White Mountains swings to $39m Q3 loss as investment declines hit earnings
Bermuda-based White Mountains Insurance Group has reported a $39 million net loss for the third quarter of 2026, reversing a $114 million profit a year earlier, as investment losses outweighed improved underwriting performance at its reinsurance business Ark.
The group recorded $69 million in net realised and unrealised investment losses in the third quarter, compared with gains of $76 million in the corresponding period of 2025, reflecting the impact of higher interest rates and a decline in the value of its MediaAlpha investment.
Liam Caffrey, CEO of White Mountains, said: “Higher interest rates and a lower share price at MediaAlpha drove unrealised investment losses, which offset an otherwise solid quarter for operating results.”
Ark, the group’s property and casualty re/insurance business, reported gross written premiums of $386 million in the quarter, up from $366 million a year earlier, while its combined ratio held at 75.3% compared to 75.8%.
The premium increase was primarily driven by a change in the timing of recognition of certain delegated authority business, alongside growth in specialty and accident and health lines. Reduced property writings, reflecting softer market conditions, partially offset those gains.
Ark recorded estimated net losses of $10 million from the Middle East conflict in the third quarter, primarily from marine and energy lines, bringing the nine-month total to $52 million, net of reinsurance and reinstatement premiums.
Catastrophe losses contributed two percentage points to the quarterly combined ratio, compared with minimal catastrophe losses in 2025, driven primarily by losses related to the war in Iran.
Favourable prior-year reserve development contributed four percentage points to Ark’s third-quarter combined ratio, compared with no contribution a year earlier.
Ark’s pre-tax income nevertheless declined to $64 million from $97 million in the third quarter, largely reflecting a reversal in investment performance. The business recorded $40 million in net realised and unrealised investment losses, compared with gains of $18 million a year earlier.
Elsewhere, White Mountains’s financial guarantee business HG Global reported third-quarter gross written premiums of $19 million, up from $16 million in 2025. However, the business recorded a $28 million pre-tax loss, compared with income of $22 million a year earlier, following $29 million in investment losses driven by higher interest rates.
White Mountains’s specialty insurance distribution business Distinguished reported $159 million in managed premiums and $55 million in commission and fee revenue for the quarter.
The group’s asset management business Kudu also reported a $15 million pre-tax loss, reversing income of $44 million in the prior-year quarter, as higher interest rates reduced the fair value of its participation contracts.
White Mountains additionally disclosed an agreement, reached on November 4, to sell 5.5 million shares in MediaAlpha for $13.90 per share, reducing its ownership interest from 29% to approximately 21%.
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