Asia
Kiln appoints two in Asia
Insurance and reinsurance underwriters Kiln have appointed Paul Dreblow and Kenneth Leung to their team in Asia.
New Indian insurer receives licence
Indian engineering giant Larsen & Toubro’s new general insurance company is due to start operations after receiving a licence from the regulatory authority for commencing its business operations.
AIG names ex-Pru chief head of AIA ahead of listing
AIG has named former Prudential chief executive Mark Tucker as head of its Asia life insurance business, AIA, and said it would seek to list AIA on the Hong Kong stock exchange.
KPMG unsurprised by US omission in Solvency II project
KPMG has welcomed Ceiops draft advice (Consultation Paper 81), published yesterday, on which jurisdictions’ regulatory regimes are to be considered within the first wave of Solvency II equivalence assessments.
Singapore insurance market poses threat to London warns Marsh
The London market needs to think about how it is responding to the expanding Singapore market if it is going to be competitive with rates.
Haiti and Mozambique most vulnerable to economic losses from natural disasters
Italy, Japan, China, USA, Spain and France also rated “high risk” on The Natural Disasters Economic Loss Index (NDELI), released by risk intelligence and ratings company, Maplecroft.
JLT appoints MD for North Asia
Jardine Lloyd Thompson Asia has appointed Doug White as managing director of its North Asia business.
Japanese regulator to abolish asset allocation rules
Japan's Financial Services Agency plans to eliminate investment rules restricting asset allocations at life and non-life (re)insurers, according to newswire Reuters.
Tokio Marine to restructure to expand reinsurance and commercial property book
Tokio Marine, the global insurance group, has announced plans to expand its international reinsurance and large commercial property operations. It is also announcing the opening of new offices for reinsurance business in Switzerland and Australia.
Post script – 10 years ago: Garwyn in limbo as QBE goes to Limit
Looking through Post’s back catalogue paints a unique picture of more than 150 years of insurance news, as this highlight from 10 years ago reveals.
Technology - Underwriting: Shifting focus
Insurers are upping the pace at which they investigate underwriting IT options and, over the past six months, there has been a substantial jump in the number of carriers looking to engage software houses with projects in this area, says Edward Murray
Willis Re promotes Byng
Willis Re has named James Byng Property Resource group leader for its International and Specialty reinsurance business.
Whittington faces Aviva in Asian direct market
Whittington has pitched itself against Aviva by setting its sights on the direct Asian insurance market with the launch of a new insurance company in Singapore.
Non-life weathers storm
In the UK non-life premiums fell 3.1% to $92bn (£61bn) in 2009 (which ranked it fourth behind the US, Japan and Germany) out of a total of $309bn (which ranked the UK third behind the US and Japan), and that insurance penetration was 12.9%, according to…
Swiss Re: global non-life premium dips 0.1% in 2009 to $1 735bn
According to Swiss Re’s latest “World insurance in 2009” sigma study, world insurance premium volume fell 1.1% on an inflation-adjusted basis.
Execs would not be surpised if Eurozone shrinks, report claims
Rising sovereign debt in the developed world is one of the main concerns for the world’s business leaders and financial executives, according to 440 senior executives who participated in a survey commissioned by RBC Capital Markets.
Whittington preps Asian direct launch
Whittington Group is set to launch a new direct online insurance company, DirectAsia.com, in Singapore with reinsurance support from Munich Re.
Ageas 2009 international result improves under new structure
Ageas, formerly known as Fortis, today published 2009 pro forma financial information reflecting the group’s new reporting structure.
China regulator aims to open more investment channels for insurers
The China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CRIC) is discussing loosening the investment channels of insurance companies, according to newswire the Xinhua News Agency.
Reinsurer capital up 8% - Aon Benfield
Aon Benfield Aggregate (ABA) report from Aon Benfield Research team estimates that global reinsurer capital increased by 8% to $434bn, surpassing the record levels set in 2007 before the global financial crisis occurred.
US west coast at risk of “mega-quake”
The west coast of North America, the Lesser Antilles, Chile, Sumatra and Japan are all at risk from subduction zone “mega-quakes” in the near future according to Professor Bill McGuire of the Aon Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre.
Aon lists five earthquke hotspots
Aon Benfield has identified the Caribbean, Cascadia in North America, Chile, Indonesia and Japan as areas where mega-earthquakes of moment magnitude (Mw) 8+ are most likely to occur in the future.
ABI chair calls on government to put words into action over tax reform
The outgoing chairman of the Association of British Insurers Archie Kane, has launched an attack on European law makers for not differentiating between insurance and other financial services.
Penny Black's insurance week
Penny was interested to read about the fiery Prudential shareholder meeting on Monday this week, following its failed bid for Asia's AIA.