Solvency II
Profile: Swiss Re's Raj Singh
Predicitng the unthinkable
Loss leaders
Operational risk is potentially the biggest risk faced by insurers – and also one of the most difficult to model. However, as a number of loss data aggregation initiatives globally either emerge or mature, insurers are better placed to quantify their op…
South Africa opts for Solvency II approach
Solvency II is not just an issue for European insurers. Faced with the increasingly global nature of the financial sector, South Africa’s financial regulator is bringing in its own version of the regulation. But the schedule to implementation is tight…
Seeking equivalence – the NAIC and EC take different stances on Solvency II
The European Commission is firm in its belief that the US insurance regulatory system needs a single figurehead in order to grant it equivalent status under Solvency II – a view not shared by American supervisors. Aaron Woolner reports
Understanding the Operational Risk Consortium’s scenario approach
The UK’s Operational Risk Consortium (Oric) recently published a report on the use of scenario analysis of operational risk in insurers. Mariano Selvaggi describes the issues Oric took into account when making its analysis and why establishing a…
Risk Europe: EU supervision package could be delayed
Creation of new European supervisory authorities is hampered by disagreements between EU parliament and council
Irish regulator warns of post-crisis surpervisory scepticism
The financial regulator, Matthew Elderfield, has warned Irish insurers that he will be more interventionist, rather than wait for a market failure to manifest itself and then cautiously weigh up the costs and benefits of a response.
Portuguese insurers shielded from sovereign risk, claims regulator
A focus on high-grade corporate bonds in their investment portfolios is insulating Portuguese life insurers from the continued market pressure on the country's sovereign debt, according to Instituto de Seguros de Portugal (ISP), the country's insurance…
Insurers face “death by 1,000 spreadsheets” under Solvency II
Overly prudent capital requirements and excessive red tape in the Solvency II directive will paralyse the European insurance industry and kill the mutual business model, according to the Association of Mutual Insurers and Insurance Cooperatives of Europe…
Facing the Solvency II technology challenge
The final shape of Solvency II has not yet been decided, but it is clear that whatever the result insurers will need to upgrade their technology and data-gathering approach. Clive Davidson examines how Europe’s leading insurers are meeting this challenge
