SiriusPoint Sees COVID-19 Hurting Group Life Reinsurance
Florian Boecker says prices are up and supply is down.
An executive at a Bermuda-based reinsurer says the COVID-19 pandemic is having a noticeable effect on the group life insurance markets in some countries.
Florian Boecker, head of life reinsurance at SiriusPoint, talked about the pandemic impact recently, in an announcement about the company’s move to open a life and health reinsurance office in Zurich.
The office will sell reinsurance to life and health insurers throughout the world.
SiriusPoint is opening the office because it is seeing growing demand for reinsurance for group life, disability and critical illness business, Boecker said. He gave the COVID-19 pandemic as an example of a force changing the market.
The pandemic “has impacted a number of large group life markets, and our clients and brokers are seeing significant scaling back of reinsurance capacity, increased rates and restrictions to covers,” Boecker said.
SiriusPoint is in a good position to offer fresh reinsurance capacity at a time when insurers need the capacity, he added.
What It Means
The SiriusPoint announcement suggests that life insurers and reinsurers would prefer to stay as flexible as possible.
They may be happier if you help clients by offering products and services that come with no guarantees, or short-term guarantees, such as Social Security claiming advice, or insurance products with prices that can change every year.
You, meanwhile, can set yourself apart from competitors by knowing how to set clients up with the life and annuity products that still offer long-term price or benefits guarantees.
SiriusPoint
SiriusPoint is a publicly traded company that was formed about a year ago, through a merger of Sirius International Insurance Group and Third Point Reinsurance.
Sirius International was founded in 1945, and Third Point Re came to life in 2011.
The combined company reported $56 million in net income for 2021 on $2.2 billion in revenue.
Two affiliates of China Minsheng Investment Group, a company based in Shanghai, control a 41% stake in SiriusPoint, according to a SiriusPoint proxy filing.
The other major SiriusPoint shareholders are a company controlled by Third Point’s founder, Daniel Loeb, and four large asset managers — BlackRock, Wellington Management, Vanguard and Capital Research.
SiriusPoint has had large property and casualty operations, and large accident and health operations, but no significant life and annuity operations.
Sid Sankaran, the company’s chairman and CEO, is working to change the mix of products the company offers, to reduce the company’s exposure to hurricanes and other catastrophes.
The New SiriusPoint Office in Zurich
Boecker moved to SiriusPoint in 2019, from a position as chief solutions officer for life and health at PartnerRe.
Earlier this year, he hired Lourens Fourie to be a senior client manager and Chris Reynolds to be head of life pricing.
Fourie has been PartnerRe’s head of key life reinsurance accounts for Europe, Africa and the Middle East.
Reynolds was PartnerRe’s chief pricing actuary.
Pictured: Florian Boecker (Photo: SiriusPoint)