Articles by Michael Shields and Carolyn Cohn

Zurich Insurance Expects $550M Hit From Hurricane Ian, but On Track to Beat Targets

Zurich Insurance Group expects a net $550 million pre-tax hit from Hurricane Ian, Europe’s fifth-largest insurer said on Thursday, though it remains on track to beat its 2020-2022 financial targets, helped by premium rate rises. Insurers face potential losses of …

Zurich Insurance CEO Backs Carbon Tax and Public-Private Cyber Partnership

Zurich Insurance Chief Executive Mario Greco wants governments to levy a carbon tax and remove the incentive for socially irresponsible companies to maximize profits by polluting the environment, he told Reuters. Europe’s fifth-largest insurer has already taken steps to clean …

Zurich Insurance Expects Limited Exposure to Greensill Collapse

Zurich Insurance does not expect to have a major exposure to the failure of supply chain financing firm Greensill Capital, the insurer’s chief financial officer said on Wednesday after it reported solid first-quarter earnings. Greensill Capital lent money to firms …

Early Claims and Crash Tests Suggest Risks of Luxury, SUV Electric Vehicles

Electric luxury cars and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) may be 40% more likely to cause accidents than their standard engine counterparts, possibly because drivers are still getting used to their quick acceleration, French insurer AXA said. The numbers, based on …

Zurich Insurance on Track to Meet 2019 Targets, Sees Positive P/C Pricing Trends

Zurich Insurance is on track to meet or beat its financial targets to 2019 and is seeing positive trends in property and casualty (P/C) insurance pricing. Europe’s fifth-biggest insurer made the forecast on Thursday despite a 2 percent fall in …

Swiss Re’s Q1 Profit of $429M Hit by Natural Catastrophes, Boeing Crash

Reinsurer Swiss Re AG’s reported an unexpected 6 percent fall in quarterly net profit on Friday as claims from large losses offset higher net premiums and a solid return on investments. Net profit came in at $429 million, below the …

Cyber Attacks Pose Biggest Threat to Swiss Financial System: Regulator

Cyber attacks pose the biggest threat to the Swiss financial system with risks from hacking incursions on the rise, watchdog FINMA warned on Tuesday, calling on Switzerland to step up its national defenses against the menace. “The risks connected with …

Senn, Ex-CEO of Zurich Insurance, Commits Suicide

Former Zurich Insurance boss Martin Senn has committed suicide six months after leaving the company under a cloud, a tragedy that comes less than three years after Zurich’s finance chief took his own life. Senn, 59, shot himself at his …

U.S. Official Calls for Legal Framework to Fight Cyber Crime

Cyber criminals are outwitting national and international legal systems that fail to embrace technological advances, a top U.S. official said on Friday, demanding a cross-border campaign to combat the security threat. “Most countries don’t even have a legal framework that …

U.S. Calls for Cross-Border Laws to Counter Cyber Attacks

Cyber criminals are outwitting national and international legal systems that fail to embrace technological advances, a top U.S. official said on Friday, demanding a cross-border campaign to combat the security threat. “Most countries don’t even have a legal framework that …