Price optimisation is high on industry agenda

Chair Anthony Gould kicked off proceedings by telling the delegates that the subject of price optimisation is very high on the industry's agenda at the moment.

Referring back to the recent Monte Carlo Rendez-vous event, he said that the reinsurance industry is convinced the primary market is not pricing risks correctly.

One example, cited by a number of key reinsurance players at a CEO roundtable he hosted, was that of AIG, which was bailed out by the US government this time last year.

This, Mr Gould recalled, led to many companies believing there would be rich pickings as the future of the insurer came under question. However, instead of trying to take the business away at higher or equal rates, he said many players reportedly came in with lower ones, which was "madness" as far as the reinsurers were concerned.