Hiscox Re commits to Bermuda/Lloyd’s

As Hiscox moves its reinsurance operations under a single banner – Hiscox Re – the company continues to realise the value of both a Bermuda and Lloyd’s platform, its CEO says.

Jeremy Pinchin, CEO of Hiscox Re, said that Hiscox had considered consolidation, but that the case for having a significant presence in both Bermuda and London has proved compelling.

Ben Love, head of client and broker strategy, London at Hiscox Re added that the two markets deliver complementary strengths— Bermuda its access to US clients and London a client footprint with a more global basis.

Pinchin said that the company was very much committed to both markets, with its latest venture Kiskadee Re—which will offer collateralised capacity through a Bermuda-based sidecar arrangement—very much an affirmation of this continued commitment to Bermuda.

Through Kiskadee Re, Hiscox is looking to harness the alternative capital flooding into the market, said Pinchin, with the new venture aiming to source new business both for Hiscox Re and capital markets investors hungry for new risks. He said that the new venture would complement its traditional reinsurance business and help the reinsurer be more relevant in providing solutions to its clients.

The sidecar has already started writing business— having dipped its toes in the water at the mid-year renewals—and Pinchin anticipates brisk interest at January 1 renewals. The new venture will offer worldwide property-catastrophe business that will leverage Hiscox Re’s existing underwriting capabilities, brand, analytics, broker networks and access to market.

Hiscox is nevertheless considering the possibilities of a third hub, with Asia the most obvious candidate, said Pinchin. The reinsurer already enjoys quota share arrangements in China and Japan, but has for now decided against setting up in Singapore. However, as Love outlined, underwriting discipline is easier with fewer outposts and the company is more than happy with the level of business it is seeing in Bermuda and London.

With some Lloyd’s players considering a consortium approach to developing their presence in Asia, Pinchin said he was open to the idea of working with others to enter Asian and emerging markets, but added that Hiscox is of sufficient size to be able to go it alone and be relevant in such markets in its own right. With the launch of Kiskadee Re, Hiscox’s value proposition is only likely to be strengthened.