insurance
  Insider can reveal.Fry will become deputy active underwriter of Syndicate 1897 and
  class underwriter for hull, while Wilson has been named senior
  underwriter.Both will join Skuld later this year after their contractual
  obligations to Aspen are fulfilled.Fry joined the marine team at Aspen in 2004, after beginning his
  career in...
  
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• (Re)insurers start April in negative territory

  11-04-2016 20:27
  All the companies in the Insider 30 closed the first
  week of April with their shares down, at 2.7 percent on
  average.
  The sharpest drop was suffered by AmTrust, whose stock price
  fell by 8.9 percent to $24.36, after high volumes of shares were
  shorted at the beginning of the week.
  More than reversing the gains of the previous week, Third Point
  Re suffered a fall of 10.1 percent on Tuesday 5 April, closing the
  week down 7.3 percent at...
  
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• ProSight moves a step closer to profitability in 2015

  11-04-2016 20:27
  ProSight Syndicate 1110 reported a loss of £3.2mn ($4.5mn) for
  the 2015 calendar year, compared to a negative result of
  £5.5mn in 2014.
  Relative to its allowed capacity of £210mn, the syndicate
  reported a loss of 1.6 percent.
  The business is clawing its way towards breaking even after
  running up £11mn of losses in both 2012 and 2013 on an earned
  premium base that was far lower.
  The insurer, which is ultimately owned by the private equity arm
  of Goldman...
  
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• PRA 166 reviews continue downward trend

  11-04-2016 20:27
  The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) is continuing to issue
  fewer skilled persons reviews in the insurance sector, as evidenced
  by its latest quarterly report.
  Along with its sister UK regulator the Financial Conduct
  Authority (FCA), the PRA has the power to appoint skilled persons
  to carry out reports on a financial company if it has any
  concerns over how the firm is being run.For the most part, such reviews are kept private - although AJ
  Gallagher revealed it was...
  
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• Lloyd's syndicates paint bleak picture

  11-04-2016 20:27
  There was little optimism to be found in the Lloyd's market
  come the end of 2015.
  In their syndicate annual reports, active underwriters and board
  members bemoaned the challenges of a market which is staggering
  under the weight of its own capacity, suffering from wayward
  underwriting and battling with broker facilities.
  And the coming year is expected to be little
  different, they warned. Capacity will continue to flood into the
  sector, while the most beleaguered classes of business will see...
  
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• JLT settles Willis specie suit for £22mn

  11-04-2016 20:27
  JLT has settled a case brought by Willis Towers Watson regarding
  the hiring of its specie team last year for approximately
  £22mn.
  In a stock exchange announcement, JLT said a provision for the
  amount would be charged as part of its second quarter results to
  cover both the settlement and associated costs, which would be
  incremental to previous legal provisions.
  The exact terms of the settlement would remain confidential, JLT
  said.
  The broker reported operating profits of £108mn in the
  
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• Ironshore denies D&O cover to indicted water execs

  11-04-2016 20:27
  Fosun-owned Ironshore has refused to pay defence costs for a
  handful of water executives that were blamed for an explosion that
  injured dozens of people in California in November 2014.
  Nine directors and officers of Santa Clara Waste Water Company
  were arrested and jailed in the wake of the explosion, which ripped
  apart the company's facility and led to an evacuation of nearby
  homes.
  The company paid more than $15,200 to have the executives
  released on bail.
  In total they...
  
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• ILS market firms in Q1 2015: Lane

  11-04-2016 20:27
  The Lane rate-on-line index rose from 86.6 to 93.1 over the last
  quarter to indicate that rates have firmed since December,
  according to Lane Financial's latest quarterly report on the
  insurance-linked securities (ILS) market.
  "This could be from seasonal factors, could be from a
  hardening of conditions, but the secondary market is observing the
  direction of movement," Lane Financial analysts Morton Lane
  and Roger Beckwith said.
  The index provides a pricing gauge for the ILS market drawn from
  se
  
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• Endurance hires new property chief

  11-04-2016 20:27
  Endurance has hired Mike Nardiello as property product leader
  working out of the US, The Insurance
  Insider can reveal.
  Nardiello, who will become a senior vice president, was a
  regional property executive for AIG until last month.
  The former AIG underwriter is the first hire made by Michael
  Chang, Endurance's recently appointed CEO of global risk
  solutions.
  Chang was brought in by Endurance from legacy Chubb to create a
  new platform offering global industry vertical solutions for large
  clients.
  
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• CV Starr profits up as combined ratio improves

  11-04-2016 20:27
  CV Starr's Syndicate 1919 recorded a calendar-year profit of
  £20.7mn ($29.5mn) for 2015, more than double the £8.5mn
  recorded a year earlier.
  The carrier said it was profitable in all lines except for
  political and financial risks, with reserves increased in this
  class in 2015 to account for bank credit exposure, with the book
  now in run-off.
  This reflected the poor outlook for recoveries from underlying
  debtors to whom insured banks loaned money.
  Energy remained profitable but was i
  
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• Chubb harvests $30mn of commissions from ABR Re

  11-04-2016 20:27
  US insurance group Chubb has revealed that it ceded $115mn of
  reinsurance premiums to internal captive vehicle ABR Re in 2015.
  The annual report, released last week, also showed that Chubb
  recognised some $30mn of commissions in the year.
  The relatively small amount ceded is likely to be reflective of
  the fact that ABR Re only began accepting business in April last
  year, after the major 1 January renewals period had passed.
  In the marketing presentation for ABR, Ace said...
  
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• Aspen Re opens hub in Dubai

  11-04-2016 20:27
  Aspen Re has established a new hub for the Middle East and
  Africa in Dubai, the carrier announced today (11 April).The firm said that the move was part of a strategy to increase
  opportunities in markets with profitable growth potential.Commenting on the news, Aspen Re Stephen Postlewhite said:
  "We operate across a wide range of geographies and lines and
  this new hub will allow us to ensure that we remain close to our
  clients and continue to understand...
  
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• AmTrust accuses Trust Risk CEO Somma of bribery in fresh US suit

  11-04-2016 20:27
  AmTrust is suing the CEO of Italian broker Trust Risk in a New
  York court amid allegations of bribery and corruption, as the legal
  battle between the two companies spreads to a third
  jurisdiction.
  In court documents filed last week (4 April), AmTrust claimed
  Antonio Somma attempted to defraud the US insurer out of "not
  less" than hundreds of millions of dollars, by bringing its
  European division into arbitrations the Trust Risk CEO had rigged
  through bribery.
  In the documents,...
  
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• Aegis delivers 80% combined ratio

  11-04-2016 20:27
  Top quartile Lloyd's managing agency Aegis has posted an
  underwriting profit at its Syndicate 1225 for the 10th year in a
  row, the company's results show.
  The syndicate reported an underwriting profit of £57.4mn
  ($80.8mn) for 2015, an increase of 20.1 percent on the previous
  year, as total comprehensive income ticked up by 9.6 percent to
  £66.3mn.
  Aegis said the profit had been driven by the benign loss
  environment in 2015, with the combined ratio narrowing by 5.3
  percentage points...
  
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• Generali launches US multinational property product

  11-04-2016 17:22
  Generali's US business has launched a corporate property
  insurance product in the US, the Italian carrier announced today
  (11 April).
  The product, named Tribune, will have capacity of up to $250mn
  to write commercial property risks for US multinational
  corporations covering both their US and international
  exposures.
  It will be written through Generali's US branch of its
  Global Corporate & Commercial business unit.
  Tribune will provide clients with access to Generali's
  centrally administered
  
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• Aspen Re opens Middle East and Africa hub

  11-04-2016 17:22
  Aspen Re has continued to pursue growth beyond its Bermudian and
  London heartland by launching a new hub for the Middle East and
  Africa in Dubai.
  In an announcement released today (11 April), Aspen Re CEO
  Stephen Postlewhite said that Aspen Re operated across a wide range
  of geographies and lines and that the new hub would ensure that the
  company remained close to clients and continued to understand their
  needs.
  Aspen Re also announced the hires of three senior...
  
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• Young insurers, broking attraction, terror cover and roaring motors

  11-04-2016 16:19
  
  The best of Post the last week in case you missed it
  
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• RSA promotes Coughlan to head up UK personal lines

  11-04-2016 15:49
  
  David Coughlan has been appointed managing director of RSA's UK personal lines business, overseeing the More Than brand, personal lines broker and affinity.
  
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• David Coughlan replaces Mark Christer as UK personal lines boss at RSA

  11-04-2016 15:19
  
  Christer leaves the insurer after 17 years including five in the personal lines MD role.
  
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• RSA UK personal lines MD Mark Christer to leave

  11-04-2016 15:04
  
  RSA UK personal lines managing director Mark Christer is leaving the company after five years in the role.
  
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• RSG launches cyber MGA

  11-04-2016 14:03
  RSG Underwriting has launched a £20mn cyber-specialist
  managing general agent (MGA), headed by former CFC Underwriting
  lead cyber underwriter Jamie Bouloux.
  The London-based MGA, named EmergIn Risk, provides insurance
  protection against the financial and operational implications of
  data thefts, corruptions and systems outages, with £20mn of
  Lloyd's capacity.
  RSG hired Bouloux in October to lead the firm's push into
  the cyber insurance market. Bouloux now leads the MGA as CEO.
  Bouloux
  
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• Rootham to exit Howden UK

  11-04-2016 14:03
  Hyperion Insurance Group has announced the departure of Stuart
  Rootham, joint managing director of general insurance in the UK
  retail division of its broker Howden.
  Rootham, who will leave the broker at the end of June, has
  worked at RK Harrison (RKH) since joining as an account executive
  in 1996.
  By 2011 he had risen to the position of managing director of RKH
  Insurance Services with overall responsibility for the management
  and development of the RKH UK retail business.
  Since...
  
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• Markel hires Sweden managing director

  11-04-2016 14:03
  Specialist insurer Markel International has appointed Torgny
  Johansson as managing director of its Swedish business, the company
  announced today (11 April).
  Johansson will be based in Stockholm, and will focus on
  developing Markel's Scandinavian presence.
  He joins from RSA-owned Swedish insurer Trygg Hansa, where he
  was most recently head of its affinity groups business.
  Before joining Trygg Hansa, Johansson spent five years at Nordic
  P&C business If, where he worked in the actuarial and
  und
  
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• Helios Underwriting names finance director

  11-04-2016 14:03
  Names-backed Lloyd's carrier Helios Underwriting has appointed
  Arthur Manners as finance director, it announced today (11 April).
  Manners has been acting as a consultant to the company since
  June 2015.
  He will be acting as finance director at Helios on a part-time
  basis, given his additional roles of finance director and
  compliance officer for insurance consultancy Total Risk Solutions
  Limited, non-executive director of Gemini Insurance Brokers in Hong
  Kong, and chairman of the trustees of the B
  
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• Beazley and Munich Re join forces for cyber product launch

  11-04-2016 14:03
  Beazley and Munich Re have collaborated to develop a new cyber
  insurance product providing up to $100mn, or EUR100mn, of
  protection against a range of cyber risks, the firms announced
  today (11 April).
  Beazley has partnered with Corporate Insurance Partner, the
  industrial clients primary insurance unit of Munich Re, to create
  the product.
  The product claims to offer the broadest protection yet for
  digital assets and IT infrastructure, including coverage for
  hacking or malware attacks, distribute
  
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• Argo hires US professional lines chief

  11-04-2016 14:03
  Argo Group International Holdings (Argo) has appointed Craig Landi
  as president of Argo Pro US, the company announced today (11
  April).
  Landi will oversee Argo's US professional lines business,
  including a portfolio of errors and omissions and management
  liability products.
  He will report to group head of professional lines Steve
  McGill.
  Landi moves to Argo from Freedom Specialty Insurance, where he
  was previously president and chief operating officer.
  Prior to that he held a variety of senior r
  
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• AJG secures $800mn re-fi deal

  11-04-2016 14:03
  AJ Gallagher (AJG) has entered into an $800mn refinancing deal with
  a number of banks that will allow access to funds for acquisitions
  or other corporate purposes.
  The unsecured credit facility, led by Bank of Montreal, Bank of
  America Merrill Lynch, Barclays Bank, Citibank and JP Morgan Chase
  Bank, may be increased to $1.1bn at AJG's request, subject to
  satisfaction of certain conditions.
  The new deal expires on 8 April 2021 and replaces a $600mn
  unsecured revolving credit facility that...
  
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• Gallagher secures $800m bank loan

  11-04-2016 13:29
  
  Arthur J Gallagher has secured an $800m bank loan to be used for acquisitions or for general business purposes.
  
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• KGM retrieves costs after first fundamental dishonesty ruling under CJCA s57

  11-04-2016 13:24
  
  KGM, the UK motor insurance subsidiary of Sompo Canopius, will be repaid £6100 in costs after the first ruling of fundamental dishonesty under section 57 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015.
  
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• Stuart Rootham to leave Hyperion in June

  11-04-2016 13:19
  
  The joint MD of general insurance for Howden UK's retail division will explore new challenges and opportunities.
  
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• Hyperion's Stuart Rootham to depart

  11-04-2016 12:57
  
  Hyperion Insurance Group-owned Howden UK Retail joint managing director Stuart Rootham is leaving the company at the end of June.
  
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• Arthur J Gallagher & Co unveils new credit facility for acquisitions

  11-04-2016 12:20
  
  Previous $600m facility replaced by $800m arrangement which could be increased to $1.1bn.
  
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• Misconduct 'has cost UK's banks £53bn over 15 years'

  11-04-2016 12:07
  
  Research shows that costs of PPI scandal alone have reached £37bn, four times the bill for the London OlympicsPersistent misconduct and an aggressive sales culture has cost the UK’s banks and building societies £53bn in fines, compensation and legal fees over the past 15 years.
  According to research published on Monday the cost of the payment protection insurance (PPI) misselling scandal has reached £37.3bn – about four times the cost of the 2012 London Olympics. Co
  
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• Simply Business “thrilled” with Aquiline deal

  11-04-2016 11:53
  
  CEO Jason Stockwood says new deal will allow the broker to grow.
  
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• North of the Border: A cure for prescription?

  11-04-2016 10:30
  
  In Scotland, in most non-personal injury actions, the doctrine of negative prescription has the effect of extinguishing a party’s right to damages
  
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• Legal: Wearable technology – employers beware?

  11-04-2016 10:30
  
  Developments in safety-related wearable technology in the workplace bring both benefits and risks
  
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• RSG launches Lloyd’s-backed cyber-risk MGA

  11-04-2016 10:22
  
  Ryan Specialty Group (RSG)’s underwriting division has launched EmergIn Risk, a London-based cyber-risk managing general agency (MGA).
  
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• Ex-Canopius boss Rolfe joins Broker Network

  11-04-2016 10:12
  
  Tim Rolfe left the insurer last March and takes up newly created role at the network.
  
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• Reputational risk has a protection gap

  11-04-2016 10:00
  
  CII calls on brokers to be more proactive when discussing reputational risks with SME clients.
  
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• Simply Business sold by AnaCap

  11-04-2016 09:42
  
  Aquiline Capital Partners has bought the business.
  
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• AnaCap sells Simply Business to ERS owner Aquiline

  11-04-2016 09:22
  
  AnaCap has sold insurance broker Simply Business to fellow private equity house Aquiline Capital Partners.
  
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• NCI launches its first equine product

  11-04-2016 09:20
  
  Insurer hires Will Wenyon as national equestrian development manager as part of its expansion.
  
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• Specialist brokers named in Sunday Times fast-grower list

  11-04-2016 09:05
  
  Two specialist insurance brokers have been named in the Sunday Times ‘Profit Track 100’ list of private companies with the fastest-growing profits.
  
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• #Insagepeople: 11 - 17 April 2016

  11-04-2016 09:00
  
  Get your fix of the market movers each week in one place with our new way of bringing you the latest recruitment changes.
  
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• Broker Network hires Canopius’s Tim Rolfe for new role

  11-04-2016 08:51
  
  Broker Network has hired former Canopius UK specialty chief executive Tim Rolfe as chief product and underwriting officer.
  
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• AIG plans to cut 125 UK jobs – report

  11-04-2016 08:27
  
  Troubled insurer American International Group (AIG) is planning to cut 125 jobs in the UK, Bloomberg reports.
  
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