Alternative capital the main source of inflow to reinsurance in 2024: Gallagher Re
As alternative reinsurance capital, from catastrophe bonds and other non-life insurance-linked securities (ILS) structures, grew to a new high of US $114 billion by the end of 2024, Gallagher Re notes that it was the main source of capital inflow to the reinsurance market last year. While traditional reinsurance capital also grew in 2024, to […]
Cat bonds stable & resilient amid tariff financial market volatility: Fund managers
Catastrophe bonds are once again showing their value as a source of portfolio stability, with specialist cat bond fund managers Plenum Investments and Icosa Investments AG highlighting the sector’s calm performance despite growing volatility in broader financial markets tied to U.S. tariff tensions and macroeconomic uncertainty. In separate updates, both Plenum Investments and Icosa Investments […]
Hong Kong government can encourage investors by allocating to ILS products, says FSDC
As Hong Kong continues to focus on developing insurance-linked securities (ILS) as a key market segment, a position paper from advisory body the Financial Services Development Council states that further integrating ILS products into its own investment portfolios would help the government encourage investors to consider allocating to the asset class. So far there have […]
Cat bond market yield stable at 10.43%, as seasonality and demand compete in March
The opposing forces of seasonality and demand continued to drive the overall yield of the catastrophe bond market sideways through March, ending the month at 10.43% so remaining relatively flat over the period, according to the latest data from Plenum Investments. Recall that, back in late 2024, high-demand for catastrophe bond investments had compressed risk spreads somewhat […]
Catastrophe bond market can return ~8.5% in 2025 with expected losses: Lane Financial
The catastrophe bond market is forecast to have the potential to deliver a total return of around 8.5% in 2025, even after accounting for an expected level of losses to bonds during the year, according to consultancy Lane Financial LLC. Pricing in the catastrophe bond market is said to be “slouching just south of neutral,” […]
Plenty of headroom left in higher reinsurance attachments, despite inflation: J.P. Morgan
Equity analysts from investment bank J.P. Morgan came away from a recent visit to companies in the London insurance and reinsurance market with the impression that underwriters feel there is plenty of headroom left in the higher attachment points still installed across the sector, despite inflationary influences on losses. “We came away from the tour […]
ILS fund return dispersion high again in Feb, on CA wildfire & Helene flood losses: ILS Advisers
The ILS Advisers Fund Index has reported a +0.17% return for February 2025, but the company has highlighted a second consecutive month where there was a broad dispersion between ILS fund returns and performance, as effects from losses due to the California wildfires continued to flow through the market. In addition to the wildfire related negative performance […]
ILS appeal lies in being the only truly uncorrelated asset class: Gibson, Schroders Capital
Insurance-linked securities (ILS) continue to stand out as a compelling asset class, not just for their strong returns, but for their unique ability to remain uncorrelated with broader financial markets, according to Mark Gibson, Senior Investment Director, ILS, at Schroders Capital. The Swiss Re Global Cat Bond Index posted record gains of 17.3% in 2024 […]
Cat bonds move up to contribute 32% of CEA’s smaller still $7.72bn reinsurance tower
As the California Earthquake Authority (CEA) risk transfer needs have been adjusting and its reinsurance tower shrinking, catastrophe bonds now make up almost 32% of the total as of February 28th 2025. The CEA’s risk transfer tower had sat at just over $9.15 billion of limit as recently as following the June 2024 reinsurance renewal season, but […]
SCOR targets $200m Atlas Capital 2025-1 multi-peril catastrophe bond
France-headquartered global reinsurance company SCOR is back in the catastrophe bond market seeking $200 million or more in fully-collateralized retrocession from an Atlas Capital DAC (Series 2025-1) issuance, Artemis has learned. This new Atlas Capital DAC Series 2015-1 catastrophe bond will be the nineteenth from SCOR to use the Atlas name and the twentieth cat bond from […]