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GCP #108: Edouard de Lamarzelle on Stellantis Insurance, Damian Cocking introduces Flagstone International

Richard Cutcher
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GCP #108: Edouard de Lamarzelle on Stellantis Insurance, Damian Cocking introduces Flagstone International
Edouard de Lamarzelle, Stellantis Insurance
Damian Cocking, Flagstone International

In episode 108 of the Global Captive Podcast, supported by the ⁠EY Global Captive Network⁠, Richard shares an in depth interview with Stellantis Insurance CEO Edouard de Lamarzelle on his 24 years at the motor insurer.

In the second half, Richard is also joined by Damian Cocking, head of sales at Flagstone International, to discuss the cash management platform’s interest in and platform for the captive insurance market.

01.52 – 29.43: Edouard originally joined PSA Group (now Stellantis) in 2000 as Global Head of Insurance, but after establishing PSA Insurance became its CEO.  He announced earlier this month he would be leaving Stellantis after 24 years.

Ed shares his journey building and growing Stellantis Insurance and its role today within the wider group. It is not your typical captive interview, since Stellantis Insurance only writes the insurance for its auto customers and not the group’s own risks, and Ed explains the rationale behind this decision.

30.17 – 41.15: Damian Cocking, head of sales at Flagstone International, shares with us his background in finance and captives and explains why Flagstone is interested in the captive market.

For the latest news, analysis and thought leadership on the global captive market visit ⁠Captive Intelligence⁠ and sign up to our ⁠twice weekly newsletter⁠.

Roundstone gives $12.4m to group medical captive participants

Luke Harrison
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Roundstone, a health benefits captive providing self-funded insurance to small and midsized businesses, has provided a $12.4m cash distribution to its medical captive participants.

The company said this shows its commitment to returning savings to employers.

The Roundstone captive allows companies to control healthcare spending through cost-containment strategies and personalised plans.

“At Roundstone, we focus on delivering high-quality, affordable healthcare to employers and their teams,” said Michael Schroeder, founder and president of Roundstone.

“Our alignment with our customers’ best interests isn’t just a strategy, it’s our guiding principle.”

The company said two-thirds of members save enough in their first four years with Roundstone to pay the claims for their entire fifth year.

Domicile Wars: AZ’s pro-active regulator and 0% premium tax appealing to captives

Luke Harrison
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Domicile Wars: AZ’s pro-active regulator and 0% premium tax appealing to captives
  • Regulator, 0% premium tax, and approach to third party risk appealing to large tech
  • Many captive service providers have offices and employees in the State
  • Potential changes to dormancy, capitalisation and fees due date in the works

The appeal of a business-friendly regulator and 0% premium tax are some reasons why Arizona continues to be an attractive domestic domicile option within the United States.

The Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions licensed 17 new captives in 2023, compared to 14 in 2022, taking its year-end total to 176.

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Arizona assessing statute updates on dormancy, minimum capitalisation, and fees

Luke Harrison
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Arizona is considering changes to its legislation that would allow captives to register as dormant, in addition to reducing minimum capitalisation requirements for captives that are not single parent.

The Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions licensed 17 new captives in 2023, compared to 14 in 2022, taking its year-end total to 176.

“Our statute as well as our regulations have remained largely the same for many years,” Victoria Fimea, Arizona Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions, told Captive Intelligence.

“One of the issues we are looking at now that we’ve grown and have more captives domiciling here in Arizona, is whether to allow dormancy.

“We may also look at whether we should adjust the statutory minimum capitalisation for captives other than pure captives.”

Allan Smith, client service leader at Marsh Captive Solutions, said the State is trying to be proactive, recognising that captives can be a good alternative risk financing strategy, not just for very large companies.

“The goal is to update the statutes to help attract companies of different sizes to this tool,” he told Captive Intelligence.

Arizona is also exploring the possibility of changing the date when captive fees are due to be paid to the Department of Insurance and Financial Institutions.

“Right now, it’s due 90 days after the end of a captive fiscal year, but we may move that due date for all captives to a specific date in the Fall,” Fimea said.

“The reason for this potential change is the State’s fiscal year, and how long we must use the renewal fees to support the captive insurance division.”

Smith said the proposed changes to the collection date has a lot to do with when the fees are collected relative to a captive’s budget cycle.

“The ability to collect at a different time frees them from a budget process perspective,” he said.

“It was discussed with the Arizona Captive Insurance Association, and we are in support of their position to make that modification, and we think that it will pass.”

Captive Intelligence will publish a Long Read later this week analysing Arizona’s broader captive landscape.

Fitch affirms ‘BBB’ rating of Vale S.A’s captive

Luke Harrison
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Fitch Ratings has affirmed Monticello Insurance Pte’s insurer financial strength (IFS) rating at ‘BBB’ with a stable rating outlook.

Monticello is a Singapore-domiciled captive owned by Vale S.A., a Brazilian multinational corporation engaged in metals and mining and is one of the biggest logistics operators in the country.

Fitch considers Monticello a core captive of Vale S.A., meaning its insurer’s rating is linked to the parent’s rating, and its (IFS) rating is equal to the parent’s (issuer default rating) IDR. 

Vale has financially supported Monticello when needed, ensuring Monticello’s solvency and viability through revolving loan agreements, letter of credit to fronting insurers, and capital injections.

The last major injections were $241m in 2012 and 2013, but there has since been little need for that amount of support.

The captive is protected from extremely large losses through reinsurance contracts, and the large contracts are well diversified across an adequate number of mostly ‘A’ rated reinsurers.

Due to the nature of the company, the captive writes coverages that tends to be low frequency and high severity, which generally exhibit higher volatility of ultimate losses from year to year and can affect the valuation of reserves.

In 2023, the captive continued to show good profitability, with a return on average equity of 12.7% and a profit of $39.2m in 2023 ($48.7m in 2022), with the loss ratio being the main driver of profitability.

Despite the good performance in 2023, Monticello’s results remain very volatile due to the nature of the risks covered.

Monticello does not have a formal investment policy, while the main investment is in the form of an uncommitted revolving inter affiliate loan facility to Vale, which can be redeemed in the short term and the rest is mainly held in cash.

Kindstedt promoted to president of Advantage Insurance Management

Richard Cutcher
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Kindstedt promoted to president of Advantage Insurance Management

Advantage Insurance has promoted Christina Kindstedt to president of Advantage Insurance Management (USA) LLC.

The independent captive manager provides services in the United States and offshore and has offices in Florida, South Carolina, Cayman Islands, Puerto Rico and Texas.

Kindstedt recently told Captive Intelligence that Advantage is considering further expansion by establishing offices in Tennessee and North Carolina, having recently set up shop in Bermuda.

After fourteen years at Willis where she built and led its Risk Retention Group (RRG) practice, Kindstedt joined Advantage Insurance in 2017 to open its office in Vermont.

“We recognise Christina’s contribution and are thrilled to give her an elevated platform to do more,” said Advantage CEO William Buell.

“With her new responsibility to develop and execute growth strategies, we expect Christina to replicate her past successes and take Advantage to the next level in the alternative risk transfer industry.”

Kindstedt believes one of the key reasons behind the company’s growth is its policy to not outsource work and instead keep its functions in-house.

Since her appointment, Kindstedt has built a team of seasoned professionals to manage all types of alternative risk transfer vehicles with total annual premium exceeding $3bn.

AM Best affirms rating of Quanta Services captive

Luke Harrison
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AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating of ‘A-‘ (excellent) and the long-term issuer credit rating of “a-” (excellent) of Texas-domiciled Quanta Insurance Company. The outlook for the ratings is stable.

QIC is a single parent captive owned by Quanta Services, a specialised contracting services company, delivering infrastructure solutions for the utility, communications, pipeline and energy industries.

On a direct basis, the captive writes workers’ compensation, commercial auto and general liability coverages to its parent and affiliated entities on an occurrence basis.

QIC’s captive orientation not only affords the company with ready access to business, but it also benefits from its parent’s extensive training, fleet management, loss control initiatives and workplace safety.

The ratings reflect QIC’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

Christina Bell to lead Davies’ captive operation in Guernsey

Richard Cutcher
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Christina Bell to lead Davies’ captive operation in Guernsey

Experienced captive manager Christina Bell will join Davies later this year  as executive vice president for the firm’s captive management division in Guernsey.

Bell, who has 35 years’ experience across the international insurance sector in markets including Bermuda, Zurich and London, has most recently served as an executive director for Aon Insurance Managers Guernsey since 2019

Davies launched its first captive management office in Europe in 2021 when it received a licence in Guernsey and in May last year acquired the insurance management services portfolio of Ortac Underwriting Agency to boost its presence on the island.

In her new role, Bell will also be appointed to the board of Davies Management Services (Guernsey) Limited and lead the day-to-day operations of the Guernsey captives team.

This will include developing business strategy and growth plans, whilst aligning with Davies’ prominent multi-jurisdictional captive operations including Bermuda and the US.

Bell will report to Nick Frost, President – Captive Management, Davies, and Steven Crabb, CEO Insurance Services, Davies.

“We are delighted to welcome Christina to the team,” Crabb said.

“Her extensive international risk management experience will strengthen our captive management team, while also adding to our global capabilities and bring new opportunities to the table.”

Frost added: “As the market continues to develop, it is an important time for Davies to grow with favourable market conditions.

“We are extremely excited for Christina to join us and not only bring her years of expertise, but also open new avenues for Davies in the captive market.”

Bell is also currently chair of the Captive Committee at the Guernsey International Insurance Association (GIIA).

Artex adds Bee Insurance Management to Malta business

Richard Cutcher
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Artex adds Bee Insurance Management to Malta business

Artex has expanded its Malta presence by completing the transition of Bee Insurance Management into its Artex EMEA business.

Artex, owned by broker Arthur J. Gallagher, acquired Ireland captive manager Allied Risk Management in May 2023 and the addition of Bee’s portfolio further boosts its European footprint.

Simon Camilleri, former managing director of Bee Insurance, is now executive director at Artex, will continue overseeing client service and support the Artex EMEA business development team.

“Transitioning this book of business to Artex EMEA marks another step in Artex’s growth and global expansion journey, enhancing our resources, expertise and range of services for the benefit of our clients,” said Paul Eaton, CEO of Artex EMEA.

“The Bee team brings capabilities that complement our existing service offerings and build upon the foundation that has made our Malta team so successful. We are enthusiastic about the future and look forward to achieving more success together.”

Camilleri said: “The transition to an international organization will help our current and future clients take advantage of the expertise, knowledge and wider ranging services which are afforded by a leading global insurance manager.”

National Grid captive affirmed ‘Excellent’ by AM Best

Richard Cutcher
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The Isle of Man pure captive owned by National Grid plc has had its financial strength rating affirmed ‘A-‘ (Excellent) and its long-term issuer credit rating affirmed as “a-” (Excellent).

National Grid Insurance Company (Isle of Man) Limited provides a broad range of coverage to its parent including for property damage business interruption (PDBI), casualty and cyber.

Despite “significant losses on its PDBI book in financial years 2021 and 2022”, AM Best said the captive had a healthy five-year (2020-2024) weighted average combined ratio of 75%.

“Prospectively, AM Best expects the captive’s underwriting performance to be favourable over the longer term, albeit subject to potential volatility given its high net line sizes relative to its premium base,” the ratings agency said.

AM Best stated that the captive’s balance sheet is “very strong” with the ratings also reflecting its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.

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