Asta and Bermuda-based holding company win ‘in principle’ approval for new Lloyd’s syndicate

Lloyd’s third-party managing agent Asta and Bermuda-based holding company Catalina Group have been granted “in principle” approval to establish a new syndicate to underwrite reinsurance to close (RITC) transactions within the Lloyd’s market.

The new syndicate – Catalina Syndicate 3232 – will be managed by Asta and capitalised through a wholly aligned corporate member owned by Catalina.

It aims to accept business for the 2023 year of account and will target larger-sized transactions.

RITC transactions occcur when outstanding risks are reinsured by payment of reinsurance premium in order to enable the accounts for the underwriting year to be closed.

Once a syndicate year of account closes in this way, it ceases to exist and its profit or loss is determined.

Lloyd’s of London’s approval for this new syndicate follows it recently (17 August 2022) providing approval for Beazley to transition the Beazley Smart Tracker Special Purpose Arrangement (SPA) 5623 into a full syndicate.

The market also recently reported its half year financial results for the first six months of 2022, posting an improved combined operating ratio of 91.4%.

Seeking solutions

Catalina Group chief executive Ian Parker said: “By combining Asta’s proven third-party syndicate management acumen with our 17 years of expertise in the retrospective reinsurance space and the backing of our highly-regarded shareholders, Catalina Syndicate 3232 will immediately bring a strong and credible new player to support the larger deals in Lloyd’s.”

Lorraine Harfitt, chief executive at Asta, added: “Catalina is a market leader in the legacy sector and its expertise and robust capital resources are a welcome addition to Lloyd’s.

“We continue to see the desire among the managing agency community to find solutions for back-year portfolios, allowing syndicates to focus on their core business of underwriting new risk, whilst leaving run-off to the specialists.

“The combination of Asta and Catalina will increase the options available to managing agents looking to do this and will extend the range of solutions which Asta can provide across the syndicate lifecycle.”

Creating Catalina Syndicate 3232 builds on Asta’s existing portfolio – including 10 syndicates, six syndicates-in-a-box (SIAB), one special purpose arrangement (SPA) and four MGAs. Its capacity under management in 2022 equals over £1.5bn.