Emerging markets seen as key to sustaining growth in a changing world.
Lloyd’s is looking to developing economies to fuel its long-term growth plans, according to finance and operations director Luke Savage.
Speaking to Insurance Times, he said Lloyd’s would be looking to bring in emerging market syndicates but would not lower their standards to achieve this.
He said: “We need to recognise in the developed markets there’s a lot more data available that managing agents can use in determining their pricing than would be the case in developing markets. We will have to accept the technical basis on which things like pricing is undertaken is going to have less data to back it up than it would do in a developed market.”
The move comes after chief executive Richard Ward told a press conference that Lloyd’s needed to look at developing countries as the drivers of GDP to sustain their growth, and confirmed “interest from other capital providers”.
But Savage insisted standards would not drop to make access for emerging markets easier: “We are being just as firm but recognising that there’s more uncertainty in these markets,” he said.
He continued by saying that the industry would not see a rise in the numbers of new syndicates as a result of a return to profitability. Lloyd’s announced a profit before tax of £2.77bn (2011: £516m loss).
“We’re not raising the barrier, nor are we lowering the barrier, it’s just in a soft market it’s harder to clear that barrier,” he said. “It means we continue to get a stream of would-be new entrants coming to us but it’s not that easy for them to convince us they’ve got a compelling business case.”
He said the current economic scenario increased the difficulties of potential syndicates gaining access to the Lloyd’s markets. “We have certain criteria that we work to around credibility of the business plan, credibility of the management, credibility of the capital,” Savage said. “In a market where underwriting conditions are quite challenging, it’s harder for people to come up with a credible plan that stands a chance of making a profit.”
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