ILS market set records in H1’24, remains an attractive relative value option: Swiss Re
After a record 2023, the insurance-linked securities (ILS) market again set records in the first half of 2024, with strong catastrophe bond issuance on the back of robust demand from investors, as the secondary market experienced record high trading volumes, according to reinsurance giant Swiss Re. The latest ILS Market Insights report from Swiss Re […]
UCITS cat bond funds average 6.35% YTD, second-highest annual return since 2011
Catastrophe bond funds in the UCITS format had reached an average return year-to-date of 6.35% by August 2nd 2024, which is the second-highest annual return since the Plenum CAT Bond UCITS Fund Indices started tracking the market in 2011. The year-to-date return of this group of catastrophe bonds is only second to the full-year 2023 record, […]
Australian investment giant Colonial First State said looking for cat bond deployment
Colonial First State, one of the largest Australian institutional investors, is looking to deploy some of its near US $100 billion of assets into the catastrophe bond market, according to a report from Bloomberg. Interest in insurance-linked securities (ILS) has been on the rise again among Australian pensions and managers of superannuation funds in recent […]
Schroders Capital grows ILS AUM ~25% in a year to $5.5bn
The Schroders Capital insurance-linked securities (ILS) team has successfully increased its ILS assets under management (AUM) to a new high of $5.5 billion by the end of March, representing approximately 25% growth in just one year. Back in March 2023, the Schroders Capital ILS team’s assets under management stood at $4.4 billion across its range […]
ILS manager M&A resurgence is a strong signal for the market
Two important pieces of insurance-linked securities market merger and acquisitions (M&A) news came to light last week, both of which provide signals for those watching of the health of the sector and investor appetite. But there is also a signal of the desire for scale, to be competitive in offering a broad suite of risk […]
Twelve Capital and Securis to merge, creating founder-led ILS manager with $7.8bn
Breaking news today as established insurance-linked securities (ILS) investment managers Twelve Capital and Securis Investment Partners have announced their intention to merge, with the resulting ILS manager set to be a significant founder-led business with around $7.8 billion in assets under management. Both sets of shareholders are set to remain fully invested in the combined […]
PGGM / PFZW ILS portfolio returns 5.5% for H1, AUM slightly down
The broadly diversified portfolio of insurance-linked securities (ILS) and reinsurance investments managed by pension investment firm PGGM on behalf of end-client the Dutch pension PFZW, has returned 5.5% over the first-half of 2024. The 5.5% ILS portfolio return for the first-half of 2024 is slightly down on the prior year’s 6.3%. We suspect that the […]
Collateralized / ILS take 66% of Florida Citizens reinsurance renewal, Nephila $587m
Collateralized capital markets backed reinsurance capacity and insurance-linked securities (ILS) fund managers have taken roughly two-thirds of Florida Citizens traditional reinsurance tower at the recent renewals, with Nephila Capital remaining the largest of those markets. Florida’s Citizens Property Insurance Corporation has placed increasing reliance on the capital markets to support its catastrophe reinsurance needs in […]
Swiss pension Nest Sammelstiftung notes diversifying contribution of ILS to returns
Switzerland based pension fund Nest Sammelstiftung, or the Nest Collective Foundation, has highlighted the diversifying benefit of its insurance-linked securities (ILS) allocation, pointing to ILS market returns as a bright spot from 2023. Nest Sammelstiftung considers itself an ecological-ethical pension investor, following sustainable investment strategies, one of which is the inclusion of natural disaster risk […]
Insurance-linked securities – A rare liquid market with income & value: Schroders Capital
Insurance-linked securities (ILS) such as catastrophe bonds represent a rare opportunity for investors today, being one of only a few liquid markets that offer value, with most others having historically tight risk premiums, while also being an asset class that offers uncorrelated income, investment manager Schroders Capital has said. In giving its investment outlook for […]