If insurers were ever characterised as slow to move and tardy to change, Goldman Sachs Asset Management head of insurance for EMEA Etienne Comon has another perspective. He talks to David Walker about the challenges insurers faced in H1 2020 and how their speedy reaction has aided resilience.
JP Morgan Asset Management and Insurance Asset Risk have joined forces to understand what lies under the bonnet of insurers' responsible investment announcements. Findings were compiled in a report. We present some of the key high- level discoveries, with part one focusing on regulation. Vincent Huck reports
The 330-year-old institution might have made its name with insurance, but in recent years its investments, with the help of third-party asset managers, have countered heavy losses from the liability side of the balance sheet. Is the old dog learning new tricks, David Walker asks
It's the climate at stake, Storebrand AM's CEO Jan Erik Saugestad says. The Norwegian insurance asset manager is part of a coalition which aims to hold climate-unfriendly governments accountable. Scoring a success in Brazil's Amazon fires battle last month is just the start, says its CEO. Interview by Sarfraz Thind
A growing number of insurers have announced new or upgraded sustainable investment strategies in recent years. JP Morgan Asset Management (JPMAM) and Insurance Asset Risk have joined forces to investigate the drivers behind insurers' sustainable strategies. Vincent Huck reports on the high-level key findings
Home loans have proved popular with Europe's insurers, to the tune of €237bn invested in 2019, but that was in the good times. As many underwriters holding them are forced to delay collecting repayments amid COVID-19, some are re-running stress tests on their portfolios, David Walker finds
Many insurers had already reduced portfolio risks in view of expensive valuations and anticipated credit cycle concerns, with the events of 2020 enabling accelerated decision making to capitalise on market dislocations, Etienne Comon writes on the back of Goldman Sachs Asset Management's annual insurance asset management survey.
While underwriters like to call themselves 'fixed-income investors', they have become significant players in the equity markets, and the COVID-19 turbulences might not be all bad news. David Walker reports
Hopes were high at the end of March for investors to profit from the Fed's QE intervention and access a rejuvenated credit sector. The once-in-a-lifetime returns have, however, swiftly disappeared, and investors are back to staring at the ghost of bond market past. So what next? Sarfraz Thind reports
Francesco Martorana, chief executive of Generali Insurance Asset Management warns that while crises come and go, low interest rates remain the main threat for the sector. Interview by Vincent Huck