Greenlight Re expecting claims losses following Russian invasion

Cayman Islands-based reinsurer  Greenlight Re expects to suffer unspecified losses on its specialty book following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

"The war will likely present us with loss exposures on our specialty book," chief executive officer Simon Burton (pictured) told his company's fourth quarter investor call.

"We have received no specific information on damage to insured assets and no claim notices so we have not yet developed an estimate of losses incurred," he said.

Exposure does not appear to come from direct relationships with Russian clients and "the impact of the sanctions on our premium volume is likely to be minor," Burton said.

Greenlight Re does not have any direct relationships with Russian insurers, brokers or any other Russian companies or individuals," Burton said.

Greenlight Re may be comparatively "well positioned" for spill-over effects from the conflict on the investment side, chairman David Einhorn suggested. The group had bet against some of the more speculative market-favored stocks and had long since positioned for higher inflation, he hinted.

"With a relatively tight position and pro-inflation posture - we are reasonably well positioned at the outset of the conflict," Einhorn said.

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