Barclay’s Capital, a worldwide investment bank based in the UK, has launched a new initiative that is aimed at providing the insurance industry with added protections against natural disasters. The financial institution will begin supplying insurance-linked securities that will embolden the insurance industry against catastrophes. The new service will help placate the concerns of investors who are growing leery of the insurance industry’s constant struggle with disastrous storms and other events. Barclay’s believed that the insurance-linked security products will help the industry cope with any financial turbulence it may experience…
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New insurance group targets life and medical insurance in Qatar
Q-Life & Medical, a newly formed insurance group based in Qatar, has targeted a promising market in the region. Initially part of Qatar Insurance Co., Q-Life & Medical was formed around the need for life and medical insurance in the nation. According to company officials, the market for life and medical insurance in Qatar is untapped, which translates into a unique opportunity for tremendous growth. Whether the company can capitalize on this potential growth, however, is yet to be seen. As of now, the company is not offering any insurance…
Read MoreGlobal insurance industry may be in for change as regulators come together to draft new rules
In the wake of major natural disasters and allegations of corruption, the world’s insurance industry is set for change. Insurance regulators from several nations have begun drafting new rules to present to political leaders in time for the 2012 G20 summit .These new rules are being tailored to ensure that the actions that spurred the 2008 economic recession cannot be repeated in the future. Both the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) and the Financial Stability Board (FSB) are playing a major role in drafting the new rules. Overall, the…
Read MoreLeading European property and casualty insurers saw premiums increase of 5.2%
Spain-based MAPFRE has released the results of its 7th annual survey of European insurance companies and has ordered them based on their writing of gross premiums, determining that all of the top insurers were able to both raise their revenues from premiums and achieve successful outcomes that were largely based on activity outside their own countries. The survey specifically examined non-life insurers, and the report published by MAPFRE stated that the top ten insurance companies saw an increase of 5.2 percent in their premiums, bringing them to $283.39 billion in…
Read MoreNew Zealand’s Canterbury gets limited insurance after the majority of companies flee the market
Good news for New Zealand’s insurance industry has been scarce. The country has been struggling with continuous aftershocks after the disastrous quake that struck Christchurch in February. The situation has been so taxing on the country’s insurance industry that many companies have pulled out completely. Now there are more than $3 billion worth of uninsured assets in Canterbury, the region in which Christchurch resides. The city council has been scrambling to obtain some kind of insurance coverage. The majority of insurance policies in the Canterbury area expired a few days…
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