Best of Artemis, week ending June 1st 2025

Here are the ten most popular news articles, week ending June 1st 2025, covering catastrophe bonds, ILS, reinsurance capital and related risk transfer topics. To ensure you never miss a thing subscribe to the weekly Artemis email newsletter updates or get our email alerts for every article we publish.

1. 1. Property cat reinsurance rates-on-line flat to down 20% at June renewals: Howden Re
      According to Howden Re, the reinsurance broking arm of Howden, risk-adjusted property catastrophe reinsurance rates-on-line fell in a range from flat to down 20% at the June 1st renewals, with ILS capacity said to be adding flexibility and competitive tension in top-layers.
   2. GAM Star Cat Bond Fund AUM decline halts, growth returns. Fermat UCITS expands
      The GAM Investments operated Star Cat Bond Fund UCITS strategy saw its catastrophe bond assets under management rise at the latest reporting of net asset values, halting a decline that began after ending its long relationship with the fund’s previous portfolio manager, Fermat Capital Management.
   3. IRB (Re) sponsors first ILS in Brazil, R$33.7m Andrina surety bond risk securitization
      The first ever insurance-linked securities (ILS) issuance in Brazil has been completed, as local reinsurance firm IRB (Re) sponsored the issuance of a R$33.7 million deal to securitize surety bond risks, using its Andrina Special Purpose Insurance Entity (SSPE).
   4. More details on State Farm’s $1.55bn Merna Re cat bonds. $550m is aggregate protection
      We brought you additional details on the recent $1.55 billion of catastrophe bond’s sponsored by US insurer State Farm. We’ve learned that there is a range of reinsurance protection provided by the four series of notes, the largest being a $550 million aggregate cat bond cover for the company.
   5. New charts: Catastrophe bond offering price and size changes during issuance
      Among the data points we track during the timeline of each catastrophe bond issuance, are the movements in pricing between the mid-point of initial offering guidance and the finalised spread, as well as any changes in the size of a cat bond offering from the initially targeted amount.
   6. Returns on capital remain ‘very attractive’ in property cat reinsurance: Peel Hunt
      Despite signs of softening at key renewal periods, returns on capital in the property catastrophe reinsurance sector remain “very attractive,” according to analysts at Peel Hunt, who noted that the market continues to deliver internal rates of return (IRRs) well above the cost of capital.
   7. Catastrophe bonds hit $15bn in 2025 after biggest month ever in May. Market grows 15%
      As we continue to track catastrophe bond market activity through this very busy 2025, total settled issuance analysed by Artemis has already surpassed $15 billion, while the outstanding cat bond market has grown by 15.5% since the end of last year.
   8. BMS ‘proud’ to be part of US Coastal’s journey with Chartwell Re cat bond: Bohm
      BMS Group has expressed pride in supporting US Coastal through its landmark Chartwell Re Ltd. (Series 2025-1) catastrophe bond issuance, with Andras Bohm, CEO & Managing Director of BMS Capital Solutions & Advisory, describing the transaction as “the culmination of hard work and collaboration.”
   9. UK Met Office also forecasts above-average Atlantic hurricane season in 2025
      The UK Met Office has joined calls for above-average levels of 2025 Atlantic hurricane season activity, forecasting 9 hurricanes and 4 major hurricanes as the most likely number to be experienced, citing signals for continued neutral El Niño conditions and vertical wind shear at near to or below-normal levels.
   10. Artificial intelligence taken your job? There’s a parametric insurance policy for that
       Here’s an intriguing use-case for parametric triggers within insurance for a personal lines protection policy that even a year ago you may not have thought was needed. Y Combinator backed Singularity has launched a parametric cover that protects your income in case your job is lost to artificial intelligence (AI).

This is not every article published on Artemis during the last week, just the most popular among our readers over the last seven days. There were 28 new articles published in the last week.

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