Analysis

  • The green bond market and insurance investments - a match made in heaven?

    10 May 2021

    Green bonds bounced back stronger than ever in the aftermath of the 2020 March madness. But questions still remain surrounding the authenticity of the 'greenness' of these bonds, and one must be ever wary of not falling into the trap of 'greenwashing'. Stephanie Harris reports

  • Liquidity in the age of COVID

    06 May 2021

    'What's our liquidity' was one of the biggest questions for insurers in Q1 2020. One year on, two insurers reflect on the steps their firms took to answer it, ensure liquidity was available, and how they approach it today as a result. Vincent Huck reports

  • Conning's Büsst on all that it takes, to be a 'good' Lloyd's AM

    04 May 2021

    Conning is Lloyd's market's most popular asset manager by engagements. Russell Büsst, Conning's chief executive and investment officer for Europe, tells David Walker about the changing face of syndicate asset management.

  • The Famous Five - How CIOs trumped underwriters, again, at Lloyd's

    26 April 2021

    If you want to know when the underwriters at Lloyd's last beat its investors, cast your mind (all the way) back to 2015. The bad luck of Lloyd's underwriters is clear. The good run of its investors is largely to plan, David Walker finds.

  • The Gospel on Insurance CIO Investing, as told to GSAM

    21 April 2021

    Goldman Sachs Asset Management's annual survey of insurer investors is an eagerly awaited barometer of the economic expectations, investment and outsourcing plans, and risk-assessments of CIOs worldwide. David Walker reports on the findings

  • CIO interview: Balancing internal and external clients at an insurer's affiliate

    20 April 2021

    SCOR decided to fully centralise the investment process at group level in 2008, and open asset management services to third-party clients in 2011. Francois De Varenne, in charge of today's €20bn investment portfolio, explains the rational around the decision, how it went about building the current structure. Interview by Vincent Huck

  • Third Point Re: a new look for an old engine

    19 April 2021

    Third Point Re, once one of Bermuda's leading hedge fund reinsurers, has merged with Sirius and is taking a new direction. But the ties with the hedge fund remain as Sarfraz Thind finds out

  • Insurers' GA - cost or opportunity for affiliated asset managers?

    14 April 2021

    Unlike banks, insurers enjoy a close relationship with their affiliated asset managers, to the point that an insurer's CIO can also be the manager's CEO. Although not prohibited by law, this arrangement raises ethical concerns - ones that regulators are well aware of. Vincent Huck reports

  • Lloyd's syndicates see the light on ESG investing

    12 April 2021

    Annual statements promised greater openness on sustainable practices, but some are skeptical of the London market's approach to sustainability. David Walker reports.

  • Allianz Real Estate COVID-proofing its property portfolio

    08 April 2021

    Dr. Megan Walters, global head of research at Allianz Real Estate, explains how her team studied the data of 47 cities to present the heads of acquisition with office assets that look to be secure for the future. Interview by Stephanie Harris