July 2008/1

The insurance linked securities (ILS) sector is a rare jewel that stands out from the credit market turmoil, according to market leaders speaking at Trading Risk’s inaugural Executive Briefing

Christopher McGhee, former head of Guy Carpenter & Co’s specialist investment banking arm GC Securities Ltd, has formed an insurance-focused banking advisory firm. McGhee has partnered with New

The World Bank is moving ahead with plans to use the weather derivative market as part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce the impact of drought in developing countries. The Bank will intermediate

ILS pioneer Nephila Capital says its tie-up with Man Group will fuel greater interest in the traded (re)insurance risk sector because it will bring new investors to the market. Last month, the hedge

Life insurer UNUM Group had two of its life securitisations downgraded in June by rating agency AM Best following the downgrade of beleaguered monoline insurer MBIA. Ratings on both the $130mn 2006 c

Risk modelling firm Risk Management Solutions (RMS) aims to boost investment in the insurance linked securities (ILS) market with an electronic ILS portfolio management platform. Aimed at “maki

Rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) has lowered its senior debt rating on the Class A-1 notes of beleaugured Scottish Re’s Ballantyne Re life securitisation. S&P lowered the XXX reserve

Pricing and trading in the industry loss warranty (ILW) market has boomed following mooted changes in the Florida state’s cat fund in recent months. It is understood that the cat fund and the s

Trading platform Carvill Hurricane Index (CHI) has seen “around $50mn” of notional volume traded on its Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) platform this year, the firm’s joint CEO, J

Risk Management Solutions (RMS) has launched its second natural catastrophe index under the Paradex banner, with two more in the pipeline, says the risk modelling firm. The index, which RMS says is t

ICAP-JLT, the catastrophe swap brokerage joint venture, has launched a new screenbased insurance linked securities (ILS) broking service to trade cat bonds and “other ILS”, according to t

Deutsche Bank is marketing a new trigger mechanism for insurance linked securities (ILS), with a $120mn Florida-only wind bond as the first transaction, Trading Risk can reveal. The LAZR transaction