Catlin Group Limited was a

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-based specialty

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...

and

reinsurance Reinsurance is insurance that an insurance company purchases from another insurance company to insulate itself (at least in part) from the risk of a major claims event. With reinsurance, the company passes on ("cedes") some part of its own insu ...

company. Catlin operated six underwriting hubs worldwide and operated more than 55 offices worldwide. It owned the largest syndicate at

Lloyd's of London Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...

, based on 2011 gross written premiums."Lloyd's 2011 Annual Report
/ref> Catlin shares were listed on the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...

until it was acquired by XL Group plc in May 2015.

History

Catlin Underwriting Agencies Limited (CUAL) was established as an underwriting agency at

in 1984 by Stephen Catlin, who today remains chief executive of the Catlin Group. Catlin's first Lloyd's syndicate (Syndicate 1003) began underwriting in 1985 on behalf of Lloyd's Names (private individuals who invested in the Lloyd's market) with a premium capacity of £6 million."Listing Particulars Relating to Catlin Group Limited's Global Offer of Common Shares"
March 2004 Syndicate 1003 grew successfully during its early years, outperforming the Lloyd's market as a whole, particularly during the period from 1988 to 1992 when Lloyd's reported huge financial losses. By its 10th anniversary in 1995, Syndicate 1003 had increased its premium capacity to £170 million. During that year, the company received a substantial

private equity In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a ty ...

investment from Western General Insurance Company of

, which was controlled by the

Pritzker The Pritzker family is an American family engaged in entrepreneurship and philanthropy, and one of the wealthiest families in the United States of America (staying in the top 10 of ''Forbes'' magazine's "America's Richest Families" list since the ...

family. The investment allowed Catlin to establish a second Lloyd's syndicate (Syndicate 2003), which underwrote coverage in parallel with the established Syndicate 1003. While Syndicate 1003 continued to write coverage on behalf of capital supplied by traditional Lloyd's Names, Syndicate 2003 was backed by capital solely supplied by Catlin. In 1999, Catlin incorporated a holding company in Bermuda, originally called Catlin Westgen Holding Limited and later renamed Catlin Group Limited. Catlin was the first of the traditional Lloyd's of London managing agents to establish a holding company in Bermuda, a strategic move later copied by several of its peers. Following the

World Trade Center World Trade Centers are sites recognized by the World Trade Centers Association. World Trade Center may refer to: Buildings * List of World Trade Centers * World Trade Center (2001–present), a building complex that includes five skyscrapers, a ...

tragedy in 2001, Catlin expanded its operations and strengthened its balance sheet. In 2002, Catlin raised US$532 million in private equity funds from a consortium of investors (including $482 million of new equity capital and the provision of a $50 million term loan facility). The equity capital, in the form of convertible preferred stock, was provided by a consortium of private equity investors. It was the only company operating at Lloyd's to receive private equity financing in the wake of

9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

; most of the funds that were injected into the insurance market were directed to start-up insurance and reinsurance companies formed in

. Catlin shares were listed on the

in 2004. The Group's

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

, which was several times oversubscribed, raised nearly $200 million in new capital. In October 2006 Catlin announced that it intended to acquire Wellington Underwriting plc, which managed one of the largest syndicates at Lloyd's and had established underwriting operations in the United States: the acquisition was completed on 18 December 2006. On 9 January 2015, it was announced that Catlin Group would be acquired by XL Group plc. The acquisition was completed in May 2015.

Operations

Underwriting hubs

Catlin organises its operations into six 'underwriting hubs': London/UK, Bermuda, United States, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Canada. The Group maintains that the underwriting hubs serve to diversify Catlin's underwriting portfolio as the offices within each hub underwrite regional business that would not normally be written at

Lloyd's Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gove ...

or in the London market. The offices also allow Catlin to work more closely with clients and their brokers on a local basis. The London/UK hub is composed of Catlin's original operation and includes London wholesale insurance and reinsurance business underwritten by the Catlin Syndicate at

(Syndicate 2003), the largest syndicate at Lloyd's of London in terms of premium volume, and Catlin UK (Catlin Insurance Company (UK) Ltd.), which writes UK regional business as well as London market wholesale business. The Bermuda hub consists of the operations of Catlin Bermuda (Catlin Insurance Company Ltd.), which underwrites property and casualty treaty reinsurance and selected classes of specialty insurance. The United States hub, which trades under the Catlin US brand, includes business underwritten by Catlin's 17 US offices. These offices underwrite on behalf of US-based insurers owned by the Catlin Group—Catlin Insurance Company Inc., Catlin Specialty Insurance Company Inc. and Catlin Indemnity Company—as well as the syndicate at Lloyd's. This hub also is responsible for Catlin's two Latin American offices, located in São Paulo and Bogota. The Asia-Pacific hub includes offices in Singapore and Kuala Lumpur, which were established in 1999 and were the first offices established by Catlin outside London. The Asia-Pacific hub now includes underwriting offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney and Melbourne and representative offices in Tokyo and Mumbai. The Europe hub was established in 2003 with an office in Cologne. The hub now includes 12 other European offices in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Belgium, Norway and Austria. It also includes the operations of Catlin Re Switzerland Ltd., a Zurich-based reinsurance company that commenced underwriting at 1 January 2011. Catlin Re Switzerland writes most classes of non-life treaty reinsurance business primarily for clients based in Europe, and it also writes credit and surety classes of reinsurance for a worldwide client base. The Canada hub underwrites property/casualty insurance and reinsurance for Canadian clients and operates from offices in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary. Altogether, Catlin now operates more than 55 offices in 21 countries.

Underwriting entities

The business underwritten by the hubs is written on behalf of Catlin-owned insurance carriers. These include the Catlin Syndicate and Lloyd's, Catlin UK, Catlin Bermuda, Catlin Re Switzerland and three insurers (Catlin Insurance Company, Catlin Specialty Insurance Company and Catlin Indemnity Company) operated by Catlin US.

Classes of business

Catlin underwrites more than 30 classes of insurance and reinsurance. The business underwritten by Catlin is divided into product groups: Aviation, Casualty, Energy, Marine, Property, Reinsurance, Specialty, and War & Political Risk. * The classes of insurance underwritten by Catlin include property, general liability, professional liability/indemnity, energy, aviation, marine hull and cargo, accident and health, specie, satellite, equine and livestock, product recall, construction and engineering, motor fleet, and inland marine. * Classes of reinsurance underwritten include property (both catastrophe and pro rata), casualty, marine and aviation, and excess of loss.

Ratings

All of Catlin's underwriting units have been assigned a financial strength rating of 'A' (Excellent) by

A.M. Best AM Best is an American credit rating agency headquartered in Oldwick, New Jersey, that focuses on the insurance industry. Both the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners have designated ...

. Standard & Poor's has assigned an insurer financial strength rating of 'A' (Strong) to the Catlin Group. The Catlin Syndicate also benefits from the 'A+' (Strong) financial strength rating assigned by Standard & Poor's to the overall Lloyd's market.

Catlin Seaview Survey

Catlin is the title sponsor of the Catlin Seaview Survey, which commenced in September 2012. The Catlin Seaview Survey is a major scientific expedition whose aim is to document the composition and health of coral reefs worldwide. During 2012 the Survey focused on sections of the

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

across an unprecedented range of depths. During 2013 the Survey will investigate reefs in several other locations worldwide, including

, the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

. The scientific data currently being gathered by the Catlin Seaview Survey is intended strengthen the understanding of how climate change and other environmental changes are likely to affect ocean ecosystems. In conjunction with the Catlin Seaview Survey, Catlin is also the sponsor for the Catlin Global Reef Record. This data base will include images and data collected by the Catlin Seaview Survey as well as information collected by other studies of coral reefs. Beginning in 2013, the Catlin Global Reef Record will be made freely available to scientists worldwide to monitor changes in marine environments.

Catlin Arctic Survey

Prior to the Catlin Seaview Survey, Catlin was the title sponsor of the Catlin Arctic Survey, a three-year project to produce scientific data about the

impact of climate change The effects of climate change impact the physical environment, ecosystems and human societies. The environmental effects of climate change are broad and far-reaching. They affect the water cycle, oceans, sea and land ice (glaciers), sea level ...

and other changes to the environment. Catlin Arctic Survey 2009 measured the thickness and density of the permanent sea ice floating in the

Arctic Ocean The Arctic Ocean is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceans. It spans an area of approximately and is known as the coldest of all the oceans. The International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) recognizes it as an ocean, a ...

. The measurements were taken by three experienced polar explorers, led by

Pen Hadow Rupert Nigel Pendrill Hadow known as Pen Hadow (British, born 26 February 1962), is an Arctic region explorer, advocate, adventurer and guide. He is the only person to have trekked solo, and without resupply by third parties, from Canada to the ...

, who trekked nearly 450 kilometres over 73 days. The information gathered by the explorers was subsequently analysed by

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

scientists, who concluded that the Arctic sea ice could disappear during summers within 20 years. Catlin Arctic Survey 2010 focused on what has been described as the 'other' carbon problem beyond

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

: ocean change. Under the auspices of the Survey, scientists from British, French and Canadian research institutions are gathering at a purpose-built 'Ice Base' at the edge of the Arctic Ocean to study whether the increase in global carbon emissions is causing increased

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...

absorption by the seas. This could potentially lead to increased

ocean acidification Ocean acidification is the reduction in the pH value of the Earth’s ocean. Between 1751 and 2021, the average pH value of the ocean surface has decreased from approximately 8.25 to 8.14. The root cause of ocean acidification is carbon dioxid ...

, which could significantly affect species living in the seas and create knock-on effects in the global food chain. In addition to the Ice Base, more information is being collected during Catlin Arctic Survey 2010 on the thickness of the sea ice, following on from the 2009 Catlin Arctic Survey. Three explorers are again embarking on a two-month trek across the Arctic sea ice, gathering information that is vital for scientists to understand the impact of ice cover reduction on ocean acidification. This trek ended in May 2010 when the explorers reached the

North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distinguish from the Mag ...

. Catlin Arctic Survey 2011 focused on

thermohaline circulation Thermohaline circulation (THC) is a part of the large-scale ocean circulation that is driven by global density gradients created by surface heat and freshwater fluxes. The adjective ''thermohaline'' derives from '' thermo-'' referring to temper ...

, which are powerful ocean currents that circulate warm and cold water around the world's oceans. These currents have a major impact on Earth's climate and weather patterns. While a number of processes drive thermohaline circulation, there are a few that are unique to the Arctic. By collecting data on these processes, scientists associated with Catlin Arctic Survey 2011 hope to determine how important the Arctic is to thermohaline circulation, and what changes are taking place. Research was again conducted from the Catlin Ice Base as well as during a southward trek by three explorers which began at the

.Catlin Arctic Survey 2011
Geomission

References

External links

Official WebsiteCatlin US WebsiteCatlin Europe WebsiteCatlin Seaview Survey Survey WebsiteCatlin Arctic Survey Website
{{Authority control Insurance companies of Bermuda Financial services companies established in 1984 Private equity portfolio companies Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange