September 2009/1

Swiss Re is close to launching a fourth extreme mortality bond in its Vita series, spurred by a deepening of the H1N1 swine flu pandemic, Trading Risk understands. Although the target size of Vita IV

Leading ILS investor Clariden Leu is seeking to use the securitisation power of its Swiss bank franchise to transform insurance risk into much-needed investments for its flagship Cat Bond Fund. The $

The longevity swap market is “poised to grow” to £5-10bn in several years, after the latest £1.9bn transaction between UK insurer RSA and Goldman Sachs took the value of longevity reserve

A further surge in recession-related credit losses has prompted Standard & Poor’s (S&P) to downgrade the notes of Crystal Credit – Swiss Re’s EUR252mn credit reinsurance securitisat

Moody's Investors Service is keeping a $67.5mn tranche of the 2008 Nelson Re cat bond from private equity-backed Swiss reinsurer Glacier Re under review for possible downgrade. The agency said that t

Deutsche Bank is developing a highly liquid, highly transparent insurance-linked instrument which would provide mainstream investors with an alternative to cat bonds, Trading Risk understands. The ta

 The picture emerging from the Monte Carlo Rendez-Vous this September was of a healthy but fragmented reinsurance market, with adequate capacity dampening expectations of rating improvements in 2010.

London-based ILS investment manager Securis Investment Partners has hired former Swiss Re trader Al Selius to start a New York office. Selius will be based in New York and will join the non-life orig

Hannover Re has continued its pioneering legacy with the launch of the $60mn sidecar-style vehicle Fac Pool Re – the first dedicated, securitised facility created for facultative exposures. Han

Disappointing trading volumes in the brave new world of insurance-linked derivatives have pushed the world’s largest interdealer broker ICAP plc and insurance intermediary JLT to close their jo

The insurance-linked securities (ILS) sector produced returns of 3.89 percent for the year to end-June 2009, down from 10.12 percent the previous year, according to Aon Benfield cat bond indices. In

Ratings agency Moody’s Investors Service has upgraded two tranches of notes on Brit Insurance’s 2007 cat swap deal, Fremantle Ltd, as the likelihood of a loss diminishes while the transac

Bermudian mutual insurer Oil Casualty Insurance Co (OCIL) has repurchased $7,012,000 of the Class B notes of Avalon Re – its loss-stricken 2005 excess liability cat bond. The tender offer to no

Secondary cat bond pricing has risen for the tenth consecutive week, according to Swiss Re, but Hannover Re still cited “attractive pricing” as a reason for repurchasing EUR30mn of its Me

The index-based hurricane risk hedge transacted between US utility firm NRG Energy and insurance broker Willis in early September underlines the energy sector’s potential in the development of

Interdealer Tradition Re is partnering with Lloyd’s broker Alwen Hough Johnson (AHJ) to access the Lloyd’s and London markets for specialised retro products, including industry loss warra

The influential International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) is producing common standards and guidance relating to the supervision of (re)insurance risk transfer to the capital markets.