Description: Chairperson's Corner from the March 2004 issue of Reinsurance News.

Description: “Getting to Woe Some” is a thought-provoking title for Rick Flaspöhler’s recent presentation to the ACLI Reinsurance Executive Round Table in March 2005. Flaspöhler presented the high-level findings of the biennial reinsurance survey, and in his words this industry has gone from “bad to worse.” The reinsurance industry now finds itself in a unique and difficult situation that will require dramatic steps to improve things going forward.

Description: This abstract describes a paper that studies the optimal reinsurance problem when risk is measured by a general risk measure. It is demonstrated that there is a “stable optimal retention” that will show no sensitivity, insofar as it will solve the optimal reinsurance problem for many risk measures, thus providing a very robust reinsurance plan.

Description: Catastrophic insurance futures are being traded, albeit thinly, at the Chicago Board of Trade. This paper examines the broad context for trading insurance risk. The motivation for trading insurance risks, specifically to increase the capacity to cover risk, is discussed. From Securitization of Insurance Risk: The 1995 Bowles Symposium, M-FI97-1.

Description: Participate in a discussion with panelists from various functional areas andcompanies about the trend of increasing mutual attractions between private equity and insurance companies, the underlying strategic drivers from both sides, as well as the impact to both individual insurance companies and insurance industry as a whole. Take part in a conversation about the implications of insurers' obligations/changes to risk profiles and exposures when engaging offshore domicile of affiliated and unaffiliated reinsurers involved in the private equity-owned insurance business.

Description: In light of recent regulatory developments and international best practices, the Bermuda Monetary Authority has introduced proposed enhancements to the Bermuda regulatory framework for long-term commercial insurers. During this panel discussion, discuss the potential impacts of these proposed regulatory changes for existing commercial insurers and new entrants to the Bermuda life reinsurance market.

Description: Join a discussion on the tax implications for direct writers ceding annuity blocks for both onshore and offshore reinsurance arrangements. Get an introduction to the tax consequences of the risk transfer of annuity features and guarantees to reinsurers to reinsurers that are U.S.-based and not U.S. domiciled.

Description: Discover investing trends across the life and health industry as insurers seek to navigate rapidly changing rate and market environments. BlackRock will present results from its Peer Risk Study, which models industry holdings based on statutory filings at the CUSIP level. Through the Aladdin risk modeling software, expect a production of deep insights into insurer portfolio risk and return characteristics, as well as exploring how they have evolved. Keep an eye out for a partner to present on the evolution from their perspective. Start learning about what is happening on the asset side of the balance sheet across the industry.

Description: The life insurance industry has a long tradition of trying to calculate the economic value with different forms of concepts. Especially with reinsurance, which is often a strategic part of a company's operation, it is important to understand the economics of the transactions given the complexities involved. However, despite the focus on economic value creation, the financial metrics demanded by various stakeholders often tie to one or more accounting basis.

Description: In this panel discussion, actuarial leaders in the stop-loss marketplace provide their perspectives on recent stop-loss trends. Learn about the most current issues facing self-funded plans and their stop-loss coverage. Take part in a deeper discussion on this topic and more at Oysters, Beers & Large Claim Solutions on Tuesday, June 27, from 4:30-5:30 p.m. PT. This happy hour, featuring drinks and tasty Pacific Northwest oysters will include a discussion on the large claims impacts on the health care market.