United States of America (USA)
AM Best: Flooding not wind biggest Hurricane Lane concern for insurers
In addition to insurers exposed to property risk, AM Best expects that motor insurers will see claims resulting from heavy rainfall.
Apollo snaps up Aspen in $2.6bn deal
Aspen Insurance has entered an agreement with investment manager Apollo that will see it sell all remaining shares in the business for $42.75 (£33.15) per share, a total of $2.6bn (£2bn).
This week in Post: One every minute
For those of us back in the office while the holiday season continues it might seem like time is moving slowly but the Association of British Insurers revealed this week that for every minute we count down until silly season is over and the out of office…
Reinsurers turn to M&A to stay relevant as challenging market forces bite
Global reinsurers have turned to mergers and acquisition deals over the last year in order to remain relevant in the face of challenging market conditions, but S&P maintains a neutral view on this trend.
Beat Capital snaps up Paraline syndicate
Venture capital firm Beat Capital Partners and Bermuda-based insurance holding company Paraline are to merge.
Losses expected as Hawaii bunkers down for cat 4 Hurricane
The insurance and reinsurance industry is braced for losses as category 4 Hurricane Lane continues to track towards the islands of Hawaii.
Top 30 European insurers 2018: A year of steady growth for insurers
Overall, top-line growth for the 30 largest European insurers has been steady, reflecting the underlying economic conditions throughout Europe, explain Tim Prince and Yvette Essen, director of analytics and director of research at AM Best
Insurtech sees its Facebook chatbot pilot flop
US-based start-up Next Insurance has found that its SME customers are not interested in buying insurance through a Facebook chatbot.
XL Catlin's Nicola Harris on why insurers need to change their approach to the energy sector
Challenging times for the oil and gas industry call for a change in the way insurers address energy risks, writes Nicola Harris, head of energy for Europe, Middle East and Africa at XL Catlin.
Brit profit dives 87.5% at H1
Brit’s pre-tax profit nose-dived 87.5% in the first six months of 2018 on the back of poor investment returns.
Lemonade mulls dropping plagiarism lawsuit against rival Wefox
Following a meeting with Wefox founder Julian Teicke, Lemonade CEO Daniel Schreiber has pledged to drop a lawsuit against One Insurance and Wefox if the start-up redesigns some features.
Interview: Jonathan Davidson, Financial Conduct Authority
Insurance has come under fire for the way it prices policies. Jonathan Davidson, director of retail at the Financial Conduct Authority, discusses the problem with Martin Croucher
Market must use consortium model to attack expense base, says Hiscox chair
Carriers in the London market must work together in consortiums to spread risk, combat rising expenses ratios and mitigate underwriting pressures, Hiscox chairman Robert Childs said.
Hiscox Retail helps drive 27% boost in group profit at H1
Hiscox saw pre-tax profit climb 27% to $164m (£125m) in the first half of 2018, with the insurer’s retail arm contributing more than half of that figure.
Gallagher CEO welcomes modest rate increases as broker delivers growth in H1
Gallagher saw its net earnings climb to $3.43bn for the first half of 2018, up 27% from $3.07bn in the same period in 2017.
Lancashire sees premiums and profit dip at Q2
Bermuda-based Lancashire saw profits slip 15% and gross written premiums dive 4.3% in the second quarter of 2018.
Markel receives green light on German subsidiary
Markel has been granted a license by BaFin, the German federal financial supervisory authority, to establish an insurance company in Germany.
Advent and Brit owner looks to merge Lloyd’s businesses
Fairfax Financial Holdings, the parent of Advent Capital Holdings and Brit, is planning to merge some of their Lloyd’s business and place the rest into run-off.
Zurich's Puneet Sharma: Calling time on credit markets
Credit has been underperforming equities and Puneet Sharma, managing director at Zurich, believes this warrants a rethink of portfolio positioning.
Insurtech start-up Next raises $83m
US-based insurtech start-up Next Insurance has raised $83m in a Series B funding round led by Redpoint Ventures and including Munich Re.
Q&A: Lynda Lucas, chair, Airmic
Lucas began her career as a company secretarial trainee at British Aerospace and has since had various risk management roles at companies including Nortel, Old Mutual and, since 2006, Fujitsu. She has been an Association of Insurance and Risk Managers…
Analysis: Sport injury: Hitting hard
As professional sportspeople complain about their insufficient cover for career-ending injuries, insurers fear a surge in claims from contact sports
Acord, Aon and Beazley team up on first data breach standard
Acord, the global standards-setting body for the insurance industry, has published the sectors first standard for a cyber data breach.
Allianz's Stephanie Smith: Insurance needs to be louder and prouder
Insurance makes the world go round and Stephanie Smith, chief operating officer at Allianz, says the industry should be prouder of its daily accomplishments.