Brokerlink finds white knight in Allianz
March 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterT he battle being waged for control of Calgary-based broker consolidator Canada Brokerlink took a dramatic turn toward the end of last month when Allianz Canada stepped to the table with a superior counter offer worth around $42 million. The…
Digital sharpens adjusters’ focus
March 1, 2000 Lorne Montgomery, Crawford Adjusters CanadaEmerging technologies are having a great impact upon the insurance industry, in particular the adjusting field. One innovation that is leaving its mark on adjusting in particular is digital photography. Incorporating photos into insurance reports is critical to developing comprehensive…
After “HORSING” around, MOTIVATION is the name of the game
March 1, 2000 AxiomIpositioned myself near the entrance to the dining lounge and watched as the escalator in front of me deposited a steady stream of well-dressed couples to the upper level. I had arrived at the suburban racetrack early, to be on…
U.S. Insurers look beyond the ratio
March 1, 2000 Lowell Conn & Sean van ZylU.S. insurers are fortifying themselves for lower profitability and a higher operating ratio in the coming year, a survey revealed at the 2000 Property & Casualty Insurance Joint Industry Forum recently in New York City. Industry chiefs insist that, despite heightened merger and acquisition in the year ahead, the overcapitalized insurance environment could soon be swept away by an abundance of cost-absorptive changes.
U.S. fin-reform focuses CEO strategy planning
March 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorThe repeal of the U.S. Glass-Steagall legislation toward the end of last year has opened what many in the property and casualty insurance industry see as a “Pandora’s box”. The legislation was replaced with the Financial Services Modernization Act of…
Mitchell International acquired by private equity firm
March 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterSupplier of information products and software for the insurance, glass replacement and collision repair industries Mitchell International has announced it is being acquired by San Francisco-based equity firm Hellman & Friedman. The company was sold by previous owner The Thomson…
The Political Lobbying War Heats UP
March 1, 2000 Sean van ZylControl over the distribution of insurance products is once again back on the property and casualty insurance industry’s radar screen as the federal government’s proposed white paper on financial services competition is set to go forward before parliament for legislative…
Undercurrents
March 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorThe friendly bout gloves seem to have been removed in the latest acquisitional match of industry consolidation, namely the less-than-friendly bid made by listed Equisure Financial Network in the beginning of this year for its public-traded rival, Canada Brokerlink Inc.…
News – 01-MAR-00 (March 01, 2000)
March 1, 2000 by Canadian UnderwriterThere are a multitude of parallels between changes affecting the securities and insurance industries, notes 2000 Property & Casualty Joint Industry Forum keynote, Goldman, Sachs & Co. chief executive officer Henry Paulson Jr. “Globalization and technology are driving a whirlwind…
Developing niche lines of business: The garage sale closed
March 1, 2000 by Lowell ConnWhen the “garage sale” begins and market players undercut one another, nowhere is the reverberations felt any stronger than the specialty lines business. Niche operators want the message to be clear: “Stay out of out of our business”. More to…
RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES BEYOND
March 1, 2000 Sean van Zyl, EditorSusan Meltzer, president of the Risk and Insurance Management Society (RIMS) for the 1999/2000 term, bridled in her opening comments in the panel discussion to a previous reference made by a seminar speaker at the RIMS’ “Operational Risk Management” conference…
The Face of REGULATION
February 1, 2000 David CarrTechnology, globalization, deregulation, consolidation and demutualization. These are the forces of change shifting the ground beneath the world’s financial services industry. Such change is drawing into question the effectiveness of regulators such as Canada’s Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) to remain relevant to its role, particularly in light of the new non-traditional players such as technology companies in financial services.