July 2009/1

US law firm Cozen O’Connor has flagged its interest in the trading risk universe by launching a capital markets group with expertise in insurance-linked securities (ILS). The group will advise

Senior convergence industry experts have contributed to a comprehensive teaching and reference guide to the sector – The Handbook of Insurance-Linked Securities (ILS) – published this mon

Ratings agency Moody’s Investor Service has withdrawn its ratings on the notes and loans of Hannover Re’s 2008 hybrid sidecar vehicle – the $133mn Globe Re – on repayment of t

Changes in the accounting treatment of insurance-linked securities and derivatives are set to boost the convergence sector, as the European directive Solvency II recognises the instruments as “

North Carolina’s state-backed catastrophe insurance plans, the Joint Underwriting Association and the North Carolina Insurance Underwriting Association, (NCJUA/IUA), have securitised $125mn of

Ratings agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has downgraded six cat bonds and placed a further four on CreditWatch with negative implications in a move which stems from a hardening of its rating crit

Convergence pioneer Nephila Capital raised an additional $800mn in the second quarter of this year for its insurance-linked investment funds, evincing a strong demand for non-correlated assets. Nephi

Hannover Re’s proposed EUR75mn European windstorm catastrophe bond, Eurus II, will incorporate BNP Paribas’ (BNPP) repurchase agreement (repo) collateral structure. As reported by Trading

The lack of US windstorm activity so far is continuing to weigh on the pricing of industry loss warranties (ILW) and insurance-linked derivatives while volumes remain modest. Matthew Carter – v

A $100 investment in insurance-linked securities (ILS) in 2002 would be worth $171 today, according to a report from broker dealer Lane Financial, with the firm’s cat bond return index showing

Former Magnetar Capital portfolio manager Pete Vloedman is launching his own insurance-linked investment vehicle, Anchor Risk Advisors LLC, Trading Risk can reveal. Vloedman left alternative asset ma

Cat bond pricing is likely to face more downward pressure after reinsurance rate increases were kept subdued at the key 1 July renewal date by adequate traditional capacity. US catastrophe rates for

New Castle and CIG Re head Chris McKeown joined global reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter in July as CEO of the firm’s global analytical and specialty practices, Trading Risk understands. McKeown

The reinsurance and risk-linked investments team (RLI) at alternative asset manager Stark Investments is spinning out of the mothership in a management buy-out, led by portfolio managers Tony Rettino

Tony Ursano – CEO of Willis capital markets and advisory – has hired seven former colleagues from Banc of America (BofA) Securities to boost the new group. Former co-head of equity capita