Queensway’s court coup
August 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterAchange in senior executive positions at Toronto-based Queensway Financial Holdings Ltd. (TSE: QFH) has resulted in a shift in power from Canadian to U.S. management. A statement recently released by the company says James Petcoff and Mathew Petcoff will be…
Insurers offshore BOUND
August 1, 1999 Michael HlinkaSeveral months ago Northern Telecom shook the Canadian business community when it announced plans to relocate to the U.S., mainly due to the high personal income tax structures in Canada which make it difficult if not impossible to compete against…
International trade body turns to financial services COMPETITION
August 1, 1999 Glenn McGillivray, head of corporate communication at Swiss ReinIt is becoming increasingly clear the importance of the financial services sector on the global stage. The recent drive toward globalization of business — coupled with new information technology and the formation of geo-economic and political alliances — have allowed…
Zurich launches retail plan
August 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterPeopleplus Insurance Company, a member of Zurich Financial Services Group, recently announced a partnership with Hudson’s Bay Company to launch a private label car and home insurance program. The group scheme, available exclusively to Bay and Zeller’s credit card holders,…
Regulating professional Virtue
August 1, 1999 by Canadian UnderwriterRecent years have seen the emergence of ethical issues relating to multi-disciplinary professional firms such as lawyers and accountants. Questions have been raised over the role such organizations play in providing global services to companies such as insurers while maintaining confidentiality of the information handled and thereby avoiding potential conflicts of interest. A recent legal case has drawn a clearer picture of this ethical debate.
could this year be THE BIG ONE?
August 1, 1999 Sean van Zyl, EditorAlan Greenspan only has to mention inflation and interest rates in the same breath to send the investments markets into spasm. His most recent economic brief, presented toward the end of July, knocked off close to 3% of the value…
Developing Financial Supervision The Canadian Solution
July 1, 1999 Lawrie Savage of Lawrie Savage & Associates Inc.The 1990s saw considerable attention drawn to the global benefits of the so-called “hot” developing economies such as South America, Asia and the former Eastern Bloc countries. Most recently, we have seen plunging stock markets and economic uncertainty resulting in these same areas. Strangely, these have a link with trends in Canadian financial supervision.
Counting the PENNIES
July 1, 1999 Sean van Zyl, EditorThe numbers say it all. Canada’s property and casualty insurance industry suffered one of its worst year-on-year performances last year, posting a modest return on investment of 7.1% — nearly half of 1997’s rate of return. Heavy underwriting losses incurred…
Learning to stay ahead
July 1, 1999 by Canadian Underwriter“We’re in a world where the ‘world of products’ is going to get even bigger,” predicts Norma Nielson, chair of insurance at the University of Calgary. A major issue arising from the “blurring of traditional product lines” and the multi-skills…
Why CEOs are stuck on GLOBALIZATION
July 1, 1999 Robert Gunn, president of Royal & SunAlliance CanadaCecil Rhodes, the 19th-century British financier, colonial administrator and sponsor of Oxford’s prestigious Rhodes Scholarship, once said, “I would annex planets if I could.” A read through the financial pages of any newspaper would suggest that many corporate presidents and CEOs feel the same way.
the hot branding-iron of CONSUMERISM
July 1, 1999 Sean van Zyl, EditorThe new millennium is not only bringing Y2K exposures to the fore, but a sense of consumer branding. From companies, brokers through to reinsurers, the latest industry leader forums have all hosted an urgency to address consumerism. The property and…
99 Canadian Insurance Congress: Marching to new Drummers
July 1, 1999 Lowell Conn & Sean van ZylHeld against the backdrop of the nation’s capital, the 1999 Canadian Insurance Congress — seen as Canada’s premier reinsurer/primary company CEO forum — offered good news to insurers and risk managers on the treaty negotiation front. This year’s reinsurance rates,…