December 2010/1

Swiss Re has been in talks with Indian government representatives about proposals for catastrophe insurance, according to local media reports from a recent India Economic Summit hosted by the World Economic Forum.

Start-up Bermudian reinsurance fund Catco has signed two executives from the Qatar Insurance Company to its board.

Ratings agency Moody's has put life insurance linked notes Emergence Offset under review for possible downgrade due to the Irish debt crisis.

The 2010 hurricane season was a "gentle giant" for the key US (re)insurance market, according to Jack Hayes, director of the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service.

Investment bank Credit Suisse has slimmed down its longevity markets team and shifted remaining staff to the firm's rates business.

Some 40 percent of existing cat bonds on risk will mature by the end of June 2011, leaving ILS investors keen to help keep new deals flowing, broker GC Securities reported in its Q3 Market Update.

IFEX ambassador and former Manulife chief Andreas Kusay has launched a new collateralised retro vehicle, with $300mn of capacity for property catastrophe business at 1 January.

First time issuer American Family's $100mn Mariah Re US thunderstorm cat bond is trading at 101.5 cents to the dollar just weeks after its November launch, according to sources.

Cat bond prices in the secondary market have fallen in recent weeks, according to Swiss Re data, resulting in mark-to-market losses on investor portfolios.

Cat bond sponsors and structurers have been offering investors some much-needed diversifying assets this month, with a trio of multi-peril deals closing to a strong reception from investors.

Leading ILS fund manager Credit Suisse Asset Management (CSAM) has secured $400mn of contingent capital for a new energy-focused (re)insurance vehicle that will be activated in the event of a hard market.

Who would have thought we would be here today, watching the ILS issuance ticker push above the $5bn mark for the year?