April 2013/1

ANV stake adds to OTPP's heavyweights; LGT opens Bermudian cells; Blue Capital in second round of fundraising

Property sums insured for European windstorm risk have increased by 1.9 percent year-on-year across the 11 markets covered by data company Perils

PartnerRe is the latest reinsurer to establish its own strategic sidecar vehicle with the launch of the $75mn Lorenz Re

Leadenhall Capital Partners has launched its first commingled fund solely focused on life insurance-linked investments, the Dublin-based Leadenhall Life Insurance Linked Investments Fund

ILS fund manager returns have begun 2013 on a positive trajectory after improving on fourth quarter increases

Tokio Millennium Re recouped $20.5mn from industry loss warranties (ILWs) traded as livecat contracts during Superstorm Sandy, the company disclosed in its 2012 annual report

Strong demand in the secondary cat bond market is resulting in "pre-sell" bids being placed on new notes above par value before the deals have even closed, according to sources

The cat bond market has softened more quickly in 2013 than during the last soft market just before the 2011 Tohoku quake, according to a new report from Lane Financial

The 1 June renewal of the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association (TWIA)'s $850mn cat programme remains uncertain, with the very existence of the residual insurer under considerable threat.

Rates on Florida business are expected to soften at the 1 June renewal despite significant new demand for limit in the market.

Cat bond issuance has picked up pace to boost first quarter issuance to $1.35bn, just behind last year's record-breaking $1.5bn

Reinsurance programme restructures from two very different buyers in the lead-up to the key mid-year wind renewal have provided early evidence of an expected increase in participation from alternative providers in the traditional open market for US cat reinsurance.

Niklaus Hilti, ILS manager at Credit Suisse - the second-largest operator in the ILS fund sector - said last year that reinsurers trying to take on the funds management business "all think this is El Dorado".

The collateralised reinsurance market has grown by 44 percent over the past nine months from $9bn to $13bn at March 2013, according to estimates from Guy Carpenter

Swiss Re now ranks 2011 ahead of 2005 as the costliest catastrophe year ever for insurers, according to the reinsurer's latest Sigma report.

Catco could lose another 4.7 percentage points of returns from its 2012 portfolio if the PCS estimate for Superstorm Sandy losses were to rise to $26bn, according to a presentation seen by Trading Risk

I wonder who first used the term "hot capital" to describe the current investor enthusiasm for the alternative reinsurance market?

The ILS market is maintaining discipline even as strong demand pushes down pricing, participants at the inaugural Sifma Trading Risk roundtable argued.

A proposed Dutch flood pool could become the third-biggest catastrophe placement in the world if it proceeds with plans to place a giant EUR4bn cover, sister publication The Insurance Insider reported.

Specialist ILS fund managers are coming under increased fee pressure from institutional investors, despite increased inflows into the sector, Trading Risk has found

The ILS market is unlikely to see another structure similar to the disputed Nelson Re cat bond in the near-term, according to Fermat Capital co-founder John Seo.

Pimco is understood to be among the wave of generalist investors renewing their interest in the cat bond market, forming part of a trend that has helped de-couple cat bond pricing dynamics from the reinsurance market cycle

Swiss Re has recouped $7.2mn of Hurricane Sandy losses from its Vega Capital 2010 cat bond in the second investor payout on the three-year deal, according to a Moody's rating note.