Panel Discussion: Converging Capital Structures
ILS [Bermuda] Ltd., organisers of the Bermuda Convergence 2015, announced the second panel session that will be held at this year’s event as ‘Converging capital structures – Why are alternative reinsurers becoming traditional and traditional reinsurers becoming alternative?’
Moderated by Donald Mango of Guy Carpenter, panellists will include Ali Al-Ali of Goldman Sachs, Paschal Brooks of AlphaCat, Robert DeRose of A.M. Best and Neil McConachie of Fidelis.
The organisers said, “The reinsurance industry is being capitalised in more ways than ever before. Panellists will discuss if this is sustainable or if one capital model will prove to be better than the others.
“Topics will also include which types of reinsurer are best suited to a deteriorating rate environment; are total ‘return reinsurers’ more or less stable than companies focused on one side of the balance sheet and is a promise to pay worth more than collateral in the bank.”
Moderator Donald Mango said: “Our panel will be exploring the continuing convergence of capital structure. So-called traditional carriers are increasingly creating non-traditional vehicles and capabilities, while non-traditional markets want deeper client connectivity, rated paper and market presence.
“We will discuss motivations behind these moves, as well as strengths and weaknesses of the alternatives from the perspective of both purchasers of protection and providers of capacity.”
About the panellists:
Donald Mango
Vice Chairman of Enterprise Analytics, Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC
Mr. Mango is Vice Chairman of Enterprise Analytics for Guy Carpenter & Company, LLC, the global risk and reinsurance specialist unit of Marsh & McLennan Companies. As a member of Guy Carpenter’s Strategic Advisory team, Mr. Mango provides solutions to clients in ERM, capital modeling, capital cost allocation, and risk reward evaluation.
Mr. Mango is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society [CAS], a two-time CAS Board Member, and an internationally recognized industry leader in the development of ERM for the insurance industry, ORSA, and capital modelling.
Prior to joining Guy Carpenter, Mr. Mango was the Director of Research and Development at GE Insurance Solutions, and as Chief Risk Officer for American Re-Insurance. He also gained traditional pricing and actuarial experience at Centre Solutions, Crum & Forster Insurance, and Insurance Services Office. He is a graduate of Rice University.
About the Panel Speakers:
Ali Al-Ali
Managing Director & Co-head of Insurance Structured Finance – Financing Group, Goldman Sachs
Mr. Al-Ali is a Managing Director and the co-head of the Insurance Structured Finance business within the Financing Group at Goldman Sachs. He focuses on origination, structuring and execution of securitizations and other structured financings in the insurance sector.
Mr. Al-Ali joined Goldman Sachs in 2000 in the Risk Markets Group, where he focused on structured financings across a broad range of industry sectors with a focus on insurance and natural resources clients.
Between 2004 and 2008, Mr. Al-Ali was a member of the Natural Resources Finance team, where he worked on several leveraged acquisitions and commodity-linked financings in the energy sector. In 2008, Mr. Al-Ali moved to Dubai to head the debt financing business for the Middle East and North Africa [MENA] region. In early 2014, Mr. Al-Ali returned back to New York to assume his current role.
Mr. Al-Ali earned a master’s degree and a PhD from Stanford University.
Paschal Brooks
Portfolio Manager, AlphaCat Managers
Paschal Brooks is a Portfolio Manager with AlphaCat Managers Ltd., a subsidiary of Validus Holdings, Ltd. which seeks investment opportunities in the insurance linked securities and reinsurance markets.
Prior to joining AlphaCat in 2011, he worked as a Vice President in the structured finance group at Goldman, Sachs & Co. where he focused on insurance linked securitizations. Previously, he also worked as a Research Analyst in the executive office of Alleghany Corporation. He earned a B.S. in Economics and A.B. in Mathematics at Duke University. He is also a CFA charterholder.
Robert DeRose
Vice President, Reinsurance Ratings, A.M. Best Company
Robert DeRose joined the A.M. Best Company as a senior financial analyst in the property/casualty ratings department in 1996. In his current capacity, he manages a team of financial analysts responsible for the analysis and financial ratings of global reinsurance organizations, with a particular emphasis on the U.S. and Bermuda markets. As such, Mr. DeRose is actively involved in A.M. Best’s rating process for some of the world’s largest reinsurers.
In addition to managing an analytical team of financial analysts and maintaining market surveillance on the global reinsurance sector, Mr. DeRose also is involved in the development of various analytical models and managing a number of the special projects aimed at expanding A.M. Best’s rating coverage globally. He frequently is a contributing author to various A.M. Best special reports for external publications and often is a speaker at insurance and financial services-related conferences.
In addition to his primary responsibilities, Mr. DeRose has been an instructor of insurance financial analysis for A.M. Best and the School of Risk Management of St. John’s University in New York City.
Prior to joining A.M. Best, Mr. DeRose held various managerial positions for 20 years in market security, accounting and financial operations and internal audit with St. Paul Re, the Continental Insurance Company and the Chubb Group of Insurance Companies.
Mr. DeRose is a graduate of the Stillman School of Business at Seton Hall University and holds a producer’s license in both property/casualty and health insurance.
Neil McConachie
Group Chief Financial Officer, Fidelis Insurance
Working closely with Richard Brindle, Mr. McConachie was instrumental in the set up and success of Lancashire. Between 2006 and 2012, his roles at the company included Chief Financial Officer, Chief Risk Officer, Chief Operating Officer and President. He also served as an Executive Director and, from 2012 until 2014, as a Non-Executive Director.
Prior to Lancashire, Mr. McConachie worked at Stockton Holdings in Bermuda, PricewaterhouseCoopers in London and Bermuda, and as Senior Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Accounting Officer of Montpelier Re Holdings Ltd.
“The ILS Bermuda committee launched the inaugural Convergence networking event in November, 2013 at Pier 6 in Hamilton. The event was hailed a great success in 2013 and again in 2014 and attended by over 280 delegates from 13 different countries,” the organisers said.
“This year the Bermuda Convergence 2015 event will take place on November 11th – 13th and attract leading industry professionals including investors, fund managers, global insurance and reinsurance companies and professional service partners.
“The Bermuda Convergence 2015 event will showcase why Bermuda is the leading centre for global risk management and the jurisdiction of choice for ILS funds, collateralised reinsurance and the fastest growing domicile for catastrophe bond issuance with over 70 percent of world’s total of insurance linked securities issuance.”
