All articles by LII editorial
LII editorial
Wealthy repatriate offshore funds en masse
Driven by a massive repatriation of offshore assets by wealthy individuals, change is sweeping wealth management markets, reveals a study by Arjuna Sittampalam, a research associate at French business school EDECs Risk Institute. Indicative of the scale, he said the flow back from offshore European centres since the beginning of 2008 is estimated to be as much as $520bn, 25% of the total before the outflow commenced
Great Eastern goes for growth in Malaysia’s takaful market
Great Eastern Life Assurance Company (GEL), Singapores largest and oldest life insurer, made a significant move into Malaysias Islamic, Sharia law-compliant takaful market with the launch of Great Eastern Takaful in December 2010 Great Eastern Takaful is a joint venture with Koperasi Angkatan Malaysia Berhad, a financial services company serving the 140,000 regular, voluntary and civilian members of Malaysias armed forces The launch followed the granting of Family Takaful (life insurance) licences in September 2010 to GEL, Dutch insurer ING Groep, Malaysian financial service company AMMB Holdings and American International Groups Asian unit American International Assurance.
Munich Re joins list of wind-farming insurers
Munich Re has acquired 40 wind-driven electricity generating turbines in a total of 11 wind farms in Germany The investment forms part of Munich Res Renewable Energy and New Technologies initiative launched in mid-2010 and is worth in the “low three-digit million euro range”. Munich Re has stated that over the next few years it intends to invest up to 2.5bn ($3.3bn) in renewable energy projects such as wind farms, biofuels, solar energy and hydroelectric power
Swiss Re issues first longevity trend bond
According to Swiss Re, the longevity trend bond is based on population data and would trigger in the event that there is a large divergence in the mortality improvements experienced between male lives aged 75 to 85 in England and Wales and male lives aged 55 to 65 in the US
Evolves or face extinction, says Limra
Life insurers in the US that want to survive and thrive must innovate or risk becoming also-rans, Robert Kerzner, president and CEO of financial industry organisation Limra told 450 insurance executives at the 2010 Limra Annual Conference held in Washington DC in late-October
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Indexed annuities set the pace
Equity-indexed annuities, which peg an investors rate of return to a market index with a minimum guaranteed rate, are among the fastest-growing annuity product sets in the US market.
Things get tougher for US health insurers
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has invoked a regulation that from 2011 requires them to spend between 80% and 85% of their premium income on medical care and quality improvement
MetLife exits US long-term care market
Highlighting problems in the US long-term care insurance (LTCI) market, the countrys largest life insurer MetLife has announced that it will cease writing new LTCI business at the end of 2010
Allianz talks up marketing drive
Launched in its home market Germany in October, the campaign is being rolled out across many of the 70 countries in which the insurer operates
Zurich Financial announces major operational changes
In the US, after an absence of seven years, the Swiss insurer is to re-enter the countrys life market, a move Zurich Global Life CEO Kevin Hogan said is a “logical and natural progression” that will balance Zurichs strong presence in the US general insurance business market.