CORE INSURANCE
AMERICAN EQUITY | November 09, 2022
American Equity Investment Life Holding Company (American Equity) (NYSE: AEL), a leading issuer of fixed index annuities (FIAs), announced that it is entering into a long-term partnership with 26North Partners LP (26North), a multi-asset platform founded and led by Josh Harris, in which American Equity has made a strategic investment. Anant Bhalla, Chief Executive Officer and President of American Equity, will join the Board of Directors of 26North.
A Bermuda-based reinsurer, AeBe ISA Ltd., which is affiliated with 26North, has reinsured approximately $4.3 billion of GAAP reserves of American Equity fixed indexed annuity policies from 2008 and 2010. American Equity estimates that this will generate an initial capital release in excess of $250 million and generate a positive ceding commission, thereby growing AEL’s revenue-generating reinsured liabilities.
“This partnership with 26North is a further step in our AEL 2.0 strategy to deliver significant value to all shareholders. The strategy is aligned with policyholders through our unique go-to-market and investment management approaches and capital-light structure. We continue to refine a capital-efficient business model to deliver superior, sustained returns for our shareholders and further strengthen our robust balance sheet. This deal will enable greater capital flexibility for AEL as we benefit from 26North’s investment expertise to deliver on attractive opportunities across private asset classes. We are proud to add 26North to our outstanding investment partner ecosystem and further advance our transformation into a hybrid, diversified financial services firm.”
-Anant Bhalla, Chief Executive Officer and President of American Equity
Mr. Bhalla continued, Our agreement with 26North complements the strategic partnerships we have struck to support our unique investment management strategy, with each transaction providing access to a specific asset sector. Partnering with world-class investment firms – Adams Street, Monroe Capital, Pretium and now 26North – allows all AEL shareholders to participate in asset management economics, which is fundamental to our AEL 2.0 strategy.
ABOUT AMERICAN EQUITY
At American Equity Investment Life Holding Company, we think of ourselves as The Financial Dignity CompanyTM that offers solutions designed to create financial dignity in retirement. Our policyholders work with independent agents, banks and broker-dealers, through our wholly-owned operating subsidiaries, to choose one of our leading annuity products best suited for their personal needs. To deliver on our promises to policyholders, American Equity has reframed its investment focus, building a stronger emphasis on insurance liability driven asset allocation as well as the origination and management of private assets. Our company is headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa with satellite offices slated to open in 2022 in Charlotte, NC and New York, NY.
ABOUT 26NORTH
26North Partners LP is an integrated, multi-asset class investment platform, founded and led by Josh Harris. 26North provides investment advice and opportunities to its clients related to a variety of investment strategies, including, but not limited to, private equity, credit, and insurance and reinsurance solutions. Josh Harris and the 26North team bring decades of experience managing third-party capital to help clients achieve their financial goals while leaving a lasting impact on the communities they serve. 26North has more than $9.5 billion in assets under management.
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CORE INSURANCE
Vertafore | September 12, 2022
Vertafore®, the leader in modern insurance technology, today announced Acuity Insurance, Westfield Insurance and CNA Insurance are the latest carriers to go live on its award-winning Commercial Submissions™ platform. These additions reflect the platform's growing momentum and bring even more choice to the solution and mark a new milestone in Vertafore's vision to modernize commercial insurance for the independent agency channel.
Vertafore introduced general availability for Commercial Submissions in March 2022. Nearly 800 independent agencies have since signed up to use the platform to quickly quote BOP, workers' compensation and general liability insurance from some of the nation's top carriers.
Technology built for insurance professionals by insurance experts
Vertafore has long been the leader in market connectivity solutions that enable agencies and carriers to speed up binding and quoting. In 2021, Vertafore facilitated more than $13 billion in real-time carrier/agency premium submissions and handled 150 million real-time transactions through its rating and connectivity solutions.
The company built on this connectivity success when it set out to solve challenges of commercial insurance quoting. And since the product's launch, agencies have generated thousands of quotes across three lines of business in 40 states.
The success of Commercial Submissions is the result of a dedicated, experienced Vertafore product and development teams, led by Wendy Haney and David Acker. Haney and Acker have nearly five decades of combined experience developing tools that simplify the day-to-day work of insurance professionals, with a particular focus on solutions that improve connectivity across the insurance distribution channel.
"When Vertafore identifies a technology need in our marketplace, we first consider whether our customers are best served through a partnership, an acquisition, or with a Vertafore-built product, The depth of our in-house talent, our proven success with personal lines connectivity and our relationships across the distribution channel made it clear that we were in the best position to deliver a high-quality solution to streamline business insurance quoting. And our agency and carrier partners continue to validate that decision."
-Amy Zupon, Vertafore CEO
Industry-leading solution for commercial lines quoting
Commercial Submissions delivers a game-changing experience for independent agents and the business clients they serve. The platform simplifies and automates commercial insurance by:
Prefilling information from Vertafore agency management systems and third-party sources to reduce redundant, manual data entry.
Connecting agencies and carriers in real-time, allowing the exchange of structured data and real-time quoting.
Enabling real-time digital collaboration with clients to complete applications quickly and accurately.
The solution also reflects Vertafore's ongoing, multimillion dollar investment to deliver products with a modern user experience. By building Commercial Submissions from the ground up, Vertafore has placed integration, connectivity, and design thinking at the core of the product. As a result, the solution creates a seamless experience and incorporates inclusive design principles that eliminate barriers, improve accessibility and overcome situational challenges that impede user productivity.
Commercial Submissions has been recognized by the Golden Bridge Awards®, achieving Gold in the Business-to-Business Product category. The solution also landed on the SaaS Awards' shortlist for Best SaaS Newcomer and received a Silver award for the 2021 Best New Insurance Solution from the American Business Awards.
About Vertafore
As North America's InsurTech leader for more than 50 years, Vertafore is modernizing and simplifying the insurance life cycle so that our customers can focus on what matters most. Vertafore's solutions provide end-to-end connectivity across the distribution channel, improve the client and agent experience, unlock the power of data, and streamline essential workflows to drive efficiency, productivity, and profitability for independent agencies, MGAs and carriers.
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WORKERS COMPENSATION
Simply Business and biBERK | September 27, 2022
Simply Business, LLC., a Boston-based digital insurance agency focused on small businesses, today announced the launch of a partnership with biBERK Business Insurance, a Berkshire Hathaway company, to offer workers' compensation products online to small business owners in the United States.
Through this new partnership, small business owners can receive a biBERK workers' compensation quote through the Simply Business website. They also have the option to digitally bind policies and speak to a licensed insurance agent to ensure that the coverage they've selected best meets the needs of their business.
"We're committed to helping small businesses grow by providing specially tailored insurance solutions, and this new partnership makes it easier for our customers to get exactly what they need, With the help of biBERK, we're able to provide more comprehensive coverage to entrepreneurs across the country."
-David Summers, Group CEO of Simply Business
This offering is currently available to small business owners in Washington D.C. and all 46 states where private carriers are eligible to operate.
About Simply Business
Simply Business is changing the way small business owners find business insurance by offering customers tailored insurance coverage online. The company began in the United Kingdom and expanded to the United States in 2017, naming Boston home. With over 850,000 customers globally, Simply Business has become a leader in the space through its commitment to a customer-first model, focusing heavily on simplicity, choice and value.
biBERK
biBERK is a small business insurance company that's part of the Berkshire Hathaway Insurance Group. All of Company's major insurance subsidiaries are rated A++ by A M Best Company with millions of customers and over 75 years of insurance experience.
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