Profits rise at Arch Capital; growth in most lines of business

Profits increased at Bermuda-based re/insurer Arch Capital Group in the third quarter of 2020, reflecting growth across most lines of business, partially offset by the travel business due to the ongoing impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Arch reported a net profit of $408.6 million for Q3, compared with $382.1 million for Q3 2019.

Pre-tax current accident year catastrophic losses came in at $203.3 million, net of reinsurance and reinstatement premiums, including $11.9 million of COVID-19 related losses. The cat losses were  primarily related to Hurricanes Isaias, Laura and Sally along with losses related to the Derecho Windstorm, California wildfires and other events.

The re/insurer generated gross written premiums of $2.68 billion, up from $2.18 billion in the same period of 2019.

The insurance segment reported GWP of 1.2 billion, 19.9 percent higher than in the 2019 third quarter. The reinsurance segment reported GWP of just over $1 billion for Q3 2020, up from $662.6 million in the same period of 2019.

The combined ratio for the group, excluding catastrophic activity and prior year development, was 84.3 percent for the quarter, compared to 80.9 percent for the same period of 2019.

For the reinsurance segment specifically its combined ratio fell to 99 percent, from 100.3 percent in the same period last year. For the insurance segment, it remained almost flat at 104.2 percent.