December 2010/1

The investment banking arm of broker Willis has predicted at least $6bn in ILS issuance for the coming year, building on strong 2010 performance which saw $4.8bn of non-life natural catastrophe bonds placed in the capital markets.

ILS stalwart Swiss Re closed its fourth cat bond in the space of a month with its EUR75mn Green Fields transaction on behalf of French insurer Groupama.

Swiss Re closed its third Successor X offering at $170mn, taking 2010 new ILS issuance to $5.2bn.

US wind prices on industry loss warranty (ILW) contracts have dropped by as much as 20 percent for certain triggers after the close of the hurricane season, according to broker Aon Benfield Global ReSpecialty.

Chartis subsidiary National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh (NUFI) almost doubled the size of its second Lodestone cat bond issuance, placing $450mn at the expense of the collateralised reinsurance market as ILS prices came in 30 percent cheaper, Trading Risk understands.

More than $1bn of cat bond and industry loss warranty (ILW) capital has been placed in 2010 using the Perils European industry loss index as a trigger.

A healthy market in private (A)XXX US life reserve securitisations should emerge into the public limelight next year as the life securitisation market continues to recover, Swiss Re says.

A large portion of cat fund Solidum's $4.25mn private cat bond notes traded in the secondary market earlier this month, Trading Risk can reveal.

The cat bond market is on track to post absolute growth next year after three years of contracting, reinsurance giant Swiss Re's predicted today (14 December).

A true marker of liquidity in the secondary market has been set with a EUR2mn secondary market trade in Scor's latest Atlas VI notes, just four minutes after the deal closed.

Goldman Sachs-owned Rothesay Life will buy pensions insurer Paternoster for an undisclosed sum, further increasing the firm's scope in the longevity sector.

Capacity in Credit Suisse Asset Management's (CSAM) IRIS insurance-linked funds has hit $3bn and continues to rise, Trading Risk can reveal.

The inclusion of tri-party repurchase (repo) structures on recent cat bond transactions does not mean the market is relaxing its standards on collateral creditworthiness, sources say.

Hedge fund manager DE Shaw's Class 3 Bermudian reinsurer is operating with impaired capacity for the 1 January collateralised renewal season as investor redemptions take their toll on assets under management, Trading Risk understands.

Swiss banks Clariden Leu and Falcon Private Bank have launched UCITS III cat bond funds, hoping to raise $200mn and up to $500mn respectively, Trading Risk can reveal.

It is all too easy to herald the return of the soft market to the ILS sector.Trading Risk has taken the so-called indicators of soft market conditions and compared 2010 to 2007, the last time when there was evidence of abundant capital, cheap rates, broad collateral management solutions, multi-peril bonds, long-term deals and a warm embrace of indemnity triggers.

Modelling firm RMS is known for its natural catastrophe models. Here Peter Nakada, managing director at RMS RiskMarkets, explains why the firm ventured into the domain of traditional actuarial techniques...

The industry loss warranty (ILW) market will be the focus for the new collateralised retro vehicle launched by IFEX ambassador and former Manulife chief Andreas Kusay.

The first 2011 snowfall trade cleared on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) last month as winter approached.

Several multi-billion pound longevity swaps are up for tender from UK pension funds and should be complete within the first half of 2011, advisory firm Hymans Robertson predicted in its quarterly assessment of the pension risk market.

The ILW market began to settle early in the third quarter as it became clear that the hurricane season did not pose the threat it first appeared to, according to GC Securities' Q3 ILS market update.

Around half of the estimated $100mn "cold spot" industry loss warranty (ILW) market has triggered as the latest industry loss estimates for the New Zealand earthquake top $3bn, Trading Risk can reveal.

Insured losses from natural catastrophes and manmade disasters total $36bn in 2010 so far - up 34 percent on last year - according to Swiss Re's Sigma team.

The government of Jamaica will take up rainfall cover under the Caribbean Catastrophe Risk Insurance Facility (CCRIF) by the end of January next year, according to statements from the Jamaican Minister of Finance and the Public Service, Audley Shaw.