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Re/insurer MS Amlin has again returned to the capital markets to source catastrophe retrocession through a renewed quota share arrangement via reinsurance sidecar vehicle Phoenix 2 Re Pte. Ltd., lifting the coverage available to the company from the sidecar program to almost $87.5 million in the process. Although such sidecars are tradeable, their structure and form of coverage that underpins the arrangements differ from CAT bonds. [Artemis]

Artex Capital Solutions privately issued $100 million Eclipse Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1A) two-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. Being a private deal, nothing is known of the peril(s) covered or trigger. [Artemis]

Fidelis Insurance is looking to issue at least $150 million Herbie Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche four-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from US named storm and US earthquake risks, including DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, on an annual aggregate and regionally weighted industry loss index basis. [Artemis]

GeoVera Insurance issued $175 million Veraison Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds, versus the original target of $100 million. They will cover losses from US earthquakes on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

U.K.-based Rexam Pension Plan has completed a £1.4 billion full pension fund buy-in with Rothesay. The pension fund is sponsored by Ball Corp., a supplier of aluminum packaging. The transaction secures the benefits for more than 14,000 participants of the pension plan, which includes defined benefit liabilities for 9,790 retirees and dependents and a further 4,330 participants who are yet to retire. The buy-in is a single-premium insurance policy covering residual risks, and no contribution was required from the plan sponsor. [Pensions & Investments]

U.S.-based Huntington Ingalls Industries purchased a group annuity contract from an undisclosed insurance company to transfer $411 million in U.S. pension plan liabilities on November 3, 2023. The purchase transfers the responsibility of paying benefits to about 10,000 retirees and beneficiaries. The annuity contract was purchased using assets from its pension plan master trust, and the company did not have to make any additional contributions to that master trust. [Pensions & Investments]

The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is looking to issue at least $350 million FloodSmart Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will provide the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) with flood reinsurance protection on an indemnity and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Shell USA has closed a $4.9 billion transfer of pension liabilities to Prudential Financial, covering a block of 21,500 retirees. The company’s pension had 26,536 active participants at the end of the 2022 plan year and 9,299 retired or separated participants entitled to future benefits. At the end of 2022, the plan had assets of $14.468 billion. [Read more at Plansponsor]

Bermuda headquartered Arch Capital Group is looking to issue at least $100 million Ramble Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from significant US Northeast named storms, and US and Canadian earthquakes, on a weighted industry loss trigger per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

US-based American Integrity Insurance Company is looking to issue at least $150 million Integrity Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) four-tranche two-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from named storms across the states of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina on an indemnity basis. One of the tranches will provide annual aggregate coverage and the other three per-occurrence coverage that would cascade down after events erode lower layers of the insurers’ tower. [Artemis]

Florida-based Tower Hill Insurance Exchange issued $400 million Winston Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds versus the original $200 million target. They will cover losses from named storm losses in Florida, on an indemnity and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Fidelis Insurance issued $150 million Herbie Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche four-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from US named storm and US earthquake risks, including DC, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands, on an annual aggregate and regionally weighted industry loss index basis. [Artemis]

U.S.-based Centrus Energy purchased a group annuity contract to transfer about $187 million in U.S. pension plan liabilities to an undisclosed insurance company in October 2023. It was funded directly by $171 million in assets and covers about 1,400 plan participants. [Pensions & Investments]

According to Legal & General (L&G) 2023 was a record year for the U.K. bulk annuity market in which over £50 billion was written, including five worth more than £2.5 billion, versus one such large deal in 2022 and ten between 2014 and 2022. L&G is forecasting similar levels of business for years ahead. Hymans Robertson and Willis Towers Watson (WTW) have made similar estimates and forecasts, with WTW forecasting £80 billion in 2024. [Pensions Expert]

SageSure is looking to issue up to $200 million Gateway Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche one- and three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from named storms affecting the US states of Alabama, North and South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Ford of Canada is transferring the longevity risk for $923 million in pension plan liabilities through a group annuity buyout. RBC Insurance, Sun Life Assurance Co. of Canada and Desjardins Group will assume responsibility for making pension payments to 2,700 of the plan’s members, who retired on or prior to June 1, 2021. [Benefits Canada]

The North Carolina Insurance Underwriting Association (NCIUA) is looking to issue at least $250 million Cape Lookout Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from named North Carolina storms on an indemnity and annual aggregate basis. [Artemis]

Bermuda headquartered Arch Capital Group issued $100 million Ramble Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from significant US Northeast named storms, and US and Canadian earthquakes, on a weighted industry loss trigger per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

U.S.-based Heritage Insurance is looking to issue at least $100 million Citrus Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will initially cover losses from named storms and hurricanes in the US states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. The coverage area can be expanded to also include Maryland and Virginia at a future update. [Artemis]

The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued $575 million FloodSmart Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will provide the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) with flood reinsurance protection on an indemnity and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Tokio Marine Group’s insurance specialist PURE is looking to issue at least $100 million Ashera Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from named storms and earthquakes affecting the US and Canada on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Italian primary insurance company UnipolSai Assicurazioni is looking to issue at least €100 million Azzurro Re II DAC (Series 2024-1) single-tranche four-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses related to earthquakes impacting Italy and neighbouring countries on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

American Integrity Insurance Company issued $305 million Integrity Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) four-tranche two-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds, versus the original $150 million target. They will cover losses relating to named storms across the states of Florida, Georgia and South Carolina. [Artemis]

MS&AD Insurance Group is looking to issue at least $175 million Tomoni Re Pte Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche four-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from Japanese typhoons and floods on an indemnity basis, but on a mixture of per-occurrence and aggregate bases. [Artemis]

Verizon Communications transferred about $5.9 billion of pension liabilities to Prudential Financial and Reinsurance Group of America. The transaction covers 56,000 Verizon retirees and their beneficiaries who commenced their benefits before January 1, 2023. Prudential and RGA will each irrevocably guarantee and assume 50% of the benefit obligation to the retirees, except in certain jurisdictions where Prudential will irrevocably guarantee and assume 100% of the benefit obligation. In 2012, Prudential completed an approximately $7.5 billion transfer that covered approximately 41,000 of Verizon’s retirees. [Prudential]

U.S.-based Allied Trust Insurance is looking to issue $100 million Sabine Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from named storms in the states of Texas, North Carolina, South Carolina and Louisiana on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Slide Insurance is looking to issue $150 million Purple Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from named storms that affect Florida and South Carolina on an indemnity and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]

Canada-based Brookfield Corporation is looking to issue $100 million Aragonite Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) single-tranche three-year catastrophe (CAT) bonds. They will cover losses from North American earthquakes and named storms on an indemnity and per-occurence basis. [Artemis]

SageSure issued $250 million Gateway Re Ltd. (Series 2024-1) two-tranche one-year ($150 million) and three-year ($100 million) catastrophe (CAT) bonds, versus the original target of $200 million. They will cover losses from named storms affecting the US states of Alabama, North and South Carolina, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, on an indemnity trigger and per-occurrence basis. [Artemis]