Best alternative capital deal maker,
Fund/portfolio management team of the year: Securis Investment Partners
Finalists
Best alternative capital deal maker: Aon Benfield, Leadenhall Capital Partners
Fund/portfolio management team of the year: Allianz, NNIP
Popularity among underwriters is one reason insurance-linked securities (ILS) investor Securis Investment Partners has grown its assets from $25m of seeding by Swiss Re in 2005, to run $3.9bn today.
The money is spread across 12 funds and segregated accounts.
Founding investors in its flagship strategy have made a cumulative 122% return, as the independent manager navigated financial crises and large insurance sector losses to emerge, in its own words, "battle-hardened". As an investor Securis aims for attractive riskadjusted returns that do not correlate with traditional investment strategies; and that exceed traditional insurance markets.
It also acts as an alternative capital provider for underwriters, in an increasingly densely populated field of endeavour.
The knowledge among its 47 staff about the re/insurance industry, their expertise and access to markets are essential to Securis' success, it says. The skills include catastrophe risk modelling, actuarial, reinsurance underwriting and broking and investment banking. The firm expanded the capabilities of its staff recently with the aim of accessing Lloyd's and US re/insurance markets.
It highlights also its experience and actuarial analytical skills in the life and health insurance sectors, and the ability to conduct analysis independently when industry risk models are scarce. Over 10 years Securis has invested nearly $1bn in ILS of these sectors.
The firm's business strategy rests on four pillars. These are analytics that it holds out as better than those of its rivals; strong risk-adjusted investment performance; effective risk management including by a dedicated 'life risk' team; and recruiting and retaining of talented people.
Securis not only prices issues, it also structures instruments - a dual position that it says positions it well to form "an optimal view of risk" of the market.