Insurance
Integral ILS to launch with Lowther & Zeng at helm, AmWINS & TransRe in support
Integral ILS Ltd. has been launched as a new Bermuda based insurance-linked securities fund manager by industry execs Richard Lowther and Lixin Zeng, with ties to global insurance distributor and servicer AmWINS and reinsurance firm TransRe. Integral ILS Ltd. is in the early stages of its development still, but targeting being ready to deploy capital…
Read MoreDon’t Get Burned by Mishandled Fireworks
As towns cancel fireworks celebrations because of the coronavirus pandemic, many more backyard and neighborhood fireworks displays will likely take place on July Fourth. In New York City, more than 12,500 calls were made to 911 for illegal fireworks in June alone – roughly 12 times the number of comparable calls received in the first…
Read MoreILS funds average 0.12% return in muted May performance
The average return of catastrophe bond and insurance-linked securities (ILS) funds was just 0.12% in May 2020, as muted performance was the order of the day and a number of funds fell to a decline. May 2020 saw the average ILS fund return just 0.12%, according to the Eurekahedge ILS Advisers Index. Stefan Kräuchi, ILS…
Read MoreCovid-19 losses to take years to catch up to industry estimates: Willis Re
Currently, bottom-up Covid-19 pandemic loss announcements from insurance and reinsurance companies stand at only around $6 billion, some way short of the wide ranging $30 billion to $100 billion industry loss estimates and broker Willis Re warns it will likely take years to catch up which has ramifications for the ILS market. Reinsurance broker Willis…
Read MoreSempra Energy’s SD Re 2020-1 wildfire cat bond may upsize to $90m
Electrical utility Sempra Energy is seeking to upsize its second catastrophe bond, with the SD Re Ltd. (Series 2020-1) transaction now targeting a $90 million source of California wildfire insurance protection from the capital markets for the company. Sempra Energy returned to the catastrophe bond market in June, with an SD Re Ltd. (Series 2020-1)…
Read MoreS&P takes Vita Capital VI mortality bond off negative watch as Covid-19 outlook improves
The first catastrophe bond rating action caused by the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic has now been resolved and reverted, as S&P Global Ratings affirmed Swiss Re’s late 2015 Vita Capital VI Limited (Series 2015-1) transaction and removed it from a negative watch. The mortality catastrophe bond which featured a single $100 million tranche of Class A…
Read MoreArch secures first mortgage ILS of Covid-19 era, Capsicum Re assists on reinsurance
Arch Capital Group, the Bermuda headquartered specialist insurance and reinsurance carrier, has successfully secured $528 million of mortgage reinsurance through the completion of the first mortgage ILS deal of the Covid-19 era and by securing additional reinsurance with the assistance of broker Capsicum Re. As we’ve reported before, Arch Capital successfully closed a $450 million…
Read MoreUnderstanding FEMA and other flood maps
On June 29 the First Street Foundation, a nonprofit research firm, released an analysis of flood risk which shows that nearly 6 million of the nation’s properties are at more substantial risk of flooding than indicated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) maps. FEMA replied with a statement that its maps are intended for…
Read MoreMy floodiversary
Getty Images Today marks one year when my car got flooded, I got stranded, and I learned a huge lesson: I call it my floodiversary. We keep a small saltwater tank, and to keep the tank healthy, it needs regular water changes. Before the Fourth of July weekend I decided to swing by the local…
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