Analysis

• The great and the good - Allianz issues invitation to join the net-zero crowd

  23 July 2021

  The Net Zero Asset Owners Alliance seems enormous, because it is, with $6.6trn of assets behind its collective voice. But Allianz's Sona Stadtelmeyer-Petru emphasises to David Walker, the Alliance really thrives on having voices of all insurers, not just the largest

  

• The RBC changes: a slow-moving Titanic

  20 July 2021

  It is a slow change, even by the notoriously slow standards of the insurance industry. However, the soon-to-be instigated changes to the NAIC's risk-based capital charges on fixed income assets could have significant ramifications for the US insurance investment portfolio. And many don't like it. Sarfraz Thind reports

  

• Credit and the rise of duration risk

  15 July 2021

  Heightened uncertainty on the back of the pandemic and policy response to it calls for a greater focus on duration risk management, according to Moody's Analytics's Tomer Yahalom, Amnon Levy and Brett Manning.

  

• Inflation - the rising concern among CIOs

  13 July 2021

  Once the elephant in the room for most insurance investors, inflation or the threat of it, is creeping up the ladder of chief investment officers' risks. Stephanie Harris reports

  

• Data centres - the new investment frontier

  07 July 2021

  The pandemic has highlighted the importance of digital infrastructure, with data centres standing as the foundation of the sector. But with technology comes a price: huge power consumption. How can insurers balance their need for yield with environmental considerations? Stephanie Harris reports

  

• "It's becoming more and more difficult to be buy-and-hold investors," CNP Assurances CIO says

  05 July 2021

  Accelerating technological and societal changes are causing structural changes to the way insurers invest, according to CNP Assurances CIO Olivier Guigné. This forces them to be more adventurous and explore new territories. Vincent Huck reports

  

• Comment: The Cold War over non-financial disclosures

  30 June 2021

  The fragmented landscape of non-financial disclosures is consolidating, and it is geopolitical considerations that are driving the emergence of winners, and the downfall of the rest. Vincent Huck surveys the battlefield and predicts who will emerge victorious.

  

• The low rate crunch

  28 June 2021

  You can't get away from low rates if you are an insurer. But how bad is the low rate environment for the industry? Well the devil's in the detail as Sarfraz Thind finds out.

  

• What is driving real asset investment decisions?

  23 June 2021

  In an increasingly complex environment where returns can be scarce one could have expected CIOs to give answers based on fundamentals, but instead, their investment decisions seem to be driven by a greater cause - purpose, as Vincent Huck finds out

  

• How institutional investors can play a greater role in global trade financing

  21 June 2021

  Gareth Mee, global head of investment advisory, and Richard Wilson, investment advisory manager, at EY explore the opportunity for insurers to help bridge the trade finance gap and make a positive contribution to the global economy's growth and resilience.