June 19th, 2013
Catastrophe Bond Activity
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
Here we review recent GC Capital Ideas stories that have reported catastrophe bond transactions in which GC Securities was involved.
Posts Tagged ‘Catastrophes’
June 14th, 2013
Wildfires in Colorado, United States
Posted at 9:08 AM ET
A wildfire northeast of Colorado Springs, Colorado has become the state’s most destructive wildfire in history. The Black Forest Fire has destroyed 360 homes, surpassing the 347 homes destroyed in the Waldo Canyon Fire last year. At least 14 homes have been partially damaged and 79 homes could not be verified. The blaze covers about 15,000 acres of land and has no solid containment lines. The fire has forced the evacuation of more than 38,000 people in areas nearby, including parts of Colorado Springs. No deaths or injuries have been reported.
June 3rd, 2013
2013 Atlantic Hurricane Activity
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
Guy Carpenter has published a new briefing: 2013 Atlantic Hurricane Activity to Reach or Exceed 1995-2012 Average. The 2013 Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be a busy one, carrying at least average activity with respect to the 1995-2012 “active” period. Seasonal outlook providers consistently emphasize two factors: the absence of El Niño, which implicates average activity, and higher tropical Atlantic sea-surface temperatures (SSTs), which implicate higher activity.
May 24th, 2013
GC Securities* Completes Catastrophe Bond Blue Danube II Ltd. Series 2013-1 Notes for Allianz
Posted at 2:00 AM ET
GC Securities, a division of MMC Securities Corp., a U.S. registered broker-dealer and member FINRA/SIPC, today announced the placement of the Series 2013-1 Notes, with notional principal of $175,000,000, through a newly formed catastrophe bond shelf program, Blue Danube II Ltd., to benefit Allianz. This is the second time that Allianz has accessed PCS-MITT triggered cat bond protection and the eighth overall cat bond issuance benefitting Allianz since 2007.
May 15th, 2013
Catastrophe Bond Update: First Quarter 2013, Part II
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
Risk Capital Outstanding
Total risk capital outstanding increased during the first quarter of 2013, reaching an all-time high water mark of USD15.0 billion - up from USD14.83 billion at year-end 2012, representing a net increase of 1.13 percent (USD168 million). This is the eighth consecutive quarter of growth in risk capital outstanding. Risk capital outstanding is up more than 17 percent since the end of the first quarter of 2012.
May 14th, 2013
Catastrophe Bond Update: First Quarter 2013, Part I
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
During the first quarter of 2013 two natural peril-exposed catastrophe bond transactions closed, for a total of USD520 million of issuance (1). This seemingly low level of primary issuance activity is deceiving, however, as the action in the capital markets and the influence of “non-traditional” capacity (a term that is rapidly approaching obsolescence) has never been higher. Conservative institutional asset managers, the custodians of trillions of dollars of investable assets, have largely accepted catastrophe risk as a component of mainstream investment strategy. And, while it is the case that institutional capital’s pursuit of catastrophe risk has been aided by a low interest rate environment, short-term yield chasing is not the primary driver of the inflows. Rather, this is stable capital that has spent years evaluating the catastrophe risk asset class, looking for both steady returns and, in the aftermath of covered events, orderly payment of losses. It has been waiting to see organized secondary trading activity during live catastrophe events such as Hurricane Irene (in 2011) and, most recently, Superstorm Sandy (in 2012). On all fronts, the catastrophe risk market has demonstrated it is ready to transition from adolescence to young adulthood. The impact has been dramatic; pricing has decreased more than 50 percent year over year, particularly for peak U.S. risks such as Florida, which carry significant profit margin for the traditional reinsurance market.
May 7th, 2013
Chart: Global Natural Catastrophe Losses
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
The extent of rising insured losses from global natural catastrophes over the last 40 years is illustrated below.
April 24th, 2013
Chart: Natural Catastrophe Insured Losses by Region
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
Thirty-five percent of insured natural catastrophe losses between 2009 and 2011 were located in Asia while only 33 percent were in the United States. Australia and New Zealand also saw a marked increase in natural catastrophe insured losses during this period, with 19 percent of the total. This is in stark contrast to the long-term trend of more than three-quarters of all insured natural catastrophe losses occurring in the United States.
April 18th, 2013
Texas Fertilizer Plant Explosion
Posted at 12:52 PM ET
A fire at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas (about 80 miles southeast of Dallas) sparked a deadly explosion that killed an estimated five to 15 people and injured more than 160 on Wednesday April 17. According to reports, the explosion occurred at approximately 8:00 PM CDT (01:00 UTC). Prior to the blast, a fire was reported at the plant. A reported 50 to 75 homes were destroyed, as well as a 50-unit apartment complex. A nursing home and middle school were also reported to have severe damage. While officials have not determined a cause for the explosion, they do not believe that foul play was involved.
April 18th, 2013
Hurricane Predictability and Model Representation Challenges
Posted at 1:00 AM ET
A new briefing has been published with the purpose of informing Guy Carpenter’s approach to hurricane risk in the context of new scientific findings.
