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During RenaissanceRe’s second-quarter 2026 earnings call, CEO Kevin J. O’Donnell said the company has spent decades dealing with real estate disaster markets and has a clear understanding of when to expand and when to stay disciplined. He added that real estate catastrophe rates remain broadly adequate and continues to guide the company’s underwriting approach. The…
AXA XL, AXA’s property, casualty and specialty risks division, has appointed Grace Xu as senior captive underwriter in its alternative risk solutions team. Based in Los Angeles, California, she serves in this role as the company continues to strengthen its captive insurance and alternative risk capabilities. Prior to Xu joining AXA XL, she worked for…
Brown & Brown, Inc. announced that it is making artificial intelligence (AI) a foundational enterprise capability and has selected Anthropic, McKinsey & Company, and Accenture as partners to help realign the business and responsibly scale AI across the organization. The program is designed to responsibly leverage artificial intelligence to transform critical business processes to accelerate…
Global investment firm KKR announced the appointment of Roy Gori, former President and CEO of Manulife, as a senior advisor. Gori will advise KKR on strategic opportunities in the financial services and insurance sectors, with a focus on Asia Pacific and international markets. He will provide strategic advice on opportunities across insurance, wealth management, banking,…
Insured losses from severe convective storms (SCS) are expected to be below average in 2026, according to KCC’s latest U.S. SCS Bulletin catastrophe model. The updated outlook is based on losses in the first six months of the year. Historically, cumulative losses incurred through the end of June accounted for more than 75% of SCS’…
Multi-category, multi-territory managing general agency (MGA) Pen Underwriting has announced the appointment of Kane Bryant as war underwriter within its specialist marine war risk insurance arm, Vessel Protect. Bryant joins the firm from Amphitrite Underwriting, where he specialized in ship hull and war risks. His professional background also includes spells with MS Amlin and Travelers,…
Morningstar DBRS, a global credit rating agency that provides independent credit analysis and ratings in financial markets, has assessed the potential impact of Canada’s 2026 wildfire season on the country’s property and casualty (P&C) insurance industry. While massive wildfires in northwestern Ontario have led to evacuation orders, transportation disruptions and smoke-related air quality issues in…
U.S. insurance company Kemper Corporation announced the appointment of Eric Kappler as executive vice president and president of property and casualty insurance, effective July 30, 2026. Kapler replaces Matthew Hunton, who is leaving the company after seven years. In his new role, Kappler will lead Kemper’s unified property and casualty organization, which includes specialty personal…
Rather than simply limiting growth in soft markets, reinsurers should actively use periods of market weakness to prepare and position themselves for the next hard market, Oxbow Partners said. According to Oxbow research, the most successful reinsurers achieve their best inter-cycle performance by pursuing growth throughout the cycle. After years of superior profitability, peak pricing,…
Santam Syndicate 1918, the Lloyd’s Group subsidiary of Santam Group, Africa’s largest non-life insurance company, has strengthened its underwriting team with the appointment of two experienced London market professionals. The company has hired Neil Smith to build and lead its international automotive business, while Stephen Kiedish joins as a senior underwriter in the real estate…