i-law.com - Newsletter (Insurance Regulation & Accounting)

Way forward or way too much?

The managements of insurance companies are stretched to the limit. Equity markets have plunged, consumerists have never been more vocal and wafer-thin profit margins look set to turn negative. It is hardly the right moment to introduce not one but..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

EC targets insurance for radical shake-up

In the months to come IR&A will be looking in detail at the impact that moves at the European Union level will have on insurance organizations, and for this launch issue we present an update on recent EU developments affecting insurers. The..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Choppy seas ahead

Change for the regulation and accounting of insurance is coming from all directions, says Dr Alan Punter, managing director, chairman’s office, Aon Limited, but there is a long way to go before the industry will reach calmer..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Brokers face reality of new FSA regulation

Regulation of general insurance intermediaries will exacerbate the consolidation of the sector as some brokers struggle to meet the prescribed standards and the associated costs, according to the results of a new survey by accountancy company Mazars..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

David Gittings

Who better than David Gittings, formerly head of regulation at Lloyd’s and now a director of Wellington Underwriting, to map out the growing demands of supervision and corporate responsibility? Mr Gittings spoke to IR&A about the..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

In the spotlight

Reinsurance has moved from the shadowy background to become a regulatory hotspot. It may be a while coming, but change is on the way. Once upon a time financial regulators showed relatively little interest in the reinsurance industry and were..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Briefly noted

The “light touch” regulatory approach proposed by the Financial Services Authority (FSA) in the sale of Sandler-type savings products has been given the thumbs-up by the Association of British Insurers (ABI). In its response to an FSA..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

They said it…

“I believe we’ll have global regulation of our industry within five years.” John Charman, president & chief executive, Axis Capital, at an Insurance Institute of London lecture, January 2003. “Virtually every..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Chief execs ‘very concerned’ about regulation

A survey carried out by the Association of British Insurers (ABI) in March this year revealed that 72% of chief executives of life and general insurance companies were very concerned about the impact of regulation, with a further 24% expressing some..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

McCarthy fills Davies gap

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has confirmed it has found a new chairman to take over from Sir Howard Davies. Callum McCarthy, currently chief executive of energy regulator OFGEM, has been officially appointed by the Treasury and had been..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Study unveils credit risk truths

Described as “toxic” yet little is known about the use of credit transfers Regulatory arbitrage no longer seems to be the main driver for credit risk transfers between the various sectors of the financial services industry, a new study..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Regulator gets to grips with Lloyd’s

The Society of Lloyd’s is likely to relinquish much of its prudential supervisory oversight of the market and will instead focus on the risk management of the market. The Financial Services Authority’s (FSA) future relationship with the..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

HIH report calls for market overhaul

Australia’s insurers and insurance regulators have been braced for upheaval in the wake of the demise of local insurer HIH, and the report of Royal Commissioner Justice Neville Owen has not disappointed. The Royal Commissioner makes no fewer..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Insolvency law reform

The deadline has passed for EU member states to implement the Insurers Reorganisation & Winding-Up Directive. New regulations in the UK will affect not only insurers but all those that have dealings with insurers that are, or may in the future..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Coming your way…

In an attempt to separate the wood from the trees, here’s our periodic timetable of what’s on the cards for the months to come. Please let us know if there are any important developments or events that we have missed. Organization ..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Setback for auditor liability proposals

Following a number of high-profile corporate collapses, the publicity surrounding the role of accountants, auditors and other professionals was inevitable. In insurance, attempts by disgruntled policyholders to claim against the accountants of..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Equitable auditors prepare for new legal challenge

The fallout following Equitable Life’s financial troubles is rumbling on and the life insurer still has Ernst & Young, its auditor at the time, in its sights for compensation. A new hearing scheduled for later this month, 19 May, will see..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003

Industry challenges regulator

“Better regulation, not more” demands industry under the weight of change We now have a regulatory system which is at the leading edge internationally,” Sir Howard Davies, outgoing chairman of the Financial Services Authority..

Online Published Date: 01 May 2003

Appeared in issue: 1 - 01 May 2003