May 2016/1

Catastrophe modellers are increasingly taking into account human-induced earthquakes, after recent research from the US Geological Survey showed that the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex and Oklahoma City now face the same threat from temblors as California.

AlphaCat and Endurance stood out for increasing their gross catastrophe premiums year-on-year in the first quarter as most of the cat specialists tracked by Trading Risk reduced their premium base.

Collateralised reinsurers and ILS investors received $654mn in ceded premiums from the top 10 Florida carriers in 2015, a rise of 12 percent from $586mn the previous year, according to data collected by Trading Risk.

Fronting boosts Allianz; Lloyd's index in progress; Securis SPS drives Novae top-line growth; Kiskadee premiums up 37% in Q1; Hannover Re expands April cat portfolio; Athene set to IPO; TigerRisk opens ILS trading desk; ART signs 10-year wind risk swap

Rising reinsurer expense ratios are weighing down return on equity (RoE) levels, according to Willis Re.

Fronting carrier State National is set to begin acquiring insurance shell companies for Nephila Capital this year, which will give it separate entities to write primary business on behalf of the Bermudian fund manager.

Alloy Re, the total return reinsurance start-up backed by XL Catlin and alternative fund manager Oaktree, has been axed after sums raised for the venture fell short of targets.

Impact Forecasting said that April cat events were expected to cost insurers $5bn, with erosion of aggregate deductibles for US multi-peril covers likely to be the biggest concern for the ILS market.

The Fort McMurray wildfire is set to become Canada's most expensive natural catastrophe event, but overall losses for the reinsurance industry are still expected to be modest.

Risk-adjusted cat bond spreads have dipped below 2015 yields for the first time this year, according to RMS data.

Cat bond prices continued to edge upwards in May, amid intense buyer demand when there was very little for sale.

A new Residential Re cat bond opened second quarter issuance with a bang as its pricing slid significantly, but ILS investors were cautious about reading too much into the deal in a month where only one nat cat transaction completed.