Analysis

• UK student loan book: a political risk worth taking?

  03 March 2017

  The UK government has structured a tranche of the 2002 to 2006 student loan book to make it attractive to insurance investors. Insurers are wary of political risks, however. Callum Tanner reports

  

• Is the relationship between insurer and asset manager facing disruption?

  01 March 2017

  The relationship between asset manager and insurer could be entering a new era, as WTW attempts to bring investors and managers into a single marketplace via its Asset Management Exchange. Asa Gibson talks to the man hoping to create the Amazon of investment, Oliver Jaegemann.

  

• The machine learning revolution

  24 February 2017

  Machine learning is seen as the next stage of evolution in the asset management world. While still in its infancy, asset managers are examining how to use machines in everything from investment making to operational efficiency. So will it really change the way that insurers invest? Sarfraz Thind reports

  

• ESG investment: the bleeding edge?

  17 February 2017

  Responsible investing is increasingly mentioned in the investment process, and insurers certainly wear their ESG principles as a badge of honour. But, despite the talk, does ESG really influence investment policy? Sarfraz Thind reports

  

• Hot property: ground rents

  15 February 2017

  Ground rents offer insurers a way to diversify their real asset portfolios, with a low risk profile and relatively attractive yields. But market access and Solvency II treatment are significant barriers. Asa Gibson reports.

  

• Investing where the wind blows

  08 February 2017

  Allianz's in-house alternative asset manager has closed four tax equity investments in US wind farms in only 12 months, and plans more in 2017. Head of renewables at Allianz Capital Partners David Jones talks to Asa Gibson about the firm's American wind expansion.

  

• Top 10 ideas for insurance CIOs

  03 February 2017

  Mercer's global insurance investment team has picked out ten initiatives to help chief investment officers navigate a changing landscape and bolster existing operations. Asa Gibson reports

  

• Stress test or eventuality: it's time to respond

  31 January 2017

  European life insurers should reassess their investment strategies in light of Eiopa's latest stress test, which exposed vulnerabilities to a plausible 'low-for-long' interest rate environment, writes JP Morgan Asset Management's Vladimir Zdorovenin.

  

• The unorthodox CIO behind MetLife's expansion

  25 January 2017

  MetLife's CIO Steve Goulart manages one of the biggest and most diverse insurance asset portfolios in the US. While the insurer is feeling the pinch of low interest rates, its diversification has helped to calm some of the yield pressure. Sarfraz Thind reports

  

• Taking control of credit risk

  24 January 2017

  Regulatory changes in the US and persistently low interest rates around the world are raising the profile of credit risk management. EY's Juan Carlos Milan Sotelo says there are a number of common weak spots within a typical credit risk management framework, which insurance CIOs can address with a few fundamental steps. Asa Gibson reports