Swiss Re, Scor in cat bond launches

Swiss Re and French (re)insurance rival Scor have both launched cat bonds.

Swiss Re launched 'Successor X', which is a one year $150m cat bond program which will protect the reinsurer against California earthquakes and North Atlantic US hurricanes.

Scor, according to cat bond website Artemis, is planning to launch Atlas VI, a $75m catastrophe bond designed to protect the reinsurer against "major Japanese earthquakes and certain northern and western European windstorms."

Aon Benfield and French bank BNP Paribas will arrange the deal, which is designed to provide protection between this month and April 2013.

"Structured in a single tranche of series 2009-1 Class A notes the deal uses Parametric loss triggers for both the Japanese earthquake risk and the European windstorm risk," Artemis says, adding that for collateral the bond will "utilise a tri-party repurchase agreement in which BNP Paribas, Euroclear and Atlas VI will be involved. Assets used will have to be highly rated corporate and sovereign debt of U.S. or European entities, cannot be debt issued by certain named companies and must be overcollateralized."

It added that S&P has assigned a rating of 'BB-' to the notes. 

This story was originally published by Reinsurance