February 2013/1

Reinsurers provided a varied account of the 1 January renewals as they reported their 2012 results, with the most bullish putting US rate movements at +5 percent while others suggested that rates were down

The growth of the alternative reinsurance marketplace may be set to slow or plateau as some niches reach a "saturation point", according to Validus CEO Ed Noonan

Validus is suing the US government for a tax rebate of more than $435,000 in a test case to determine whether foreign excise tax on reinsurance should be treated as a "cascading tax", court filings show

Swiss Re Successor X (2011-3) cat bond are within a fraction of triggering after PCS released its second loss estimate for Hurricane Sandy, Trading Risk understands

Swiss Re will continue placing redemption clauses on its Vita Capital extreme mortality cat bonds after it decided to redeem the $125mn Vita Capital IV early

Buying demand on the secondary ILS market remains strong but there have been few trading opportunities in recent weeks as cash-flush investors await new issuance opportunities

The top 10 ILS fund managers have added $7bn to their combined assets under management over the past year and now control almost $28bn of funds, according to investor data compiled by Trading Risk.

Former Rochdale Securities fixed income and ILS trader Craig Bonder has moved to boutique investment firm Maxim Group, after Rochdale came to a standstill following a $1bn rogue trade incident last year

The longevity market is set to see its first transaction of 2013, following on from Aegon's longevity swap with Deutsche Bank last March, Trading Risk understands

Nephila Capital's new syndicate manager Adam Beatty said the cat reinsurance fund manager's move into the Lloyd's market shows how far the lines between traditional and alternative market reinsurers have blurred in recent years.

Just one private cat bond has been placed in the last month but ILS investors still expect 2013 issuance to be around the $6bn mark as they await new deals

Although significant institutional capital may be sitting on the "sidelines" of the alternative reinsurance market other factors are preventing more pension funds from being attracted to the space, fund advisers say.