Latin American rivals hail Lloyd’s arrival
14 March 2008
Lloyd’s application to be classed as an admitted reinsurer in the Brazilian market has been welcomed at a major conference in Argentina this week.
Risk managers and underwriters from across Latin America have been in Buenos Aires for the 10th Latin American Energy Insurance Conference hosted by broker Aon, and the opening up of the Brazilian reinsurance market has been high on the agenda.
Currently Brazil has a single reinsurance firm, but over the past months several international reinsurance operations, including the Lloyd’s market, have applied for licences to operate in the region’s biggest economy.
Alejandro Galizia, Chief Executive of Aon Re, said the Latin American energy markets were developing but they were not at a level to match the experience and ability of Lloyd’s and the London market to place complex risks.
“The region’s underwriting capacity has the ability to meet the risks in Latin America but not for the bigger exposures. We do not yet have a market, such as that in London, where the syndication of the risks works so well.”
The opening of the Brazilian market has been on the agenda for a decade and Lloyd’s is among one of the first licences to be granted to international underwriters.
Brazil has 116 licensed insurers – the top five of which provide 52% of the country’s insurance capacity.
Marcelo Neves, Director of Risk Management for Brazilian engineering giant, Odebrecht, said the new capacity would be a huge benefit to both insurers and their clients.
“Competition brings with it the potential for price reductions as each risk will be judged on its merits and also it will bring the ability to create new products,” he added.
Last updated on 14 Mar 2008
