Italian insurance companies saw an average reduction in their asset values of 7% in Q1 2020 due to a decline in stock prices and the widening of credit spreads on debt securities, according to the Institute for Insurance Supervision, IVASS.

The sharp decline in the prices of financial assets and the increase in their volatility triggered by COVID-19 meant that the average solvency index of the Italian insurance sector fell 35 percentage points in the Q1 2020 to around 200%, although still remaining well above the regulatory minimum of 100%

SCOR has strengthened its sustainable actions towards a low-carbon economy within its investment portfolio and has joined the Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance

Non-life insurance companies had a pre-tax profit of -18.2% (non-annualised) of premium income for own account in the first quarter of 2020, latest figures published by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (Finanstilsynet) have shown

European reinsurers have shown capital and liquidity resilience during coronavirus, Fitch Ratings coronavirus pandemic stress test has shown

A refreshed investment strategy is helping LV=’s smoothed managed funds reduce the effects of stock market volatility caused by coronavirus

CNP Assurances has announced its withdrawal from tobacco by signing up to the Tobacco-Free Finance Pledge

South Korea's non-life insurance sector has had its market segment outlook revised to negative from stable due to the sector's deteriorated loss ratios in major business lines, escalated pressure on investment earnings amid a historic low interest rate environment and increased asset risk due to capital market volatility

The PRA has today published a supervisory statement (SS) setting out its expectations of firms in accordance with the requirements under the Prudent Person Principle (PPP) under the Solvency II (SII) Directive

The global reinsurance sector will fail to earn its cost of capital in 2020 amid the coronavirus crisis, Fitch Ratings has said following a sector ratings review

Thirty-eight state Massachusetts senators and representatives have called on Boston-based insurance company Liberty Mutual to address its role in driving climate change and cut ties with fossil fuel projects and companies

Lloyd’s of London has received approval from the High Court of England and Wales for its Part VII strategy for notifying policyholders about the proposed transfer. This includes detailed plans to ensure customers understand the transfer process, as well as providing assurance of the validity of their policies being transferred to Lloyd’s Insurance Company S.A. (Lloyd’s Brussels)

The US property/casualty (P&C) industry’s surplus level decreased by 9.3% to $744.9bn in the first quarter of 2020, compared with year-end 2019, based on preliminary results published by AM Best

Legal & General Group, Scottish Widows and Just Group have had their outlooks revised to negative from stable in light of the coronavirus pandemic, Fitch Ratings has said

Austrian insurer UNIQA has witnessed a 11.7% decline to € 89.7m in its investment income caused by COVID-19 related capital market turbulence

Italian insurance company Generali has today announced a first quarter net profit of €113m despite taking a €655m investment hit caused by the COVID-19 pandemic

Insurance premiums In Thailand will decline for the second consecutive year by 1.6% in 2020 owing to the prevailing challenges aggravated by the macroeconomic impact of COVID-19, new data has revealed

Aviva’s life new business sales rose 28% to £12.3bn in Q12020 (Q12019: £9.6bn) and general insurance net written premium gained 3% to £2.4bn (Q12019: £2.3bn)

Aviva has appointed George Culmer as non-executive chairman with effect from 27 May 2020

Canada Life Reinsurance has entered into a long-term longevity reinsurance agreement with NN Life covering €5.3bn of in-force liabilities

The US insurance industry has reduced its hedge fund investments for a fourth straight year, by $2.6bn in 2019 to $11.9bn, with the property/casualty segment reporting a year-over-year reduction of 22%, the largest among the major industry segments, according to AM Best

Market perceptions of the European insurance sector remain at a medium level, albeit deteriorating, EIOPA has said

NN Investment Partners (NN IP) has appointed Marcin Adamczyk as head of emerging market debt (EMD), as of 1 July 2020

Beazley has raised gross proceeds of approximately £247m (US$300m) by conducting a placing of new ordinary shares and via shares subscription

Three German insurance groups have had their outlooks revised to negative in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Fitch Ratings has said

Lloyd’s of London will pay out in the range of $3bn to $4.3bn to its global customers as a result of the far-reaching impacts of COVID-19

Seventy-one per cent of insurers now have some exposure to emerging market debt (EMD), with the prospect of higher returns a particularly attractive element to them

The risk adjusted capitalisation of Italian insurers is “generally at a good level”, evidenced by an average SCR coverage ratio for life and non-life of 228%, but warnings must sound over exposures to Italian government debt, particularly with increases in bond spread levels having increased by over 35% in a single day, AM Best has said

by Daniel Finn, Head of Risk Solutions, North America, Conning and Matt Lightwood, Director, Risk Solutions, Conning

Catalina Holdings has announced the appointment of Philipp Waldstein to the position of group chief investment officer

Aegon's Group Solvency II (SII) ratio increased from 201% to 208% during the first quarter of 2020, and remained above the target zone of 150% to 200%

The Indian life insurance industry is expected to contract in 2020, declining by 0.9% in 2020 as compared to 8.8% growth recorded in 2019

The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) has published the list of Internationally Active Insurance Groups (IAIGs) headquartered in the EU

French insurer Covéa has pulled the plug on its planned $9bn purchase of PartnerRe, the Bermuda-based reinsurer owned by Exor, the holding firm of Italy’s Agnelli family

European insurers Lloyd’s, Zurich and Munich Re are the biggest supporters of Canada’s Trans Mountain pipeline, it has emerged, with the former underwriting $460m in total

BaFin’s President Felix Hufeld has praised the flexibility offered by Solvency II (SII) especially during the coronavirus pandemic

Allianz’s solvency ratio has dropped to 190% in Q1 2020 down from 212% at the end of last year, with CFO Giulio Terzariol stating it may fall below the insurer’s 180% limit

No evidence exists to support the theory that smart beta strategies have been adversely affected by a crowding effect, a new paper has revealed

Swedish insurance company Folksam has invested SEK 350m in a microfinance fund, The SEB Impact Opportunity Fund, that lends capital on market terms and at the same time benefits from lending to individuals and companies that are outside the traditional banking systems

Phoenix Group’s Solvency II surplus increased by £0.9bn from £3.1bn as at 31 December 2019 to £4bn as at 24 April 2020, according to latest figures

Insurance premiums in Luxembourg declined by 21.31%, from €11.861bn to €9.333bn when comparing Q1 2020 to Q1 2019, according to latest statistics published by Luxembourg’s supervisory authority, the CAA

Munich Re’s net balance of derivatives rose to €1,600m (–€ 231m) in Q1 2020 as a result of hedging against interest-bearing investments and equities, which gained significantly in value due to developments in the capital markets

The PRA has postponed the launch of its climate and insurance stress tests due to current pressures on insurance firms due to COVID-19

Prudential Financial has lost $271m for Q1 2020 due to lower investment spreads amid market turmoil tied to the new coronavirus

The German life insurance industry reported an "adequate" solvency ratio at around 360% as of 31 December 2019, compared to 327% in 2018, according to latest figures published by the Association of the German Insurance Industry (GDV)

Widening of credit spreads has impacted Direct Line's available-for-sale (AFS) asset valuation, with the insurer seeing AFS reserves dropping from £138m net of tax at at 31 March 2020 to £55m, net of tax at 1 May 2020

French insurer AXA has said the coronavirus crisis would have a “material” impact on its 2020 earnings, although the claims it received in March in relation to the COVID-19 outbreak were limited

The solvency ratio of Finnish pension insurance provider, Varma, has remained high, despite suffering investment losses in Q1 2020

German institutional investors, investing in spezialfonds (special funds), have increased their investments in government bonds, according to analysis by Universal Investment

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway recorded a $49.7bn loss in Q1 2020, as the sharp sell-off in global stock markets hammered its investment portfolio

US insurers may turn to loans from the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) to bolster liquidity as the COVID-19-led economic turmoil grows.

AM Best Rating Services associate director, research and analytics, Jason Hopper said: “Not just anyone is able to borrow from FHLB. Companies must own capital stock to be able to access borrowing funds. Capacity is determined by a mix of collateral and assets

EU member states are affected by climate change differently and there is therefore no one-size-fits-all solution to national climate change adaptation, Insurance Europe has said

Royal London Group has joined the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) as part of its commitment to promote and support high standards of corporate governance

Allianz has updated its coal insurance restrictions and will now no longer offer property and casualty insurance for companies whose business model is largely based on coal and which do not have a clear coal exit path from 2023

EIOPA, in close coordination with the European Commission, has decided to deliver its advice to the European Commission at end December 2020, to take into account the importance of assessing the impact of the current COVID-19 situation on the Solvency II Review

The PRA has published a supervisory statement (SS) setting out its expectations in respect of the Solvency II groups provisions

Swiss insurer Helvetia has slowed the fall of its SST ratio though increased hedging of equity positions

Insurers must champion a green and fair recovery from the COVID-19 crisis because as professional risk managers they have a unique understanding of global threats, international NGOs supporting the Unfriend Coal campaign have said in a letter to industry associations

US life insurance death benefit claims will increase as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to Moody’s, however if the total number of deaths remains within the rating agency’s projections, the uptick should represent a modest decline in capital from death benefits

SCOR delivered a strong return on invested assets of 3.1% in Q1 2020, benefiting from capital gains, whilst pursuing the de-risking of its portfolio started in 2019

Swedish ICMIF member Länsförsäkringar has announced it has made an additional investment of SEK 540m ($55m) in socially-oriented bonds to mitigate the health and economic effects of Covid-19 in the Nordic countries and in Africa

MetLife’s board of directors has declared a second quarter 2020 common stock dividend of $0.46 per share, an increase of 4.5% from the first quarter common stock dividend of $0.44 per share

Nasdaq has launched an upgraded version of its Risk Modelling service for the reinsurance industry

Cincinnati Financial has recorded a Q1 2020 net loss of $1.226bn, or $7.56 per share, compared with net income of $695m, or $4.22 per share, in Q1 2019, after recognising a $1.303bn Q1 2020 reduction in the fair value of equity securities still held

New York City comptroller Scott Stringer has called on AIG, Berkshire Hathaway and Liberty Mutual to end all business with the coal industry – including ceasing to underwrite coal projects and divesting from coal companies – on behalf of the city’s pension funds

Municipal bonds (Munis) now make up 13% or $272bn of P&C insurers’ cash and invested assets or 7% ($492.6bn) for all US insurers, but special revenue bonds which make up 6% of P&C insurers’ cash and invested assets are most at risk, new research has shown

Admiral is temporarily withholding a special dividend to shareholders

Danish insurance and pension provider, Topdanmark, has revealed it made a loss of DKK 193m in the first quarter of 2020, as a result of the financial impact of coronavirus

The Austrian general insurance market is set to increase GWP at a CAGR of 2.2% to 2023, down from 3.6%, according to latest data

MAPFRE has launched a three-year guaranteed mutual fund with a bond issued by the Madrid local government exclusively for the fight against COVID-19 as its underlying asset

Credit ETFs track not only the performance of their underlying assets but also the liquidity of these assets, new research has shown.

Legal & General (L&G) is launching a GBP-denominated benchmark Tier 2 subordinated debt issuance, to capitalise on favourable debt market conditions thus providing optionality for further new business activity over the remainder of the year

EIOPA, EBA, and ESMA have issued a consultation paper seeking input on proposed ESG disclosure standards for financial market participants, advisers and products

The winners of the Asset Management Awards 2020 were announced last night via an online video presentation

The Asset Management Awards 2020 winners will be announced at 7pm tonight, 23 April, via an online video presentation

Global reinsurers are facing a 5% hit to their capital base, around $30bn pre-tax, as a result of COVID-19, estimates have shown

Swedish pension and insurance company, Länsförsäkringar, has made it easier for it members to identify low carbon funds by adding a green leaf symbol next to them on its funds list

Infrastructure fund manager F2i SGR and Ania, the National Association of Insurance Companies have announced the acquisition of a 92.5% stake in independent freight operator Compagnia Ferroviaria Italiana (CFI)

Talanx Group has withdrawn its outlook for the financial year 2020, in view of the ongoing corona pandemic and the considerable uncertainty around how the economic and capital markets environment will develop

Beazley has reported an investment loss for the three months ended 31 March 2020 of $55m or 1%, as the insurer reduced its exposure to a number of capital growth assets, temporarily lengthened the duration of its fixed income investments and turned to US Treasury securities in order to control the impacts of volatile markets and COVID-19

French life insurers’ profits are expected to decline by close to 5% in 2020 as a result of a decline in equity markets which has reduced the amount of outstanding reserves for unit-linked products

The Asset Management Awards 2020 winners will be announced at 7pm tomorrow, 23 April, via an online video presentation on the awards website

Net sales of UCITS and AIFs saw a decrease between January and February 2020 of €95bn, from €137bn down to €42bn, the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) has revealed

The European ETF industry has been hit by the coronavirus pandemic with record outflows in March 2020 of €25.4bn and assets under management in the industry decreased from €839.9bn to €719.2bn due to market conditions

Hong Kong’s life insurance industry is expected to slow down, with an expected annual growth of 3.9% in 2020 as compared to the 6.6% in 2019

Scandinavian insurance company Tryg has posted a DKK980m investment return loss for Q1 2020, driven by “extremely negative financial markets characterised by losses on most asset classes”

Swiss Re has recorded a “very strong” solvency of 232% in Swiss Solvency Test (SST) 2020, well above the target of 220%, but down from 251% in 2019

US life insurer Independence Holding Company (IHC) intends to commence a tender offer by the end of this month to purchase up to 1,000,000 shares of its common stock at a price per share of $27

Scandinavian non-life insurer Tryg has seen a DKK1.1bn hit on its investment income due to turbulent capital markets

HSBC Global Asset Management (GAM) has announced the appointment of Maria Ryan to the newly created role of head of institutional sales for the UK, Scandinavia and the Middle East

Australia’s insurance industry is projected to decline by 1.3% from AUD115.7bn (US$80.5bn) in 2019 to AUD114.1bn (US$77.5bn) in 2020 due to a challenging business environment and COVID-19

Annual buy-in and buyout volumes by UK defined benefit pension schemes will hit £25bn in 2020, LCP has predicted

The Austrian insurance industry noted a 2.1% growth in premium income to €17.7bn in 2019, with a rise in P&C insurance premium volumes reported

South Korea’s life insurance market is set to decline by 1.2% from KRW112.3trn (US$96bn) in 2019 to KRW110.9trn (US$92.3bn) in 2020, according to GlobalData

Legal & General Capital (LGC) has announced it has taken a 36% stake in The Kensa Group, one of the UK’s largest players in the ground source heat pump technology sector, as it scales up its investments in addressing decarbonisation

The US’s National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has seen the total fair value of its investments rise from $108m to almost $123m between 2018 and 2019, according to latest figures

EIOPA’s board of supervisors has elected two new members to its management board

UK insurer, Aviva, has announced that executive directors and the Aviva leadership team will not be considered for any bonus for 2020 until dividend payments are restarted for ordinary shareholders, and any basic pay increases for executive directors and the Aviva leadership team, due to come into effect on 1 April 2020, will be paused until dividend payments are restarted for ordinary shareholders

Most US life insurers are expected to pass the test of managing their market-sensitive liabilities amid COVID-19, due to their improved hedging practices since the last financial crisis, but this current climate will “undoubtedly showcase any weaknesses in an insurer’s hedging framework”, S&P Global Ratings has said

The Co-operative Pension Scheme (Pace) has completed a £400m buy-in with the Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC), covering liabilities for around 2,000 members in the bank section of the scheme

Sompo International Holdings, a Bermuda-based specialty provider of property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, announced today that as part of the ongoing transformation of Sompo International, the insurer will be consolidating its London presence into one company market platform

Insurers’ boards in India should “critically examine their capital availability and solvency margin” in the context of COVID-19 pandemic, and “devise strategies to ensure that they have adequate capital and resources available with them”, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has said

UNIQA has revised its forecast for 2020 and expects negative earnings before taxes in the low double-digit million euro range for the first quarter of 2020

Prudential Financial has announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with KB Financial Group, a Korean financial services provider, to sell The Prudential Life Insurance Company of Korea

Australia's second largest insurer, QBE Insurance Group, is pre-emptively boosting its capital through an equity raising to stave off the impact from the coronavirus outbreak

The IASB has proposed further amendments to IFRS Standards in response to interest rate benchmark reform

Peak Re has entered into definitive agreements to acquire 100% of the capital of Lutece Holdings Ltd. and its subsidiary Lutece Investment Management Ltd. (“Lutece”)

Financial literacy and promoting sustainability awareness are “somewhat sidelined” in a consultation on the Renewed Sustainable Finance Strategy released by the European Commission

The German life and non-life insurance sectors are expected to see slower gross written premium growth post-COVID19, but a sharp rise in life and health insurance claims will see those sectors struggle with profitability, according to GlobalData

EIOPA has published an Opinion on the supervision of remuneration principles in the insurance and reinsurance sector

Aviva’s board of directors has agreed to withdraw its recommendation to pay the 2019 final dividend to ordinary shareholders in June 2020

One-fifth of institutional asset owners plan to increase or significantly increase their dedicated allocation to China’s equity markets in the next three to five years, latest research has shown, but many continue to hold back due to low trust in China’s government (67%) , negative perceptions of corporate governance policies (65%), and questions about market access (49%)

Ageas UK CEO Andy Watson has decided to step down from his role at the end of June 2020, to embark on the next stage of his life including further education and securing a small portfolio of non-executive roles

Talanx Group is investing €200m in international debt financing amounting to €2.1bn for a fibre-optic project involving fast internet in France

The Romanian insurance market recorded a volume of underwritten premiums of RON 11bn (EUR 2.3 bln) in 2019, up 8% compared to 2018

Legal & General (L&G) has confirmed its current intention to pay the 2019 dividend despite giving consideration to the PRA’s letter of 31 March

Insurers, AXA and FBD, have both postponed their shareholder meetings in light of the COVID-19 outbreak and the resulting restrictions

US life insurers’ growing commercial mortgage portfolios may face unique challenges during the coronavirus pandemic

Slovenian insurance-financial group, Triglav Group, has said its insurance and investment portfolios are sufficiently resilient and that the capital position is appropriate to cope with the increased risks arising from the COVID-19 pandemic situation and the financial markets

EIOPA is urging (re)insurers to temporarily suspend all discretionary dividend distributions and share buy backs aimed at remunerating shareholders due to the impacts of COVID-19 in financial markets and the economy

China’s insurance industry is beginning to recover from the losses incurred due to the COVID-19 outbreak, with a compound annual grwoth rate (CAGR) of 6.1% between 2019-2023

Aon has completed the move of the jurisdiction of incorporation for the firm’s parent company to Ireland

The PRA’s proposals around the modelling of IPRE loans within insurers’ Solvency II internal models, and expectations in respect of the use of internal credit assessments for assigning fundamental spreads for illiquid, unrated assets have generally been welcomed by the industry, however a number of clarifications have been outlined

China Re could be considering setting up a move into the US to establish a business entity based on global strategy and the implementation of the Sino-US phase one trade deal

The Romanian Supervisory Authority and EIOPA have decided to postpone the start of the balance sheet review of the Romanian insurance sector

Two WPP sponsored pension schemes have completed a further combined £250m buy-in with the Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC)

UK insurers’ boards considering any distributions to shareholders or making decisions on variable remuneration “must pay close attention to the need to protect policyholders and ensure their firms can play a full part in supporting the real economy throughout the economic disruption arising from COVID-19”, PRA deputy governor and CEO Sam Woods has said

Munich Re has withdrawn its previous 2020 profit guidance of €2.8bn and discontinued its previously announced share buy-back of up to €1bn until further notice

The initially planned transfer of all Legal & General mature savings policyholders to ReAssure on 6 April 2020 for £650m will no longer take place

The UK life and Italian life insurance sectors have had their outlooks changed to negative from stable, Moody’s has announced

India’s reinsurance market is set to reach US$7.8bn by 2024, driven by offshore investments, GlobalData has said

French Insurance Federation members are committing to contribute €200m to the Solidarity Fund, set up by the public authorities to support micro-enterprises and the self-employed, sectors that have been particularly affected by the economic, financial and social consequences of the COVID-19 virus

US private equity firm Genstar Capital, has partnered with insurance industry executives to establish Obsidian Insurance Holdings, a new fronting insurance holding company, with $100m of capital

esure Group has announced that its founder Peter Wood is to step down as chairman and will be succeeded by Andy Haste

QBE has withdrawn its 2020 financial targets in light of the “unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic and uncertain economic and investment market outlook”

AM Best has assigned a long-term issue credit rating of “a-” to the new $300m 5.25% 10-year senior unsecured notes due April 2030 recently issued by American Financial Group (AFG)

The IAIS is to utilise the framework it has developed in recent years for forward-looking risk assessment to undertake a targeted assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on the global insurance sector, and will review the 2020 timelines for the implementation of the holistic framework for the mitigation of systemic risk in the global insurance sector

The Danish Financial Supervisory Authority, Finanstilsynet, has ordered Gefion Insurance A/S to cease writing business with immediate effect

J.P. Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) has appointed Bryan Wallace as head of international fixed income insurance and pensions, replacing Prashant Sharma who are seven years with the firm, has decided to pursue opportunities elsewhere

Lloyd’s of London has today confirmed that the market is in a “strong position” to respond to the impacts of COVID-19, with net resources increasing by 8.6% to £30.6bn in 2019 and a central solvency ratio of 238%

Insurers issuing hybrid capital instruments that have coupon deferral requirements tied to a regulatory solvency ratio must monitor the sensitivity of their regulatory solvency ratios to equity or credit spread movements, S&P Global Ratings has urged

A wide group of financial associations – including Insurance Europe – has called for a delay in the compliance dates for initial margin requirements for non-centrally cleared derivatives to account for problems companies face due to the COVID-19 pandemic

Institutional investors that are not obliged to trade are waiting for the right moment before they step into the markets, according to Danish consultancy firm Kirstein

Premium income from life and non-life Italian insurance business amounted to €107.2bn at 30 September 2019, of which €79.7bn was life insurance

The value of worldwide regulated open-ended fund assets increased by 3.1 per cent to €52.7trn in the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2019, according to the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA)

French life insurers recorded net inflows of €1.4bn for February 2020, up from €0.5bn for January 2020

The PRA has outlined its approach to regulatory reporting for UK insurers in response to COVID-19 and EIOPA’s ‘Recommendations on supervisory flexibility regarding the deadline of supervisory reporting and public disclosures – coronavirus/COVID-19’

An upward shift of 100bps in the yield of Italian sovereign debt would reduce the value of insurance companies’ own funds by 28%, the IMF has said

US property and casualty insurers will be able to remain strong and solvent during the current period of lower interest rates and other financial impacts from COVID-19, Insurance Information Institute CEO Sean Kevelighan has said

A group of ten financial associations, including Insurance Europe, have written to several European and national policymakers to emphasise the importance of keeping European financial markets open during the COVID-19 pandemic

Sompo International Holdings, a Bermuda-based specialty provider of property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, has announced that subject to applicable regulatory approval, Christopher Donelan, currently the deputy CEO of Sompo International (SI) Reinsurance will assume the position of CEO of SI Reinsurance

The think tank, 2 Degrees Investing Initiative (2DII) has developed stress tests based on COVID-19 scenarios to assess the financial risks of the virus

Insurers in Japan remain financially stable to weather market volatility given their robust balance sheet fundamentals, AM Best commentary has said

EIOPA has issued its recommendations on supervisory flexibility regarding deadlines of supervisory reporting and public disclosure by insurers in light of the COVID-19 developments

Financial Risk Solutions (FRS) has announced that Acorn Life has deployed the Invest|Pro™ platform to manage its life assurance book of business.

Net sales of UCITS and AIFs totalled €137bn, up from €70bn in December 2019, according to the European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA)

Mutual life pensions and investments group, LV=, has reported a swing in profit before tax from continuing operations figure of £15m for FY 2019, from a £90m loss in FY 2018, reflecting adverse reserving changes of £67m (FY 2018: £10m favourable) and favourable short-term investment fluctuations of £129m (FY 2018: £66m adverse)

AM Best is developing stress testing that it will conduct on its rated insurance companies’ balance sheets to gauge the impact of the COVID-19 virus fallout on their risk-adjusted capital levels, investment portfolios, reserve adequacy and other aspects of the risks borne by rated entities

The Bank of England (BoE) has announced a further cut to the UK’s base interest rate from 0.25% to 0.1%

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has decided on a new effective date for IFRS 17 of 1 January 2023

The UK life insurance sector outlook has been revised to negative from stable in light of the coronavirus outbreak, Fitch Ratings has said

Italy’s government has reduced the requirements for applying a country-specific volatility adjustment to strengthen Italian insurers’ regulatory Solvency II ratios

EIOPA is extending the deadline of the holistic impact assessment for the 2020 Solvency II Review by two months, to 1 June 2020

AMP Life Limited (AMP Life) has paid a penalty of $275,500 and AMP Capital Investors Limited (AMP Capital) has paid a penalty of $250,500 to comply with infringement notices issued by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC)

The US life insurance industry has had its ratings outlook revised to negative from stable

Illiquid assets accounted for around 15% of European insurers’ investments at the end of 2018, having risen by about 1% a year over the previous three years, Moody’s has estimated

The Life Insurance Association of Malaysia continued to record an encouraging growth in 2019, registering new business total premiums of RM11.8bn, an increase of 14.19% compared to RM10.3bn in 2018

Solvency II (SII) capital strain resulting from adverse house price movements or a revision of house price inflation assumptions is a key short-term risk for insurers with equity release mortgages (ERMs) in their asset portfolios, Fitch Ratings has said

German insurer, Talanx, has seen its net investment income grow by 15% to €4.3bn in the financial year 2019, partly due to a one-time effect in the life/health reinsurance segment resulting from the restructuring of the shareholdings in the Viridium Group

Fitch Ratings is ranking institutions and sectors and regions most to least vulnerable to the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak, as part of its portfolio assessment process

The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has published a policy statement providing feedback on the responses it received to a consultation paper surrounding Credit Union rules

Just Group has reported a £300m hit after restructuring its lifetime mortgage proposition in 2019 to accelerate its alignment with new regulatory requirements

Generali has announced it is creating a €100m fund dedicated to combating the coronavirus emergency

The total volume of premiums in Baloise’s non-life business rose in 2019 by 4% to CHF 3,542.1m thanks to the acquisition of Fidea and the related increase in premiums of CHF 112.6m

Swedish insurer, Folksam, will no longer invest in companies operating in the gaming industry

Dutch insurers have reduced their equity investments in gas and electricity, raw materials and the petrochemical industry from 24% in 2012 to 17% seven years later

The Bank of England’s (BoE) announcement of a 50 basis point cut in its base rate to 0.25% “will weigh on UK life insurers’ capital ratios under the Solvency II regime, however a separate BoE measure allowing life insurers greater transitional relief from their Solvency II capital requirements will provide some counterbalancing uplift”, Moody’s has said

The Bulgarian insurance sector is currently heavily concentrated on the non-life sector, which accounted for over 80% of estimated BGN2.9bn (€1.5bn) gross written premiums for 2019

The Bank of England (BoE) has announced an emergency cut to the base interest rate to stabilise the economy amid the coronavirus outbreak

Thirty-eight out of 75 of the world’s largest asset managers are stalling on taking action on environmental, social and governance issues, according to latest research published by ShareAction

Credit rating upgrades for the US life/health industry outpaced downgrades in 2019, marking a turnaround from the previous three years, according to AM Best

The estimate for reinsurance capital provided by the insurance-linked securities (ILS) market ranges from $88bn to $93bn, according to a new AM Best commentary

US insurance giant, State Farm, has recorded a 2019 net income of $5.6bn, down from $8.8bn of net income in 2018 as a result of higher losses and lower premiums from its P&C business

The main threat to European insurers’ credit quality from the coronavirus is the resulting disruption to financial markets, Fitch Ratings has said

Aon and Willis Towers Watson (WTW) have announced a definitive agreement to combine in an all-stock transaction with an implied combined equity value of approximately $80bn

Prudential is planning to sell or carry out a partial float of its American insurance business, according to latest reports

The Americas remained the world’s leading region in 2019 in terms of M&A activity, accounting for 43% of the global total, according to latest research published by Clyde & Co

EIOPA has set out the main methodological elements and principles of and guidelines for an EU-wide stress-test (ST) exercise

Insurance firm, Admiral, has appointed Milena Mondini de Focatiis as its first female chief executive

Aviva’s general insurance net written premiums are up 2% to £9.3bn, and life PVNBP are up 12% to £45.7bn, latest figures show

European life insurers are gradually shifting away from traditional guarantees towards more capital-light products, transferring part of the investment risk to policyholders, Fitch Ratings latest report has said

Marsh, the world’s largest insurance broker, will tomorrow discuss ending support for the giant Carmichael coal mine in Australia after more than a year of trying to arrange insurance cover for the Adani Group’s controversial project

The PRA is re-emphasising the need for Solvency II firms to engage a “broad set of qualities and competencies when recruiting to the management/governing body” and for this purpose to “put in place a policy to promote diversity of the management body”

L&G has seen its insurance GWP rise by 6% to £2,729m up from £2,580m in 2018, and profit after tax up 16% to £1,700 in the same period

Bermuda-based global reinsurer, PartnerRe, is to be sold to French mutual insurer, Covéa, for a total cash consideration of $9bn plus a cash dividend of $50m

Total net assets of UCITS and AIFs grew by 3.3% in Q4 2019 to €17.7trn within the European investment fund industry, bringing the annual growth figure to 16.8% for 2019

Everest Re Group has announced that Sanjoy Mukherjee, executive vice president, general counsel and corporate secretary, and current managing director and chief executive officer, Everest Reinsurance (Bermuda), Ltd. will transition from his Bermuda role on 1 April and return to his full time duties as general counsel and corporate secretary of Everest Re Group, Ltd

The lack of transparency around non-bank investors in leveraged loans and CLOs remains a key risk for the financial sector, according to the latest leveraged lending exposure report from Fitch Ratings

The current disruption in the US capital markets caused by the coronavirus outbreak is increasing the risk profile of all US life insurers, Fitch Ratings has said

Bermuda headquartered insurer, Hiscox, has seen its gross written premiums (GWP) rise from $3,778.3m in 2018 to $4,030.7m in 2019, and reported a strong investment return of $223m in 2019 compared to $38.1m the previous year

French life insurers recorded net inflows for January 2020 of €0.5bn, compared to €2.2bn over the same period in 2019, according to the French Insurance Federation

Insurance company failures in the UK and the EU are rare, policyholders have almost always been paid, and European solvency rules have effectively reduced the number and size of failures since the Solvency I capital adequacy regime was introduced in 2004 and expanded by the Solvency II regime, according to a new study produced by KPMG

Swiss Life has reported a net profit of CHF 1.2bn, a rise of 12% from 2018, according to latest results from the firm

AIG has appointed Lloyd’s director of performance management Jon Hancock as its CEO, international general insurance

Insurance firms seeking to transfer their EU liabilities to an EU-authorised insurer under a Part VII transfer are not guaranteed to have it sanctioned by Court, or that it will be sanctioned within firms’ intended timeframes, PRA executive director, insurance supervision, Anna Sweeney has said

Overseas investment by Korean insurers is likely to continue to rise in the search for higher investment returns and longer asset duration to match the asset-liability gap, although hedging costs could remain a burden, Fitch Ratings has said in a new report

German life insurers have granted “significantly” more loans for housing construction and housing purchase in 2019, with payments of mortgage loans increasing by 5.8% to €8.9bn

Eight-one per cent of institutional investors expect the use of leveraged investment strategies to increase over the next five years, new research from ETF provider GraniteShares has revealed

RSA Insurance Group has reported a statutory profit after tax of £383m for 2019, up from £372m in 2018

Credit markets have been “largely resilient” since January, despite coranavirus fears, Charlene Malik of TwentyFour Asset Management’s portfolio management team has said

Generali has developed its first Green Insurance Linked Securities Framework (Green ILS Framework), in line with the group’s sustainability strategy

The 2020 outlook for the UK P&C insurance sector is stable, reflecting resilient capitalisation, good operating performance, and the expectation that the sector will be able to manage the pressures from rising claims costs, low for longer interest rates, and regulatory uncertainty

The European Fund and Asset Management Association (EFAMA) has said that 2019 was a “good year” for the European investment fund industry after a “challenging 2018”

Arch Capital has entered into a share purchase agreement with Natixis regarding the acquisition of a 29.5% stake in French credit insurer, Coface, worth $520m

Less than 0.5% capacity in the world’s insurance market currently exists to cover the value of cryptoassets globally, Evertas has said

Insurance companies operating in Argentina’s insurance market are facing the potential for a contraction in growth resulting from capital controls, along with volatile interest rates and the government’s restructuring of public debt

The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) is to amplify its efforts against climate change

Allianz, AXA, Swiss Re, Munich Re and Zurich are going further than most of their global peers in reducing their underwriting and investment exposure to fossil fuels, and thermal coal in particular, thus reducing stranded asset risk, a new report from Moody’s has said

Italian insurers are urging the IASB to fix the IFRS 17 annual cohort requirement, as it is “inconsistent” with life insurance business

Russian life insurance premiums decreased by 9% compared with 2018, from 478bn rubles to 433.2bn rubles

Any potential acquisition of a reinsurer of a size of Partner Re, by Covéa, would "weaken Covéa's balance sheet but it would "not eliminate Covéa capital and leverage strengths relative to other Aa-rated peers", Moody's has said

The largest US life insurers are entering private debt markets, as banks refocus on commercial banking against a backdrop of unconventional monetary policies and tighter bank regulations, according to a new research paper published by the Federal Reserve

Swiss Re’s net income increased 73% to US$727m from US$421m in 2018, according to its full-year results for 2019

ThreeSixty Investments has received Bank of Italy’s regulatory authorisation to operate as an asset manager (Società di Gestione del Risparmio) under Italian law

Higher capital requirements introduced by the Nigerian insurance regulator will “necessitate consolidation” among insurers and could ultimately be “credit-positive” for the industry, Fitch Ratings has said

The Financial Supervisory Authority of Romania (ASF) and EIOPA are to launch an independent assessment of the Romanian insurance sector through a balance sheet review

Munich Re has become the 19th asset owner to join the United Nations-Convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance, bringing the Alliance’s total assets under management to US$4.5trn

The 2020 sector outlook for the German life insurance industry has been revised to negative from stable

The UK Sustainable Investment & Finance Association (UKSIF) has announced that its CEO, Simon Howard, is to step down after seven years

Nearly half (43 per cent) of Nordic institutional investors are investing in impact strategies, new research has found

Four global reinsurers, Munich Re, Swiss Re, Hannover Re and SCOR, benefit from a competitive advantage by being leading players in life and health insurance, Fitch Ratings has said

Europe saw the biggest increase in M&A activity between 2018 and 2019, with the number of deals increasing by 27% as transactions previously put on hold due to Brexit finally made it over the line

Finnish mutual pension insurance company, Varma, saw its investments yield a return of €5.2bn or 12% in 2019, the best year for investment returns since 2009

Robeco’s assets under management (AuM) reached €20bn at the end of 2019, an increase of €5bn between 30 September 2018 and 31 December 2019

Zurich UK has today reported a 59% rise in earnings to £413m from £260m in 2018, and growth in premiums

Moody’s Analytics has announced the launch of its discount curve service for IFRS 17

Talanx Group is financing Germany’s biggest offshore wind farm, providing €321m of the €511m project bonds

Premiums in Luxembourg’s insurance sector for 2019 increased by 44.51% compared to 2018, with non-life rising by 186.41% and life insurance growing by 18.61%

Eight French (re)insurers have decided not to apply the International Capital Standard (ICS) during the five-year monitoring period preceding its implementation

The Merchant Navy Officers Pension Fund (MNOPF) has converted its pensioner longevity swap into a £1.6bn buy-in with the Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC)

EIOPA has launched a new discussion paper addressing for the first time the subject of the ongoing changes to the new benchmark rates (or IBOR transitions)

EXOR NV, the holding company of Italy’s Agnelli family, has confirmed it has entered exclusive discussions with Covéa regarding a possible all-cash acquisition of Partner Re

The German non-life insurance market remains stable for 2020, reflecting expectations that insurers will achieve some premium growth, while maintaining strong underwriting discipline

The European Insurance and Occupational Pension Authority (EIOPA) has launched a Consultation Paper on proposals for Solvency II 2020 Review - Review of technical implementation means for the package on Solvency II Supervisory Reporting and Public Disclosure

The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations should remain “voluntary” standards, Insurance Europe has recommended

French life insurers are under pressure to cut bonus rates as low interest rates bite

The Indian government is to float part of the country's largest life firm, LIC

Nippon Life has signed a syndicated loan agreement for an offshore windfarm project to be implemented in Akita Prefecture by Akita Offshore Wind Corporation, a special purpose company (SPC) formed primarily with investments from Marubeni Corporation and Obayashi Corporation

A looser EU-UK trade agreement would be credit negative but "manageable" for UK insurers, Moody’s has said, however a ‘no-deal’ outcome would be "more severe", especially for UK life insurers

The total investment portfolio managed by insurers in Europe decreased 1.5% in 2018 to €10,186bn, according to latest figures published by Insurance Europe

Total insurance premiums in Europe increased 6.2% in 2018, to €1,311bn, due to relatively strong growth in all business lines.

The President of the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), Gary Dransfield, has announced that Rob Whelan will be leaving his position as CEO

The priority now for the UK's "world-leading insurance and long-term savings sector" is to "shape a new relationship with the EU and global partners based on serving customers, common regulatory approaches and being able to meet the challenges of our fast-changing world", ABI director general Huw Evans said

Norwegian authorities may set a lower limit for estimated loss given default (LGD) to ensure that insurers are subject to approximately the same capital requirements as banks for their exposure to mortgage loans

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has held the Bank Rate at 0.75%

Thai life insurers’ capitalisation may face greater strain from investments in riskier assets as they have increased their holdings of higher yielding assets to counter a prolonged period of subdued investment returns, Fitch Ratings has said

Solvency II, one of the world’s most prudent and conservative prudential regimes, according to Insurance Europe president and CEO and chair of UNIQA Insurance group Andreas Brandstetter, “does not need prudential enhancements”

European Commission executive vice president Valdis Dombrovskis has called for every EU country to have insurance guarantee schemes to plug a gap in EU insurance law

Risk exposures for the European insurance sector have remained overall stable, according to data from Q3 2019, despite macro risks continuing at a high level

AXA Investment Managers, BNP Paribas Asset Management, Mirova and Sycomore Asset Management have collectively launched a call for a partner to develop and implement an innovative tool that could measure the impact of investments on biodiversity

EIOPA has published its annual report on the use of exemptions and limitations from the regular supervisory reporting during 2018 and the first quarter of 2019 by national competent authorities (NCAs) under Solvency II

More work is needed to achieve the aims of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), according to trade body, Insurance Europe

France’s ministerial decree stating that profit-sharing reserves may be used to absorb losses in certain severe stress scenarios is credit-positive for the country’s life insurers, according to Fitch Ratings

The Dutch Association of Insurers, Verbond van Verzekeraars, has urged EIOPA to make a more balanced proposal for modifying the European Solvency II supervisory framework

Net inflows in the French life insurance market hit €1.1bn in December 2019, according to the French Insurance Federation

AIG Life & Retirement, a division of American International Group and a leading provider of annuities, has announced the launch of its new AB All Market Index

Swiss insurance group, Helvetia, has announced the acquisition of a majority holding in the Spanish insurer, Caser

HM Treasury has appointed Christopher Woolard as interim chief executive of the FCA, following advice from the FCA Board

Norwegian insurance company, Gjensidige Forsikring ASA, has reported a strong result for the fourth quarter of 2019, driven by gains on its sale of Gjensidige Bank

Fitch Ratings has announced its global bank rating Outlooks are still negatively skewed, although to a lesser degree than they were six months ago

Natural disasters in 2019 resulted in economic losses of $232bn, with private sector and government-sponsored insurance programs covering $71bn of the total, according to a new report published by Aon

Italian insurance group, Generali, has been added to the United Nations-convened Net-Zero Asset Owner Alliance, bringing the total assets managed by Alliance members to over $4.3trn

A group of financial associations have written a letter to the European Commission that raises concerns over the approach being taken to fix problems with the regulatory technical standards of the Packaged Retail Investment and Insurance-Based Products (PRIIPs)

Amundi has announced a new 10-year strategic partnership with Spanish banking group, Banco Sabadell, that includes the 100% acquisition of Sabadell Asset Management, a leading asset manager in Spain

Nomura Asset Management (NAM), the core company within the Asset Management Division of Nomura Group, has announced it is to manage a European corporate bond fund incorporating ESG factors in a foreign investment trust

Everest Re Group has announced that Artur Klinger will join the Everest Reinsurance Division later in 2020 as managing director of Continental Europe, succeeding Stephan Knipper who will retire after 33 years in the industry

Gothaer Asset Management, a division of the German insurer Gothaer, has issued a €500m mandate to invest in Dutch residential mortgages

Swedish insurance company, Folksam Group, has announced it is investing SEK 1bn in the Silvestica Green Forest Green Forest Fund

Financial Risk Solutions (FRS), the provider of fund administration software to global life assurance and asset management companies, has announced the launch of Invest|Tax for fund managers to calculate and report capital gains tax (CGT) on real estate investments for non-UK residents

Economies in Latin America are expected to rebound in 2020, helping the insurance markets in these countries to realise their growth and potential, according to a new report published by AM Best

The Bank of England (BoE) has announced that outgoing Governor, Mark Carney, has been appointed as Boris Johnson’s finance adviser for COP26

The PRA and FCA have both warned major banks and insurers to cease links with Libor, as part of a push to meet a 2021 deadline of moving away from the benchmark

AMICE is supporting proposals to increase the thresholds at which Solvency II applies to small insurers, the application of an appropriately calibrated regime for medium-sized insurers, and any work to ensure that the principle of proportionality works consistently in practice

Insurers’ commitment to carbon divestment won favour with activist groups in 2019, with AXA, Allianz, Swiss Re and SCOR all on SIGWATCH’s annual rankings of the brands most praised by NGOs

Finnish pension insurance company Veritas has appointed Kari Vatanen as its new chief investment officer, who joins from Varma Mutual Pension Insurance Company

BlackRock is making sustainability integral to the way it manages risk, constructs portfolios, designs products and engages with companies, and is cementing it as its new standard for investing

The 10 largest German life insurers have reduced their bonus rates for policyholders (not including bonuses paid out at maturity) for 2020 by approximately 20 basis points to 2.1% from 2.3% on average, a credit positive move due to combat the effect of falling interest rates over 2019 on capitalisation

Balance sheets of Dutch insurers are showing an increase in investments towards mortgages and derivatives

Life insurers' Solvency II ratios could be impacted by more than 100 percentage points, as the industry gears up for the 2020 review of the European regulation, according to S&P Global Ratings

The Asset Management Exchange (AMX) has announced the appointment of Kerrie Mitchener-Nissen as head of product

The total gross premiums of the Hong Kong insurance industry increased by 5.2% to HK$514,538m in 2018, according to latest figures released by the Hong Kong Insurance Authority (IA)

Belgian insurer, Ageas, has issued a Restricted Tier 1 subordinated instrument which has offset the negative impact of 12% on the group’s solvency ratio caused by the financial impact of the tender offer for the FRESH securities

Royal London has signed up to the UN-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) as part of its commitment to being a responsible investor

EIOPA has published the technical specifications for the Market and Credit Risk Comparative Study (MCRCS) YE2019

Almost a third (30 per cent) of investment managers are still not considering environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors across all asset classes, LCP’s has revealed

Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI) has appointed Aileen Mathieson as its new global head of insurance following the retirement of Stephen Acheson

Brazil’s reinsurance sector outlook has continued to be held at negative by AM Best, due predominantly to macroeconomic instability and a declining interest rate environment that has led to lower investment income

A new record was set in 2019 for the volume of sustainable debt issued globally in any one year, with the total hitting $465bn globally, up 78% from $261.4bn in 2018

Coface North America Insurance Company has announced the selection of Clearwater Analytics’ SaaS solution for investment data aggregation, reconciliation, accounting, and reporting

Danish insurer, Gefion Insurance, has complied with the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority’s (DFSA) order to have liquid assets of at least €5m by end of December 2019 towards the end of February 2020, following further investment from shareholders

Road Safety Authority (RSA) chief exec Moyagh Murdock has been appointed chief executive of Insurance Ireland and will take up her role at the end of March 2020

American Financial Group has announced that it plans to exit the Lloyd’s of London insurance market in 2020

Prudential Vietnam, a subsidiary of Prudential, and Southeast Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SeABank – Vietnam) have entered into an exclusive bancassurance partnership with a 20-year term

Specialist global insurer Hiscox has today announced the appointment of James Millard as its new chief investment officer for the group

Premiums written in the non-life insurance segment in Poland jumped by 7% in 2018 and by 3% in H1 2019, and is expected to top PLN 42bn by year-end 2019, according to a report

ABI director of regulation Hugh Savill is to retire in October

ReAssure Group has agreed to acquire Quilter’s insurance and pensions operations Old Mutual Wealth Life Assurance Limited and Old Mutual Wealth Pensions Trustees Limited for a total of £445m

The French life insurance market recorded positive net inflows in November 2019 of €1.2bn

Regulators in China are intensifying efforts to offload the assets of scandal-hit Dajia Insurance by looking to sell its stake in a major Chinese bank

The outstanding amount of French insurance companies’ financial investments, at the end of June 2019, increased by €52bn to reach €2,642bn as a result of the rise in assets prices: +€34bn including €24bn on debt securities

The removal of a cap on foreign ownership in Chinese life insurers will spur international insurers to expand in the segment, Fitch Ratings has said

Allianz has completed the planned acquisition of the remaining 51% of LV General Insurance Group (LV GIG) from Liverpool Victoria Friendly Society (LVFS). The total consideration by Allianz for 100% of LV GIG will be up to £1,078bn

High-quality accounting standards support long-term investment by giving accurate and timely information about financial performance, trends and risks as well as visibility of short-term economic volatility, chair of the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) Hans Hoogervorst has said

The Hartford insurance company has announced a new policy restricting tar sands and coal insurance and investing

Chancellor, Sajid Javid, has today announced that FCA head, Andrew Bailey, will become the new Governor of the Bank of England (BoE) from 16 March 2020

The Financial Services and Markets Authority (FSMA) has fined Baloise Belgium €250,000

EIOPA has published a report on insurers' asset and liability management in relation to the illiquidity of their liabilities

The average SCR ratio of (re)insurance undertakings across Europe using long-term guarantees (LTG) measures and measures on equity risk is 235%, but would drop to 159% if the measures were not applied, new research published by EIOPA has revealed

The Sustainable Investment Summit for 2020 has been launched

Insurers’ confidence in achieving their expected returns has fallen for the second successive year, with only half optimistic they will meet their investment goals, Schroders Institutional Investor Study 2019 has revealed

Eight National Competent Authorities (NCAs) set capital add-ons to 21 solo undertakings in 2018, out of 2819 (re)insurance undertakings under the Solvency II Directive in the EEA, according to EIOPA

Liberty Mutual has announced a new policy that restricts coal insurance and investing

The ABI has said it is committed to working with the new government, but warned there are urgent challenges ahead particularly around investing in the changes necessary to tackle climate change

Australia’s general insurance sector has had a tough year with profits falling 12% to $4.4bn in the 12 months to 30 June 2019, reversing the trend of the last two years, according to KPMG Australia’s annual General Insurance Industry Review

Monument Re has announced that subject to regulatory approval it has acquired Cattolica Life DAC from Cattolica Assicurazioni

The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has decided to defer discussions on the effective date of IFRS 17 until the extent and complexity of all amendments has been determined, expected end of February 2020, and to significantly broaden the scope around reinsurance contracts

Three international regulatory authorities have been approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) as Reciprocal Jurisdictions

US insurance industry M&A deals totalled $4.17bn in Q3 2019

Finnish pensions insurer, Varma, has established an ETF that invests in the US and takes sustainability criteria broadly into account

Lloyd’s of London has secured £300m of senior debt to fund a series of phased deliveries beginning in 2020 to implement a revised governance, oversight and funding framework

The outlook for the global life insurance sector is stable, reflecting insurers’ solid regulatory capital and relatively conservative investment portfolios, and their efforts to adapt their products to a low interest rate environment, Moody’s Investors Service has said

Global specialty insurer and reinsurer Brit has launched a new Lloyd’s of London focused insurance-linked securities (ILS) fund, Sussex Specialty Insurance Fund (SIF)

Willis Towers Watson has launched ResQ Financial Reporter, an out-of-the-box software solution designed to help P&C insurers implement IFRS 17

Pensions Insurance Corporation (PIC) has invested £250m in debt issued by the City of London Corporation for a programme of projects in the Greater London area

The sector outlook for the Brazilian insurance industry remains stable reflecting the view that the sector is well developed and will maintain its credit metrics at its current favourable level through 2020

The board of Phoenix Group Holdings has announced the proposed acquisition of ReAssure Group for £3.2bn

Coface has received authorisation from the French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR) to use the group’s partial internal model for calculating its regulatory capital requirement under the SII Directive as soon as at 31 December 2019

The life and non-life segments of the Chilean insurance market face a challenging 2020, Fitch Ratings has said

The fundamental sector outlook for the US life insurance industry has been revised from stable to negative, according to Fitch Ratings

The 2020 outlook for the global asset management sector is stable, reflecting high profit margins, manageable debt burdens, and sustained risk appetite among investors, Moody’s Investors Service said

Europe’s largest insurers are set to maintain a financial leverage between 23% to 25% over the next 18 months

French insurers and reinsurers held €61bn in green investments by the end of 2018, compared with €49bn in 2017

Insurers are stating they have a “good understanding” of investment risks in their investment portfolios, despite most having a heavy reliance on ex-post risk metrics, new research has shown

Institutional investors including insurance companies expect a global financial crisis to hit in the next five years and believe this environment will favour active management

Aviva has announced the appointment of Amanda Blanc as an independent non-executive director of the company with effect from 2 January 2020

Sri Lankan insurers' risk-based capitalisation (RBC) ratios have fallen with the adoption of new accounting standards for lease contracts; SLFRS 16, the local equivalent of IFRS 16, Fitch Ratings says

Fitch Ratings’ sector outlook for the German non-life insurance market remains stable for 2020, reflecting its expectation that underwriting discipline will be maintained and that insurers will achieve further premium growth

Fitch Ratings has maintained a stable sector outlook on the Dutch insurance market for 2020, despite a decline in government bond yields in 2019

Italian insurer, Generali, is looking to make a formal bid for the European assets of MetLife, according to sources

More than 93% of small and mid-sized insurers and 100% of large insurers are expected to show either strong or moderate interest in direct lending funds between now and 2020, according to Cerulli Associates

The 2020 outlook for the Italian life and P&C insurance sectors is stable, reflecting robust earnings, moderate premium growth in P&C and a favourable shift in life new business mix, according to Moody’s

The number of insurers withdrawing cover for coal has more than doubled in 2019 as the industry’s retreat from the sector accelerates and spreads beyond Europe, the Unfriend Coal campaign’s third annual scorecard on the industry has revealed

The winners of the Insurance Asset Management Awards 2019 were announced last night at a gala ceremony at The Waldorf Hilton, London

The credit fundamentals of the Spanish insurance market are strong, with healthy profits in the life and non-life sectors, robust capitalisation, and sound reserving and investment practices, Fitch Ratings has said

MS Amlin has announced a new operating model and senior leadership team as part of the recent reorganisation of its international businesses

CNP Assurances has successfully launched its first subordinated green bond.

The sector for the UK non-life insurance company market in 2020 is negative, reflecting high claims inflation and a weak pricing environment for home and motor insurance, Fitch Ratings has said

AXA has put European coal companies on notice that they should publish plans to phase out coal that are compatible with the UN Paris climate agreement by 2021

BNP Paribas has announced it is to cease all financing related to the thermal coal sector by 2030 in the European Union, and worldwide by 2040

The US life/annuity industry increased its holdings in structured notes by one-third over a three-year period, with book adjusted/carrying value reaching $16bn in 2018, up from $12bn in 2015, according to AM Best

RobecoSAM has announced the transfer of its ESG Ratings and ESG Benchmarking Businesses to S&P Global

Fitch Ratings has kept its sector outlook for the Italian life insurance market at negative

Fitch Ratings has revised its sector outlook for the German life insurance industry from stable to negative

Eight-nine per cent of insurers globally say regulations are deterring them from investing in higher risk assets, according to Natixis Investment Managers

Net inflows into the French life insurance market reached €1.9bn in October 2019, according to the latest figures from the French Insurance Federation

Sun Life has announced a $293m annuity buy-out transaction with Rayonier Advanced Materials (RYAM) to transfer a portion of its Canadian defined benefit (DB) pension obligations

Chesnara, through its existing Netherlands-based closed book operation, the Waard Group, has agreed to acquire a portfolio of life insurance business in run-off from the Dutch branch of Belgian-owned Argenta Bank-en Verzekeringsgroep N.V. for €29.15m

Penson insurance company, Varma, is developing its investment portfolio towards carbon neutrality by 2035 and investing in companies that mitigate the progression of climate change

US state insurance regulators have announced that Team USA members have secured an agreement to advance critical US objectives as part of the International Association of Insurance Supervisor’s (IAIS) debate on the next phase of its Insurance Capital Standard (ICS) project

Dutch insurer, a.s.r. is investing over €100m in the CBRE Pan European Core Fund, the next step in the diversification of its international real estate portfolio

CNP Assurances has announced the intention to double its assets under management in green investments by 2023, as well as its acceleration of its coal exit policy

The European insurance sector’s 2020 outlook has been classed as negative by Moody’s Investors Service, reflecting growing profitability and solvency pressures amid low interest rates, macroeconomic uncertainty, and rising ESG risk

Global life insurers may seek to learn from their Japanese peers of how to preserve profitability amidst a low rate environment, according to a report published by Moody’s Investors Service

Schroders has announced a commitment to integrating ESG across all its investments by 2020

German insurer, Talanx, has signed up to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and thereby aligned itself with a framework for sustainable investment

The general insurance market in Thailand is projected to grow from THB247.6bn (US$7.7bn) in 2018 to THB285.5bn (US$9.1bn) in 2023

Aviva has set a new 12% Solvency II (SII) ROE target by 2022 as part of its strategy update, calculated as own funds generated divided by own funds

Insurers and pension funds have a powerful role in mitigating the impact of climate change and must ‘act responsibly,’ according to EIOPA chairman, Gabriel Bernardino

The UK’s life insurance market has seen the largest increase year-on-year in aggregate GWP growth of all EEA countries of 22% closely followed by Sweden and Portugal

L&G is to launch a GBP-denominated benchmark Tier 2 subordinated debt issuance, taking advantage of current favourable market conditions

Investec Asset Management has announced its new name and branding – Ninety One – which will take effect after the completion of the firm’s demerger from Investec Group

Nippon Life Insurance Company has announced it has completed a partial Limited Partnership (LP) investment in Resolution Life Group Holdings L.P

Whilst there is existing research and modelling available to measure the potential impact of climate change, these do not directly provide inputs to life insurance financial models, according to a new report published by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA)

NN Group has announced an operating result of €453m in the third quarter of 2019, against the €463m it recorded in Q3 2018

The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) has adopted a comprehensive set of reforms that will enable effective cross-border supervision of insurance groups and contribute to global financial stability

Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) has outlined a set of new and ambitious targets for 2020-2022, as the group strives to keep innovating to meet its customer needs

French insurance giant, AXA, is not doing enough to fill its commitments to exit the coal industry, according to a new report released by BankTrack and the Unfriend Coal campaign

Rising US P/C insurance premiums are unlikely to lead into hard markets with pricing that generates sustainable adequate capital returns, according to Fitch Ratings

Insurance markets continue to support resilience, with global premiums forecast to increase by 3% annually in real terms in 2020 and 2021, despite a slowing world economy

Pension Insurance Corporation (PIC) has completed a third pension risk transfer transaction for a pension scheme sponsored by Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE), converting a pensioner longevity swap held by the Scottish Hydro Electric Pension Scheme (SHEPS) into a £750m buy-in

The Talanx Group has reported it remains on course to meet its annual targets and announced a 52% year-on-year rise for its net income for the third quarter of 2019

Half of European insurers, representing over 95% of investment assets, are looking to increase illiquid assets by between 2% and 15% of their funds, according to a new report from AM Best

Capitalisation continues to be a strength for the US P/C insurance sector as measured by Prism, Fitch Ratings’ proprietary capital model

The insurance industry must seize the ‘$30trn investment opportunity’ to address climate change, according to Legal and General Group CEO, Nigel Wilson

Lloyd’s has announced its decision to merge the Council and the Franchise Board, effective from 1 June 2020, after receiving widespread support from across the market

Given that insurers have large and diversified investment portfolios, performing the sustainability assessment in the current taxonomy is complex and may lead to inconsistent results across different investors, Insurance Europe has argued, and therefore a reliable assessment should be made directly by investee companies instead

Non-life insurance premiums in Luxembourg rose by 203.49% over the first nine months of 2019, significantly impacted by the fallout from the approval of companies that chose the country as a place of installation following the UK’s decision to leave the EU

Prudential Financial has reported its net income was $1.418bn for the third quarter of 2019, a fall from the $1.672bn it recorded over the same quarter in 2018

More than half of the largest 30 European non-life insurers for 2018 and 2017 have solvency ratios above 200%, according to AM Best

The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) has outlined that it is focusing on reserving adequacy, governance and controls for general insurance firms over the coming year

Institutional investments in liquid alternative ETFs will more than double in the next year, according to new research from Greenwich Associates

The Baloise Group has announced it is acquiring the non-life insurance portfolio of Athora Belgium for €60m

AIG has announced its net investment income has risen by 0.4% in the third quarter of 2019 to $3.4bn

The Autorité de contrôle prudentiel et de résolution (ACPR) has been encouraged to begin field testing on additional reporting and improved monitoring of liquidity risk for the French insurance market

EIOPA has published the responses from national competent authorities to the Recommendations for the insurance sector in light of the United Kingdom withdrawing from the European Union, a paper released earlier this year

Germany’s financial regulator has urged major asset owners to protest against the European Central Bank’s (ECB) ultra-low interest rate policy

DWS Group has announced a new research paper on how insurance companies, in their search for value, are increasingly turning to customised passive mandates rather than just ETFs

Swedish non-life and life insurance premium income has increased by about 50% during the past ten years, according to a report published by Insurance Sweden

MetLife has seen its net investment income rise by 3% to $4.6bn in the three months ended 30 September 2019 compared to a year earlier, driven by favourable changes in the estimated fair value of certain securities which do not qualify as corporate accounts under GAAP

Insurance stress testing must not be used as a parallel to SII and should not be designed or used in a manner which leads to an amplification of capital requirements, Insurance Europe has said

Three in five people believe that financial institutions and banks should no longer invest in fossil fuels (59%) and that they should be legally accountable if they choose to do so (60%), according to ClientEarth’s Climate Snapshot 2019

LV= GI has today appointed Jon Mansley to the newly created role of sales and marketing director

Insurance Europe, along with CFO and CRO Fora, has published a joint response to a consultation by EIOPA on its proposals for the Solvency II 2020 review package on supervisory reporting and public disclosure

The upcoming Solvency II (SII) review "should not lead, all other things being equal, to increased capital requirements on the European insurance sector", Banque de France governor and chairman of the French Prudential Supervisory and Resolution Authority (ACPR) Villeroy de Galhau has said

Insurance “is a safe refuge in an uncertain world”, BaFin president Felix Hufeld has said

Insurance Ireland has announced the appointment of Gerry Hassett as interim CEO, effective from 1 November 2019

Risk exposures for the European insurance sector have remained broadly stable for October, but macro and market risks continue at a high level, according to EIOPA

AXA has announced it has entered into an agreement with Crelan Bank to sell its Belgian banking operations, AXA Bank Belgium

Net inflows for French life insurance amounted to €2.9bn in September 2019

Life and non-life investments managed by Italian insurance companies amounted to €733bn in June 2019, up 6.4% compared to the same period of 2018

Aegon has announced it is exercising its right to redeem the $1bn perpetual capital securities with a coupon of 6.375% issued in 2005

Capital controls imposed by Argentina’s government to combat economic instability could limit the growth prospects and business opportunities for domestic insurance companies, according to a new AM Best commentary

Beazley, the specialist insurer, is making a strategic investment in Hong Kong-based coverholder, Pegasus Underwriting Limited, which will see Beazley become a 30% shareholder in Pegasus

AG2R La Mondiale, the multinational insurance firm, has obtained a historical interest rate of 4.375%, the lowest recorded rate to date on the issue by a European insurer on securities

Fifty-one per cent of insurance executives expect their investments in real assets to increase over the next 12 months, according to Aviva Investors’ 2020 Real Assets Survey

Clearwater Analytics has announced the launch of a new platform connection in partnership with Goldman Sachs

Fifteen Greenpeace activists have been peacefully protesting at a key reinsurance meeting in Baden-Baden, Germany, to expose the role of the reinsurance market in the climate emergency

EIOPA is launching a call for research proposals aiming at addressing open questions related to topics such as investment allocations of insurers and pension funds, liquidity stress testing in the insurance sector and early warning systems

Bermuda (re)insurers returned to underwriting profits in 2018 and saw moderate net income improvement despite above-average catastrophe losses, according to a new report by Fitch Ratings

The FCA has published a feedback statement on green financial products and services, setting out its proposals to improve climate change disclosures by issuers, as well as information to consumers

AXIS Capital has today announced a new policy addressing thermal coal and oil sands-related underwriting and investments

EIOPA has launched a public consultation on an Opinion that sets out technical advice for the 2020 review of Solvency II

MAPFRE's asset management company, MAPFRE AM, has been listed in the ‘Avant Gardist’ category of the Hirschel and Kramer (H&K) Responsible Investment Brand Index (RIBI), which identifies the European firms in the sector who are most committed to socially responsible investment

World insurance leaders have united to launch the first industry guide aimed at protecting the world’s most priceless and irreplaceable assets

The PRA is proposing to expand its expectation that insurers will deduct the maximum tax charge generated on write down, when including externally issued rT1 instruments in their own funds, to reflect the maximum tax charge that could be generated on conversion of such items into ordinary shares

Danish insurance company, Gefion Insurance, has closed the placement of SII-compliant subordinated notes in the aggregate principal amount of €6m with funds managed by Fermat Capital Management

French life insurers’ reported SII ratios have declined in the first nine months of 2019 because of falling interest rates, reflecting pressure on future profits if rates do not increase, Moody’s Investors Service has said

Total insurance industry M&A deals in August 2019 worth $4.04bn were announced globally, according to GlobalData’s deals database

EIOPA has launched today- as part of the 2020 Solvency II reporting and disclosure review – a field test on the revised and newly proposed templates

Insurers must increase the quantity and quality of climate-related disclosures; refine disclosure metrics to determine which ones are most decision-useful; spread knowledge on how to assess strategic resilience and consider how to disclose the extent to which portfolios are ready for the transition to net zero, Bank of England governor Mark Carney has stated

Florence Lustman has taken up her position as president, a position to which she was unanimously elected by the French Insurance Federation’s general meeting on 18 June last year

Mapfre, through its asset-management company, Mapfre AM, has finalised a strategic alliance with Boyar Asset Management, to boost its analytical capabilities in US equities

Munich Re has invested $250m in US start-up Next Insurance

Green and sustainability bond issuance by insurers may continue to grow, according to AM Best

The US life insurance industry is well capitalised with a median RBC ratio of 447%, however, applying a rating migration stress lowers the median RBC ratio by 69 points (15% decline), to 378%, according to Moody’s Investors Service

US direct written premiums in 2018 rose by 40.7% from levels recorded in 2009, according to latest data published by the NAIC on P&C insurance companies

Insurers have relatively sustainable equity holdings, and are on average investing less in carbon-intensive sectors, Dutch regulator DeNederlandsche Bank (DNB) has said

Everest Insurance Ireland, DAC (EIID) has announced that its UK branch is fully operational

Canopius Group has completed the merger of AmTrust at Lloyds

The ABI has appointed Julian Adams, director, public policy and regulation at M&G, holding company of the Prudential Assurance Company, as deputy chair