Catrin Shi reviews the news
This week we spoke to the Insurance Insider's managing editor, Catrin Shi to get her take on the past week in insurance news.
What has been the stand-out story for you in the London/reinsurance market this week - and why?
It has to be Lloyd’s H1 results published yesterday – a messy set of numbers due to Covid-19 losses but a huge improvement on the underlying profitability of the market, which shows that the remedial action Lloyd’s has taken over the past three years is really starting to come through now.
It’s good news when Lloyd’s needed it most – it’s been under scrutiny from the rating agencies on its performance, and we are now going into the time of the year where capital providers are considering where to best allocate their capital for 2021. There’s more remediation work to be done, but it’s a great message for Lloyd’s to be able to send as the industry goes into one of the best market opportunities seen in years.
Also, if I am allowed to be sneaky… we published our annual analysis on executive compensation in P&C (re)insurance this week. Just one data point for you - Chubb CEO Evan Greenberg received total compensation of $20.5mn last year. I am in the wrong job…
Which news this week do you think will have the most long-term impact on the London/reinsurance industry?
We broke two stories this week on the same theme of fresh capital coming into the (re)insurance market to take advantage of the pricing opportunity – Fidelis executing a third fundraise in just over six months for growth, and former Ascot CEO Martin Reith's start-up vehicle facing down Jim Stanard's Pelican to acquire Ariel.
There is currently huge interest in the (re)insurance space from private equity, and the market is waiting to see how much capital could flood into the market via start-ups and scale-ups for 1 January. If a significant amount of capital enters the market it is feared it could upset pricing momentum – so we’ll wait and see if the “Class of 2020” will come to fruition.
Who is your London/reinsurance personality of the week and why?
I suppose it has to be Lloyd’s CEO John Neal – despite the good H1 numbers he still has to get the market to finish the job Lloyd’s started on remediation as it’s not over yet. He has to walk a fine line on celebrating achievements but still encouraging market discipline.
On the press conference yesterday he called on syndicates to “hold their nerve” and warned that in his view, one-third of business plans for 2021 are still not realistic in Lloyd’s view if the market is to maintain that discipline.
What has been the most interesting/intriguing/surprising item you have seen in the background of any video-based calls so far this year and why?
It’s actually been fairly mundane so far but a shout out has to go to our US director of research’s new Labrador puppy Zuzu. So adorable and a very welcome addition to the team!
And finally: If you could interview anyone from the world of the London/reinsurance or insurance market and they had to answer your question 100% truthfully, who would it be and what would you ask them?
If we could somehow guarantee that there would be no repercussions for the female employee involved, I think a lot of people would like a little more clarity on the circumstances surrounding QBE CEO Pat Regan’s sudden departure.