Middle East & Africa

Feature: Berkshire Hathaway declares war

Mon, 20 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Berkshire Hathaway’s aggressive entry into commercial primary insurance has raised concerns among US insurers about a potential pricing war. Some believe more reinsurers will follow Warren Buffett ‘s lead and target the E&S insurance market.

Political turmoil threatens Bahrain hub status

Fri, 17 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Despite being hardest hit by political instability in the Middle East, Bahrain’s insurance industry is flourishing, partly because it’s less oil-dependent than its neighbours.

Berkshire Hathaway credit rating cut to AA

Thu, 16 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Standard & Poor’s has downgraded Berkshire Hathaway's credit rating one notch to AA from AA+ because of its “dependence on its core insurance operations for most of its dividend income”; AA+ financial strength rating affirmed.

Aon: terrorism risk in 44% of countries

Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Egypt faces the highest terrorism and political violence risks, 11 countries have become riskier but Northern Europe has become safer, according to Aon.

Vote for the Reactions Global Awards 2013

Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Have your say on the the best insurance, reinsurance, broking and service provider firms for the Reactions Global Awards 2013. The winners will be anounced at our awards dinner in New York on September 25.

Marsh appoints MENA managing director

Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Neil Irwin has been tasked with expanding Marsh’s MENA business with a focus on insurance, risk management and employee benefits.

Q-Re makes senior appointments

Mon, 13 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Qatar-based reinsurer Q-Re has announced a management reshuffle, with several appointments to be based in Doha, Zurich, London and Bermuda.

Interview: Shah outlines RMS(one) vision

Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

The CEO of Risk Management Solutions says his firm's new platform is the result of the risk modelling industry reaching an inflection point, while insurance and reinsurance firms welcome the chance to analyse data faster through the cloud.

Terrorism demand rises as rates lower

Thu, 09 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Fears over the Arab Spring are dying down but fears around unpredictable "self-radicalised" terrorists grow in the wake of the Boston bombings.

AM Best: Buoyant UAE market

Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

The UAE insurance market is being kept afloat by compulsory medical schemes, public spending and social programmes despite its slow economy.

RMS(one) unveiled as future of cat modelling

Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

RMS reveals RMS(one), which will allow insurance and reinsurance companies to manage all their risk models, exposures and analytics on a single platform. Partners for the platform include ERN, JBA, Risk Frontiers and Aon Benfield’s ReMetrica.

Munich Re’s Q1 profit rises 25% to €979m

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Munich Re expects slight price erosion for such cat reinsurance cover in the US at July 1. The world’s biggest reinsurer said it is continuing to aim for a profit of close to €3bn for the whole year.

Shariah-compliant Lloyd’s agency launched

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Colbalt Underwriting, Aon and XL join forces to launch the first underwriting agency at Lloyd’s to provide Shariah-compliant insurance and reinsurance products to businesses globally.

Towers Watson adds EMEA director

Tue, 07 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Towers Watson has a new Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) managing director for its risk consulting and software arm, addressing "the various market changes taking place" across the region.

AIG P&C units upgraded to A+ by S&P

Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

AIG’s property/casualty group has rating upgraded to A+ by rating agency Standard & Poor’s in light of successful restructuring by over the past two years.

Brazilian IPO dominates April capital raising

Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Insurance Capital Raising Data: Insurance debt issuance was down, while equity issuance was up in April, including the world’s largest IPO so far this year with Banco do Brasil’s pensions and insurance arm raising $5.05bn.

Data: April insurance M&A value up to $2.4bn

Mon, 06 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

M&A data: The largest insurance mergers and acquisitions deal in April was Protective Life’s deal to buy the closed blocks of business of Mony Life from Axa for $1.06bn.

Corporate risk intelligence to aid reinsurers

Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Comment: Aon’s Global Risk Management Survey holds a lot of lessons for insurance and reinsurance firms behind the headline top risks, including revealing what changes organisations want from carriers, says Reactions contributing editor Garry Booth.

Moody's goes positive on Aon and MMC

Fri, 03 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Insurance brokerages Aon and Marsh & McLennan Companies have ratings put on positive outlook on improved financial leverage.

Clyde and Co reaches 295 partners

Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Seven lawyers being promoted to Clyde and Co’s partnership and six equity partners becoming senior equity partners reflects “continuing growth”, says the firm.

Insurance and Reinsurance Legal Survey 2013

Wed, 01 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Reactions reveals the top insurance and reinsurance law firms in the industry. In-house general counsel also reveal what they want to see from their legal partners in the coming year, how legal spend is changing and how fee structures are evolving.

Catastrophe Risk Model Roundtable

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Reactions hosted a roundtable, sponsored by Eqecat, to discuss how catastrophe risk models are evolving and debate how insurance and reinsurance firms should develop their own view of risk rather than solely relying on modelled output.

Willis Faber: untapped Turkish potential

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

The Turkish construction industry offers huge untapped potential for the international market, as domestic insurers are slow to capitalise on growth, according to a blog post from broker Faber Global, part of Willis.

Marsh: energy risk management demand up

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

A 39% increase in energy consumption in 20 years' time will make the need for greater risk management vital, insurance broker Marsh has argued.

Israeli banks see PI, D&O claims rise

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Courts are cracking down on Israeli banks amid claims of closing down indebted businesses too hastily, causing their professional indemnity (PI) insurers to suffer steep payouts.

Data: Upstream energy losses in 2012

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Upstream energy insurers’ fears of a large loss last year were not founded, when a potential explosion of the Elgin platform in the North Sea was averted. Losses in the year were considerably less than the still profitable 2011.

Reinsurance gets caught up in sanctions fight

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Analysis: Top insurance industry lawyers warn the reinsurance industry is playing a greater role than ever in international diplomacy as a result of sanctions against Iran and North Korea.

Aon reveals top risks for 2013

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Risk managers are struggling to identify and manage the the biggest risks facing their organisations, according to the biannual Aon Global Risk Management Survey. The broker indentifies a decline in "risk readiness".

Data: 2012’s biggest insured losses

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

Analysis: Sandy, which Swiss Re places at a $35bn insured loss, topped a costly year for natural catastrophes. The reinsurers’s recent sigma report reveals 2012's largest insured losses as well as the biggest nat cat losses since 1970.

Data: Most costly insurance losses 1970-2012

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT

The 40 most costly insurance losses 1970-2012 (in $m at 2012 prices). Source: Swiss Re's sigma "Natural catastrophes and man-made disasters in 2012: a year of extreme weather events in the US".