Business Insurance

Hackers steal Chanel Korea’s customer data

French luxury goods company Chanel SAS’ South Korean unit issued an apology on Aug. 8 after hackers stole its customers’ personal data in a recent cyberattack.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Bayer loses third appeals case over weedkiller

Bayer lost a third appeal of U.S. court verdicts that awarded damages to customers blaming their cancers on use of its glyphosate-based weedkillers, leaving the German drugs and pesticides group to pin hopes for legal relief on the U.S. Supreme Court...

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Sri Lankan insurers see 6% rise in total premium

Data from the Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka showed that the local insurance industry’s total gross written premium income rose 6% year-on-year to 208.25 billion (1.04 billion) Sri Lankan rupees in 2020.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Abu Dhabi National Insurance’s profit climbs 31%

U.A.E.-based Abu Dhabi National Insurance Co. PSC's net profit increased 31% year-on-year to 248.7 million United Arab Emirates dirham ($68 million) in the first half of the year driven by improved underwriting and investments.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Mount Etna eruption shakes nearby buildings, flight delays possible

Italy’s National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology said that the Italian volcano Mount Etna erupted on Aug. 9 with strong explosions that rattled the nearby buildings in the Catania province.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Suncorp uses reinsurance just once despite higher nat cat costs

Australian insurer Suncorp Group Ltd. utilized its reinsurance cover only for a single event in the financial year ended June 30, 2021, despite natural catastrophe costs exceeding the budget by almost $60 million Australian ($44 million).

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Recent floods trigger reinsurer’s retro program

German reinsurer Deutsche Ruckversicherung AG said that the losses from the recent floods and rainfall in Germany have triggered its retrocession program.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Allianz’s net income jumps 46% as P&C underwriting performs

German insurer Allianz SE’s net income surged 46% year-on-year to €2.2 billion ($2.6 billion) in the second quarter, driven by a rise in operating profit across all its business segments.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Germany’s flood losses estimated at $30.6 billion

Armin Laschet, Minister-President of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, said that the total damage from the recent floods in Germany is likely to surpass €26 billion ($30.6 billion).

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

‘DeFi’ crime hits record high

Losses from theft, hacks and fraud in “decentralized finance” or DeFi, a thriving segment in the cryptocurrency sector, hit an all-time high in the first seven months of the year, a report from crypto intelligence company CipherTrace showed Tuesday.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Insurers win COVID-19 legal battles, but war over cover continues

While policyholders continue to lose most COVID-19-related business interruption coverage disputes, a clear picture on the issue will likely not emerge before state supreme and federal appellate courts issue more rulings on the issue.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Munich Re says it will meet 2021 profit goal

German reinsurance group Munich Re said Tuesday it would meet its 2021 profit goal as it raised its forecast for gross premiums and predicted higher pandemic-related losses than previously anticipated.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Amazon to pay shoppers hurt by others’ products

Amazon.com Inc. on Tuesday said it would pay customers who suffer injuries or property damage from defective goods others sell on its U.S. platform, in a new policy that could reduce litigation.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Swiss Re hires former AIG global trade finance exec

Swiss Re Corporate Solutions has hired former American International Group Inc. executive Marilyn Blattner-Hoyle as global head of trade finance in its global credit and surety unit, effective Aug. 18.

Posted: Aug 10, 2021

Crypto exchange Poloniex agrees to settle SEC charges

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said Monday that Poloniex has agreed to pay roughly $10.4 million to settle charges of operating as an unlicensed cryptocurrency exchange.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Lockton Re adds former Guy Carpenter facultative exec

Lockton Re, the reinsurance business of Lockton Cos. LLC, has recruited former Guy Carpenter & Co. LLC executive Rob McNamara as North American facultative leader.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Acrisure hires reinsurance broker from Guy Carpenter

Acrisure Re, the reinsurance division of Acrisure LLC, has hired former Guy Carpenter & Co. LLC executive Craig Darling to launch a Florida office.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

GIC Re closes Dubai office, moves MENA operations to India

India’s state-controlled reinsurer General Insurance Corporation of India has moved its Middle East and North Africa business from Dubai to the Indian state of Gujarat.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Kenya Re’s net profits dive 66% as claims increase

Kenya Reinsurance Corp. Ltd.’s net profits plunged 66% year-on-year in the first half of the year, as its loss ratio climbed after a 22% growth in insurance claims to 6.3 billion Kenyan shillings ($58 million).

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Evacuation ordered as wildfires ravage Greece

Wildfires spreading in the Greek capital of Athens have forced evacuation of thousands of tourists and residents as the fires ravage businesses, homes and cars.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Insurance rate hikes sharpen in July

Insurance rate increases accelerated slightly in most lines in July, with only workers compensation prices decreasing, according to data from insurance exchange Ivans Insurance Services, a division of Tampa, Florida-based Applied Systems Inc.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Qatar Insurance back in black despite fall in premiums

Qatar Insurance Co. QSPC’s recorded a net profit of more than 342 million Qatari rial ($94 million) in the first half of the year, up from a loss of nearly QAR208 million in the year-ago comparable period.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

China reportedly plans to fine food delivery firm $1 billion

China’s antitrust regulator is reportedly planning to fine food-delivery company Meituan Inc. roughly $1 billion for its alleged abuse of dominant market position.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

FBD raises COVID-19-related BI cost estimates

Irish insurer FBD Holdings PLC now expects €183 million ($214 million) in gross claims and costs from the COVID-19 business interruption test case in 2021, up from the previous estimate of €150 million.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021

Severe weather in China further disrupts supply chains

Global supply chains are feeling the impact of extreme weather conditions in China, as a heavy typhoon season strikes the country, severely affecting port and factory operations in Chinese industrial hubs.

Posted: Aug 09, 2021