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ISS supports AmTrust deal; Allianz hunting for M&A; Axa sells healthcare broker

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ISS supports AmTrust deal; Allianz hunting for M&A; Axa sells healthcare broker

Proxy advisory firm Institutional Shareholder Services has recommended that AmTrust Financial Services Inc. shareholders vote in favor of the go-private deal after the deal price was raised by $1.25 per share. It initially opposed the deal.

Germany's Allianz Group is on the prowl for mergers and acquisitions and potential targets include Zurich Insurance Group AG, U.K.-based RSA Insurance Group PLC and The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc., Bloomberg News reported. Assets in China are also a possibility.

In neighboring Switzerland, Swiss Re AG will acquire a 13.81% stake in Nairobi, Kenya-based insurer Britam Holdings Plc, Reuters reported.

Axa agreed to sell healthcare broker Health and Protection Solutions Ltd. to U.S. private equity firms Highbridge Principal Strategies and Madison Dearborn Partners for an undisclosed amount, Insurance Age reported. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.

And, shares of Genworth Financial Inc. jumped more than 27% to start the June 11 trading day after news broke that a key federal regulator finally approved the insurer's long-delayed merger with China Oceanwide Holdings Ltd.

Moving to reinsurance, Frontline Insurance Group LLC's Frontline Re Ltd. (Series 2018-1) $350 million catastrophe bond priced at the mid-point of initial guidance range, Artemis reported.

Lloyd's of London temporarily removed reinsurance from the scope of its electronic trading mandate. Lloyd's announced that it would require its syndicates to use the PPL electronic trading system and that they should place 30% of their business using PPL by the end of 2018.

Karen Clark & Co. estimates that the June 6 hailstorm in Texas will generate close to $1 billion in insured losses to residential and commercial properties and automobiles. An initial estimate from the Insurance Council of Texas suggests 20,000 residential structures and 25,000 automobiles have been damaged.

Insurance claims have begun trickling in from the creeping property disaster caused by the Kilauea volcano lava flow, which has officially destroyed more than 100 homes and may have razed nearly 500 residences. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. was Hawaii's top writer of homeowner's insurance in 2017 followed by Heritage Insurance Holdings Inc. and Tokio Marine Holdings Inc.

Meanwhile, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority concluded its probe into Scottish Widows' treatment of long-standing customers, saying there is insufficient basis for taking any enforcement action. The regulator noted that investigations into Prudential PLC, Countrywide Assured Plc, Old Mutual PLC and Abbey Life Assurance Co. Ltd. are ongoing.

And, U.S. commercial insurance prices rose "modestly" in the first quarter with price changes of more than 1% for the first time in nearly three years, according to a Willis Towers Watson report.

Featured news

AstraZeneca, Lilly drop Alzheimer's trials; Stryker courts Boston Scientific: Eli Lilly and AstraZeneca are stopping two late-stage clinical studies of Alzheimer's disease treatment lanabecestat; and Stryker Corp. approached competitor Boston Scientific for a potential takeover, insiders told The Wall Street Journal.

Financial news in other parts of the world

Asia-Pacific: Malaysia to name central bank head; ICICI Bank responds to reported US SEC probe

Europe: French banks told to hold more capital; HSBC maps out new $17B strategy

Middle East & Africa: UAE's Waha Capital scraps plans for PE fund; Ghana's GN Bank eyes London

The day ahead

Early morning futures indicators pointed to a lower opening for the U.S. market.

In Asia, Hang Seng gained 0.13% to 31,103.06, while the Nikkei 225 rose 0.33% to 22,878.35.

In Europe, around midday, the FTSE 100 dropped 0.29% to 7,715.36, and the Euronext 100 shed 0.13% to 1,063.03

On the macro front

The National Federation of Independent Business' Small Business Optimism Index, the Consumer Price Index and the Redbook are due out today.

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