RATING AGENCIES AND REGULATORS KEEP EYE ON SAC RE

Rating agency AM Best and the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) have said that they are "monitoring developments" at Bermuda-based SAC Re, the reinsurance arm of SAC Capital. The hedge fund pleaded not guilty on Friday to federal court charges of insider trading. Prosecutors have alleged that for 20 years, until 2010, employees were encouraged to use personal contacts to obtain inside information about publicly traded companies. SAC Re is under the control of Steven A Cohen, who has not personally been charged, although the Securities & Exchange Commission has taken out a civil suit against him. High-profile US prosecuting attorney Preet Bharara brought the charges in the Southern District of New York, the latest in a string of cases brought by Mr Bharara that have attracted considerable press coverage.