Extraordinary Re eyes Bermuda

Extraordinary Re, an insurtech company that has created a trading platform run by Nasdaq for investors to trade assets tied to insurance liabilities, is looking to roll out its offering and is launching a presence in Bermuda, according to chairman and chief executive officer Will Dove.

This is a fascinating time for the risk markets, which are ready for this is sort of disruptive technology and new growth, Dove said.

“Investors are looking for new types of risk. That’s where we can help—by making classes outside of nat cat, including terrorism and aviation, available and digestible to ILS investors,” he explained.

Extraordinary Re offers investors a new investment class, which differs from the traditional ILS product. Its trading platform would allow many risks other than property catastrophe to be traded, including terrorism, aviation, marine, workers’ compensation and product liability exposures.

Dove said there’s a huge opportunity for insurers and reinsurers to partner with alternative capital, but it will require traditional insurers to rethink their business models.

He added that when you look at all the various types of financial instruments available, no other market has the same parties originating the risk, underwriting and pricing that risk.

In addition, he noted, the growth and development of the ILS market has allowed insurers to tap into other sources of capital.

Dove said that Extraordinary Re continues to build on its earlier work and that so far in 2018 it has been on track to achieve its goals.

“Over the course of the summer we’ve been very busy building out our operations and setting up our legal entities such as in Bermuda, and going through the regulatory process. We’re now looking at January 1 for a possible launch,” he said.

“We’re talking to ceding companies, managing general agents, insurers and reinsurers, as well as ILS investors, about the opportunity to participate and put their capital to work within Extraordinary Re.

“Operating out of Bermuda will give us access to US originations, but also investors who could be based anywhere in the world.

“Our company is designed to handle any kind of risk, but the initial ones will be around property, with some casualty or commercial flood,” Dove concluded.