London market News

London Market’s Placing Platform, PPL, Adds P/C Lines to Growing Roster of Risks

PPL, the London market’s electronic placing platform, announced that property/casualty risks now can be bound on the platform. The PPL platform first began trading in July 2016 with stand-alone terrorism risks. It now also writes political violence, financial and professional …

Hiscox Names Markham as CEO for London Market Business

Specialist global insurer Hiscox announced the appointment of Kate Markham as CEO for its London Market business, subject to regulatory approval. Markham has been at Hiscox for five years and most recently was managing director of its direct to consumer …

Blockchain Industry Initiative, B3i, Expands with 23 New Broker, Re/Insurer Entrants

The Blockchain Insurance Industry Initiative B3i announced it has expanded with 23 new brokers and re/insurers entrants, which will help with B3i’s upcoming market testing program. B3i’s new entrants are: AIA, AIG, Aon, Chubb, Covéa, Everest Re, Gen Re, Guy …

Top Challenges for London’s Re/Insurers Are Soft Market, Brexit, Regulations: IUA

The top three challenges facing London market companies are the soft market, Brexit and regulatory compliance, according to a survey of International Underwriting Association (IUA) members. In an online questionnaire, members also cited the IT/cyber revolution, the challenge of innovating …

UK Financial Services Sector Seeking ‘Ambitious’ Brexit Trade Agreement

The UK’s financial sector is seeking an “ambitious” trade pact between Britain and the European Union to try to prevent a costly shift of jobs and business to the continent once the country leaves the bloc, according to a draft …

London Market Launches Data Capture Service Designed to Cut Data Re-Keying

The London Market Group (LMG) announced that one of the core solutions for improving the London market’s efficiency, called structured data capture (SDC), has gone live for the lines of terrorism, financial lines, marine, property and casualty. By removing the …

Castel Specialty Launches Global Construction Business

Castel Specialty, a division of Castel Underwriting Agencies Ltd., has expanded its portfolio with the launch of Castel Construction. London-based Castel Underwriting Agencies, part of Barbican Insurance Group, is a club-style MGA formation platform, which supports individual underwriters with smaller …

Soft Rates Begin to Hit Results – But Pain Continues at Mid-Year Renewals: Willis Re

Despite the deterioration many reinsurers saw in the first quarter, mid-year renewals continued their downward pricing trajectory, according to Willis Re in a recent report. Indeed, underlying loss and expense ratios for many reinsurers are showing a worrying trend of …

AXIS Capital to Acquire Lloyd’s Specialty Re/Insurer Novae for $604 Million

AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. announced it is acquiring Novae Group plc, a specialty re/insurer that operates through Lloyd’s of London. “The US$604 million transaction adds scale and breadth to the international specialty insurance business of AXIS, creating a $2 billion …

Existing EU Contracts Must Be ‘Grandfathered’ After Brexit to Avoid Complexity: Lloyd’s CEO Beale

Existing European Union insurance policies should stay in place after Britain leaves the bloc because the process of dividing them into British and EU contracts would be too complex, Lloyd’s of London Chief Executive Inga Beale said. The Lloyd’s of …