Insurers News

Brokers Report Keen Direct Line Interest; But Some Investors Wary

Stockbrokers involved in the planned stock market listing of British insurer Direct Line reported good interest from private investors in London’s first big retail share offering for six years, although some potential investors are unconvinced. “The appetite has been really …

EU Insurers’ Capital Charges May be Cut to Boost Loans

Capital charges for insurers in the European Union could be cut to encourage lending for long-term projects and help boost the flagging economy, the bloc’s executive body said in a high profile policy shift. The European Commission has written to …

AAIS Releases New Policy Forms for Insuring Infrastructure

The American Association of Insurance Services (AAIS) has released a series of new policy forms, endorsements, and corresponding schedules for covering public or private infrastructure facilities. The forms were recently released under the miscellaneous forms section of the AAIS Inland …

Bank Group Warns of Heightened Risk of Cyber Attacks

A financial services industry group warned U.S. banks, brokerages and insurers on Wednesday to be on heightened alert for cyber attacks after Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase experienced unexplained outages on their public websites. The Financial Services Information Sharing …

Geneva Association’s Fitzpatrick Warns against Mixing Bank and Insurance Regs

After 39 years of gathering, collating and disseminating the facts and figures relevant to the global insurance industry the world’s leaders and shakers are finally paying attention to the findings and recommendations of the Geneva Association. “There’s now a growing …

China Drafts Rules for Insurers to Raise Private Equity Stakes; Trade Derivatives

China plans to double the amount insurers can invest in private equity and allow them to trade financial derivatives both at home and abroad as part of efforts to broaden their investment scope, according to a set of draft regulations …

EU under Pressure to Delay Solvency II Insurer Capital Rules

The European Union may be forced to put back the January 2014 start date for its Solvency II capital regime for insurers after talks to agree a final draft of the strict new rules collapsed, Europe’s top insurance sector lobby …

EIOPA Releases Final ‘Own Risk and Solvency Assessment’ Report

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published its Final Report on draft Guidelines for Own Risk and Solvency Assessment (ORSA), which “underlines the purposes of the ORSA,” and provides “additional details on how the guidelines are to …

Willis Exec: Industry Will Respond w/ ‘New Tools’ to Growing Disaster Risk

The insurance industry plays a pivotal role in integrating new tools, technology and solutions to protect populations and assets against growing concerns about natural disasters and, in the process, helps ensure a sustainable future, according to Rowan Douglas, CEO of …

UK’s ABI Warns Metal Theft Crime Wave Costs Insurers over $1.6 Million a Week

“The victims of the UK’s metal theft crime wave are now being paid out over £1 million [$1.58 million] every week by insurers,” according to the Association of British Insurers. Thieves are making off with everything from “train cables to …