May 2014/1

RenaissanceRe has been trying to purchase a major new Florida retrocession cover providing up to $275mn of limit above a $75mn deductible in an attempt to take advantage of the soft retro market, Trading Risk can reveal.

Validus, Axis, Arch and Montpelier were among the reinsurers to disclose that they have been reducing their exposure to US hurricane risk through increased retrocession purchasing during the first quarter

Reinsurance underwriters place a high value on building up strong relationships with brokers and counterparties, so it's no surprise that talk about the direction of the current market tends to sound like someone reeling from a painful break-up.

Single-shot reinsurance covers are increasingly being deployed as cascading covers that include an element of aggregate risk, in a sign that the sharp softening seen in the run-up to the 1 June Florida renewals has started to spread from pricing to terms and conditions.

Nephila Capital has invested in a trio of Floridian insurers, including Heritage Insurance, which is expected to raise $92mn from its IPO on the New York Stock Exchange

Swiss Re has handed capital back to investors in its Sector Re sidecar after a brief expansion of the vehicle in 2013, sources said.