Monte Carlo Rendezvous Round Up
27 Sep 2023 by Stephen Young
Stephen Young Group Head of Reinsurance, CEO Bermuda Reports
IQUW returned to the Monte Carlo Rendezvous this year from 9 to 13 September 2023.
Since it first began in 1957, the Rendezvous de Septembre (RVS) is the first conference for the (re)insurance market renewal season. RVS enables the insurance, reinsurance and retrocessional markets to meet up and hold discussions about the key topics driving the latest renewal season.
Kevin Fisher, IQUW President, Sarah Smith, Lead Underwriter, International Catastrophe, Nick Pomeroy, Outwards Reinsurance Manager and I attended RVS this year. We used this opportunity to catch up with our clients, reinsurance/retro markets and broking partners. We also talked to our peers about what’s happening in the (re)insurance market and provided the latest news from the IQUW team.
It was great to see such a big turnout of the market following two years of no conference in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic and then a gradual return last year. With great weather over the few days, the conference had an excellent buzz about it that was very encouraging after a few challenging years.
This year’s RVS saw us hold nearly 70 meetings with our clients, markets and brokers over the 4-day period. These meetings form the backbone of the conference and provide a great opportunity for us to give an update on IQUW as we continue to grow, build out our product offerings and develop our long-term partnerships.
Our journey from 2022 to 2023 has been marked by steady progress. Our strategy centred on building a diverse portfolio from multiple distribution points that helped us navigate the challenges of 2022 and take advantage of 2023 opportunities as they arose. We're proud of the growth rate exceeding 24%, already reaching our 2023 SBF target of $1.3 billion in gross written premium (now projected to be $1.4 billion) across both Syndicates.
With an uplifting start to the renewal season, RVS 2023 has been impactful for both us and our clients, markets and brokers. With many markets saying the same thing, it seems as though the hard market is here for a while, so there is much to look forward to going into 2024.
Wishing you all a successful and positive renewal season.
Stephen Young
Group Head of Reinsurance, CEO Bermuda
To find out more about our Reinsurance team and products please click here
IQUW in the news
During the conference, our insights on significant market topics, as well as our key narratives, garnered positive reception across the insurance press, spanning from daily reports to feature articles.
Prior to Monte Carlo Rendezvous, Insurance Insider spoke with Steven Tebbutt Active Underwriter to answer key market questions for the Roundtable Market Conditions article published in the Insurance Insider. To read the full article click here
Kevin Fisher secured another spot in the Rendezvous dailies with his answers to the Big Questions: M&A published by Insurance Insider. To read the full article click here
The final day of the conference saw Stephen Young’s interview published in the Intelligent Insurer with his comments in IQUW is seeking a rating for its Bermuda balance sheet.
To read the article click here