Key vote on California’s disaster insurance bill scrapped
Progress has stalled on a bill that would allow California to take out insurance and buy catastrophe bonds against wildfires and other disasters.
Arch confirms Ventus deal as Reeth retirement announced
In a move first revealed by The Insurer, Arch Insurance North America has confirmed a deal to buy specialty property MGU Ventus Risk Management that will allow it to add third party capital alongside its own product offerings.
Leadenhall bolsters Bermuda presence with Adolph appointment
Leadenhall Capital Partners’ Ben Adolph is to relocate to Bermuda from London as the ILS fund manager looks to build out its footprint on the island.
ILS issuance declines by 58% in Q2
The insurance-linked securities (ILS) market saw a 58 percent fall in issuance in the second quarter of 2019 compared to Q2 2018, according to Willis Re Securities.
New Markel retro platform “not a replacement” for CatCo
Markel’s co-CEOs in an earnings call stressed they will take a “crawl-walk-run” approach to its new Bermuda retro platform and also explained a $213mn investment in MGA Hagerty.
Blue Capital to run off listed ILS fund
Sompo-owned Blue Capital has announced that its New York and Bermuda listed vehicle will go into run-off and return capital to shareholders as it winds up its operations.
Markel to launch new retro ILS platform, wind down CatCo
Markel intends to establish a new retrocessional ILS platform in Bermuda, comprised of a reinsurance company, fund entity and investment manager.
Arch in record $700mn mortgage ILN deal
Arch Mortgage Insurance has completed its third mortgage reinsurance insurance-linked note transaction (ILN) of the year, while NMI Holdings has announced a $327mn mortgage ILN issuance.
Hiscox promotes Hughes to lead ILS business as Lowther departs
Hiscox has appointed Andrew Hughes to the role of managing principal, Hiscox ILS.
ILS repricing attracting new investors: Twelve Capital
Cat bond investment manager Twelve Capital has revealed “strong inflows” of close to $400mn in 18 months for its latest UCITS fund, and reported new investors are entering the ILS market.
Lowther to leave Hiscox Re ILS
Richard Lowther, managing principal at Hiscox Re Insurance Linked Strategies, is to leave the company.
Schroders acquires full ownership of Swiss ILS specialist Secquaero
Schroders has reinforced its Private Assets business by increasing its stake in Zurich-based ILS investor Secquaero Advisors AG (Secquaero) from 50.1 percent to 100 percent.
Markel confirms Fredricks settlement and Belisle binding arbitration agreed
Markel has confirmed it has agreed to a binding arbitration with former CatCo CEO Anthony Belisle and a mutually agreeable settlement with the ILS manager’s erstwhile Bermuda chief Alissa Fredricks.
Fired CatCo CEO’s $65.8mn lawsuit against Markel settled
The lawsuit filed by the fired CEO of Markel CatCo Anthony Belisle seeking $65.8mn of incentive payments from his former employer has been settled, while erstwhile CatCo Bermuda CEO Alissa Fredricks has voluntarily dismissed her case seeking $7.4mn.
Arcus confirms RenRe’s Shepherd as active underwriter
Credit Suisse’s Arcus Syndicate 1856 has named former RenRe London-based property underwriter Alex Shepherd as active underwriter, a move first revealed by The Insurer earlier this year.
Tangency Capital in $165mn raise
Bermuda-based ILS investment venture Tangency Capital has raised a further $165mn as it targets opportunities ahead of the main thrust of the Atlantic hurricane season.
Paris takes aim at London ILS market as CCR Re commits to 2020/21 sidecars
CCR Re, the open market reinsurance arm of French state-owned carrier Caisse Centrale de Réassurance (CCR), has pledged to launch sidecars for next year and 2021 in a move that seeks to further place Paris as an ILS-friendly jurisdiction to rival London.
Peru ILS loss will not put investors off parametric deals: Nephila’s Schauble
Nephila’s Barney Schauble has told The Insurer ILS investors have not been surprised by the losses of the “difficult” past two years, with a Peru cat bond placed by the World Bank the latest to be triggered and a pandemic bond placed by the bank potentially about to be triggered.
Liberty Mutual renews Limestone Re sidecar at $240mn
US P&C heavyweight Liberty Mutual has renewed its reinsurance sidecar Limestone Re at $240mn, slightly smaller than last year’s $278mn vehicle because of a “revised portfolio composition”.
Nephila reports growing interest in weather risk transfer
Infrastructure managers are increasingly looking to use weather risk transfer (WRT) for extreme events while other corporations are also considering it to mitigate climate change, Nephila Climate chairman Barney Schauble told The Insurer.