Exclusive: What the departure of Lloyd’s of London would mean for the City February 14, 2022 Lloyd’s of London may be leaving its gigantic headquarters in the City. A pandemic-induced hit to office footfall has left it mulling a move to another location. The company told City PM recently it is weighing up leaving iconic headquarters’ as it seeks out ways to adapt to shifts in working habits brought about by [...]
LV= seeks to reassure members after Royal London merger talks collapse February 13, 2022 Mutual insurer LV= has told members it was wrong to say that it could not survive without being taken over by Bain Capital, after plans for its merger with Royal London collapsed last week. In a letter to LV=’s 1.1m members, the firm said LV=’s Board no longer believes that merging with another mutual insurer [...]
End of an era: Prudential chief Mike Wells steps down with new boss and all top roles moving to Asia February 10, 2022 Insurance giant Prudential said this morning that its chief Mike Wells plans to retire at the end of March after seven years in the role, with his replacement set to be based in Asia. Chief finance officer and chief operating officer Mark FitzPatrick will replace Wells as chief executive on an interim basis, but has [...]
Merger talks between LV= and Royal London break down February 9, 2022 Relations between LV= and rival mutual Royal London have taken another dramatic turn with the companies confirming the collapse of merger talks. LV= said the marriage would not be in the “best interests” of its members while Royal London suggested it was misled into thinking its rival did not have a viable future as an [...]
Much-talked about £6m lawsuit by The Wolseley owner against insurance giant AXA starts in court January 26, 2022 A much-talked about lawsuit by the owner of The Wolseley and a range of other upmarket restaurants around London against insurance giant AXA has started in London’s High Court. Corbin & King is brining the £6m lawsuit to AXA Insurance over Covid-related losses, in a trial that could have wider ramifications for other UK businesses [...]
British insurer drops “energetic” and “enthusiastic” from job ads to attract older employees January 19, 2022 One of Britain’s biggest insurers is set to stop using the words “enthusiastic” and “energetic” in job adverts, so as not to deter old people from making applications. Phoenix Group, which owns insurance company Standard Life, will also use “age-diverse” imagery in its postings to increase “the likelihood of older applicants applying.” The plans come [...]
Lloyd’s of London weighs up leaving iconic headquarters January 19, 2022 Lloyd’s of London is considering leaving its iconic headquarters as it seeks out ways to adapt to shifts in working habits brought about by digitalisation of its business and Covid-19. In an email to City PM, a Lloyd’s of London spokesperson said: “As we adapt to new structures and flexible ways of working, we are [...]
Exclusive: ‘Omicron is a reminder the world is only as good as the weakest link in the vaccination chain,’ says abrdn exec January 11, 2022 Ongoing inflationary shocks, questions around interest rates and the emergence of the new Omicron Covid variant are all making navigating uncertainty more challenging. Nonetheless, when we look beyond the headlines, there remain some reasons for optimism going into 2022, according to Richard Dunbar, head of multi-asset research at global investment giant abrdn. Square Mile-based Dunbar [...]
Insurer Hiscox names new group chief financial officer December 21, 2021 International insurer Hiscox Ltd has announced former EY partner and industry expert Paul Cooper as its new group chief financial officer. A qualified chartered accountant who trained with PwC, Cooper is currently the interim group chief financial officer of M&G Plc, a FTSE 100 asset manager and life insurer. Cooper will be rewarded with a [...]
Things between Zurich and Greggs heat up as insurer insists on slicing bakery’s £100m covid claim to £2.5m December 14, 2021 Zurich Insurance has retaliated in a London court against a claim by bakery chain Greggs for between £50m to £100m in payouts for Covid-19 related losses, according to reports. The insurance giant told the court that its business interruption cover went up to £2.5m for a single event, according to Legal 360, which first reported [...]
