LatAm region firmly in Endurance’s sights

By growing its credit and surety business in the LatAm market, Endurance Re aims to open the door for its other specialty lines of business, says Micaela Cojocaru, Endurance Re’s deputy head of global trade credit and surety.

Having joined Endurance in 2012, Cojocaru was appointed just over a year ago to grow non-life business lines for Endurance Re in LatAm, having previously built the credit and surety business in the region for another leading reinsurer.

“Endurance Re’s goal is to continue to build our reputation on our deep credit and surety expertise, and from that strong base, expand into other specialty lines of reinsurance, recognising that many LatAm insurers are multi-liners,” said Cojocaru.

Despite its growth initiatives, Endurance Re has no plans to monopolise the market.

“It is not our strategy to reinsure a whole market—we work with a few players that appreciate our knowledge of the region and our client-focused approach,” said Cojocaru.

“We provide a responsive and high standard of service and it would be a kind of cannibalism if we just took a watering can to the whole market. Instead, we look to partner with clients who, like Endurance, are interested in building a long-term relationship,” she added.

Cojocaru said a major challenge presented by the LatAm region is the soft market combined with very low net retentions.

“Sometimes you really have to assess whether an insurer is able to build up a stable book over time.” She added that it is wise to assess whether insurers are seeking reinsurance solely as a way to increase capacity in the face of capital regulations or with a genuine view towards creating a long-term partnership.

The LatAm market is also influenced by low commodity prices, she continued, with many countries becoming very dependent on China, either as a financing partner—in the case of Ecuador—or through consumption, in the case of countries such as Argentina or Brazil. These factors mean that the deceleration of the Chinese economy has had a negative impact on the LatAm re/insurance market.

Cojocaru sees the LatAm region as a very interesting and varied market, ranging from countries such as Mexico, which is experiencing a slow-down due to low oil prices, to less mature countries such as Peru or Ecuador, which are ripe with opportunities and have a relatively young re/insurance market.

“In nearly every country you can write attractive business if you are well prepared and have the right partners,” she said.

The recent corruption scandal in Brazil is bound to have an effect, she added, but the longer-term repercussions could be positive.

“Looking a little bit further into the future, I think conditions will improve if the LatAm market takes the corruption scandal seriously. It is a chance to ensure that moving forward, people will think more carefully about such activities.”

Having recently acquired Montpelier Re, Endurance remains as committed as ever to the region, she added.

“Endurance sees a lot of opportunity in LatAm and we are here to do business. We speak the language, we have local knowledge and we very much look forward to serving this important and evolving market.”