October 27, 2022 | Credit Suisse has struggled for some time with low returns, risk management challenges and strategic drift. Today’s announcement was designed to draw a line under these matters, and put the 166-year-old bank on a firmer, steadier, more profitable course . . .
October 12, 2022 | Spectrum believes insurers should continue to be underpinned by strong capital, good liquidity and sound investment portfolios, despite macro uncertainty . . .
October 4, 2022 | While Ian’s damage will further pressure the more challenged local Florida property insurance market, national property & casualty insurers and global reinsurers should remain resilient . . .
October 3, 2022 | Despite the recent concern about Credit Suisse and its financial health (much of it driven on social media), we note that there has been no fundamental change in the bank’s credit profile . . .
September 30, 2022 | This week Italy elected a new coalition government comprising far-right Brothers of Italy and League, and center-right Forza Italia . . .
August 29, 2022 | It has been a comparatively quiet Atlantic wind season thus far. However, this does not make a trend given the significant effect of extreme weather in recent years . . .
August 1, 2022 | The European Central Bank (ECB) launched its first targeted climate stress test (CST) in July, covering 104 significant European banks, to test the banks’ resilience to addressing and managing climate-related risks . . .
July 19, 2022 | After several months of deliberation, today the French State announced plans to take over the minority stake it does not already own in the struggling 84% state-owned nuclear operator and utility, Electricite de France (EDF) . . .
July 19, 2022 | The Italian federal government, comprising a volatile, complex coalition of Rightist, Centrist and Leftist parties, appears to be in the midst of change (again), driven by stresses including inflation, drought, the effects of the Russia-Ukraine war and inherent political rivalries . . .
June 27, 2022 | Banks Show Solid Capital Strength. All 34 large US banks that were tested passed the Federal Reserve’s 2022 stress test . . .
March 29, 2022 | The Russian invasion of Ukraine should not have a material, direct adverse effect on European banks . . .
March 23, 2022 | We believe Global Property and Casualty (P&C) re/insurers have limited direct exposure to Russia and Ukraine . . .
February 16, 2022 | Russian President Putin’s threat to invade Ukraine could devastate the country and put the Western World on military alert . . .
December 17, 2021 | On December 16, 2021 the Central Bank of Ireland approved the classification of the Principal Global Investors Funds - Preferred Securities Fund, sub-advised by Spectrum Asset Management, as an Article 8 (ESG-oriented) fund under European Union Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation (SFDR) on sustainability related disclosures in the financial services sector . . .
December 14, 2021 | Spectrum is encouraged by these tough U.K. bank stress test results, and believes they verify U.K. banks’ solid capital cushions and resilience . . .
September 28, 2021 | China Evergrande Group, a large conglomerate focusing on property development, technology, healthcare, wealth management and other sectors, is experiencing severe cash flow difficulties, and has skipped recent loan and bondpayments . . .
September 10, 2021 | On the 16th anniversary of Katrina, Hurricane Ida made landfall near Port Fourchon, Louisiana as a Category 4 storm . . .
August 19, 2021 | Cyber security is a growing credit risk. It is also a key component of a company’s social responsibility from an ESG perspective. In different jurisdictions, such as Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), companies can face penalties for failing to comply with certain standards . . .
August 2, 2021 | After last week’s Friday close the European Banking Authority (EBA) published the results of its latest stress test on 50 large European banks from 15 nations, representing 70% of EU banking assets . . .
June 25, 2021 | All 23 large US banks that underwent the Federal Reserve’s annual stress test “remained well above their risk-based minimum capital requirements,” according to the Fed . . .
April 6, 2021 | Credit Suisse, one of Switzerland’s two major banks, announced last week that it had substantial risk exposures to highly-levered Archegos Capital Management . . .
March 9, 2021 | The extreme cold from Winter Storm Uri in mid-February affected a large portion of the US, most notably Texas. Uri led to life threatening conditions as the region was paralyzed with power outages, loss of heat and water shortages . . .
December 21, 2020 | Late last week the Federal Reserve released results from two special stress tests for 33 large US banks . . .
October 6, 2020 | Severe wildfires continue to rage in California, including the Glass Fire in the Napa and Sonoma wine regions, leading to mass evacuations . . .
October 1, 2020 | The major UK banks — Barclays, Lloyds, Nationwide Building Society and NatWest — are an investor focus, given COVID- and Brexit-related risks. How well are these banks prepared for these challenges? Are credit concerns justified . . .
August 28, 2020 | This year has been active, with 13 named storms to date and with much of the peak hurricane season remaining . . .
August 12, 2020 | Brexit, trade wars, domestic and external country conflicts, Hong Kong oppression, Russian international cyber hacking, and populism still exist. However, these and other macro concerns have been eclipsed by the COVID-19 pandemic which has led to the first recession since the Great Financial Crisis (GFC) . . .
August 12, 2020 | Spectrum’s ESG approach complements that of our parent, Principal Global Investors, which has received the 2019 UN Principles for Responsible Investment highest score of A+ in Strategy and Governance . . .
July 29, 2020 | The US banks have performed relatively well, considering the profound stresses the COVID-19 pandemic is having on the economy. This is a testament to their stronger capital and reduced risk appetites post-Global Financial Crisis (GFC), as well as their good core earnings . . .
June 26, 2020 | On 25 June 2020 the Federal Reserve released the results of its periodic Dodd-Frank Act Stress Test (DFAST) for 33 large US banks, which includes US-based subsidiaries of foreign-owned banks. Results are positive overall, as they have been in prior years . . .
June 9, 2020 | The COVID-19 pandemic has reshaped the world. We firmly believe that Financials have entered this crisis from a position of strength, poised to support a socioeconomic recovery . . .
April 22, 2020 | The focus of US banks’ 1Q20 results is on their outlook for loan losses and reserve strengthening stemming from the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic . . .
April 1, 2020 | As businesses seek to recover lost revenue and costs related to the pandemic, property & casualty (P&C) insurers may be exposed to claims, including some through specific business interruption (BI) policies. Such claims, however, are expected to be limited as standard BI policies are typically triggered by physical property damage (e.g., due to weather) and commonly contain disease exclusions . . .
March 30, 2020 | The European Central Bank (ECB) issued a ‘recommendation’ (in practical terms, issued an order) on Friday last week, 27 March, that European Union banks should “refrain from making dividend distributions and performing share buy-backs aimed at remunerating shareholders during the period of the COVID-19-related economic shock.” This would last at least until the end of September 2020 . . .
March 25, 2020 | There has been a great deal of discussion drawing parallels between our ongoing economic crisis, and the Great Financial Crisis over 10 years ago when bank credit was significantly impaired. Banks are supported by sound fundamentals, and are part of the liquidity solution today, not the problem . . .
March 10, 2020 | Global Financials are Well Positioned for the Macro Challenges . . .
February 4, 2020 | The 2019 novel coronavirus (“2019-nCoV”) was first identified in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. At the time of this writing, there have been over 20,000 confirmed cases with a death toll in the hundreds . . .
November 25, 2019 | This month we met with re/insurance companies, brokers and industry participants in Bermuda, while also attending and participating in S&P’s annual Bermuda Reinsurance Conference. Our top takeaways were . . .
September 25, 2019 | Hurricane Dorian made landfall as a Category 5 in the Bahamas, becoming one of the strongest storms which resulted in loss of life and physical devastation. Dorian generated less U.S. destruction than initially feared, and insured losses in the Bahamas should be well below total damages given gaps in coverage . . .
September 12, 2019 | Conservative Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s “no deal” plan to leave the EU by October 31 has been blocked by opposition-led legislation to make way for a 3-month extension, which needs full EU approval. Mr. Johnson now leads a minority government given party defections and dismissals. What likely lies ahead . . .
August 21, 2019 | Contentious policy-making views between Italy’s two coalition parties ― right-wing, anti-immigration League and left-leaning Five Star Movement (M5S) ― have persisted since the populist government formed over a year ago. League Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini’s move to quit the coalition . . .
July 1, 2019 | The 2019 DFAST and CCAR analyses by US bank regulators have demonstrated, once again, the financial strength of large US banks. The Federal Reserve Vice Chair for Supervision stated, “The stress tests have confirmed that the largest banks are both well capitalized and place a high priority on strong capital planning processes . . .
March 18, 2019 | US life insurance GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) changes are expected as early as 2021. The reforms focus on long-duration contracts such as life insurance, disability, long-term care and annuities . . .
March 12, 2019 | Several prominent European banks ― such as Danske Bank in Denmark ― have been accused of having inadequate systems to detect and report suspicious activity potentially related to money laundering . . .
