AM Best Audio

Dadong Yan, Head of Barings Portfolio Finance, said portfolio finance is the next extension in the evolution of private investment grade assets. 

Lisa Rowland, assistant vice president of marketing and distribution at Berkley Select, discusses Rebranding strategies, Innovation in marketing, Creating strategic marketing campaigns, and attracting the next generation of marketing talent.

Dan Ward, atmospheric scientist and director of model development, Karen Clark and Co., discusses the outlook for the 2024 hurricane season. Ward expects a very active season this year, especially in places such as Florida and Louisiana, as well as wildfire as a secondary peril.

AM Best Associate Director David Blades and Associate Analyst Justin Aimone discuss a new Best's Special Report that finds the impact of social inflation on insurance claims costs is unpredictable and excessive.

Mark Bove, meteorologist & SVP of natural catastrophe solutions, Munich Re America, discusses the findings of a new hurricane outlook report that indicate an active season could be on tap for Atlantic hurricanes.

Nichole Semprit, senior program specialist, The Actuarial Foundation, and Moriah Sanya, STEM programs coordinator, Institute of Competition Sciences, discuss the Modeling the Future Challenge, a competition for high school students who look to solve real world problems using their math skills.

High school students Timothy Chen and Aryan Mukherjee, who took part in the Modeling the Future Challenge, a competition that uses math to address real world problems, discussed their project that also used AM Best data to examine how legalized recreational marijuana could impact private passenger auto insurance rates.

John Weber sits down with Jennifer Quisenberry from New England Asset Management to revisit past conversations from the series and gain fresh insights into the investment landscape. Watch and listen as they examine the current investment outlook and review the key factors shaping today’s insurance investment environment.

Real estate, hedge funds, private equity, stocks and credit instruments create many opportunities for investment managers. A panel of leaders and experts spoke about the trade-offs of these asset classes.

It’s crucial for the industry to adapt to shifting market dynamics, regulatory changes and emerging technologies in order to effectively manage assets, a panel of industry leaders told AM Best TV.

AM Best TV hosted a panel of insurance leaders who said they believe the current economy and interest rate environment will continue to linger as the industry keeps its eye on how the Federal Reserve will respond to inflation data.

Katie McGrath, Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, and Martin Neuhaus, Munich Re, said non-modeled natural perils, particularly severe convective storms, have increased losses significantly, requiring insurers to adjust pricing and coverage. They were interviewed by AM Best TV at RIMS Riskworld 2024 in San Diego.

James Finucane, senior economist, sigma research, Swiss Re, discusses a new report that shows that strong premium gains, easing claims-cost inflation and higher investment returns are boosting US P&C industry results after a difficult period. 

AM Best Industry Analyst Helen Andersen highlights a new Best's Special Report that finds two thirds of the auto carriers whose ratings were downgraded in 2023 had innovation assessments of Moderate.

Erica Davis, managing director and global co-head of cyber, and Jess Fung, North American cyber analytics lead, both of Guy Carpenter, discuss a new report that examines the evolution of cyber modeling.

Lee Shavel, CEO, Verisk, said practical applications of generative AI include tasks such as summarizing medical files and prioritizing data in commercial property underwriting. Shavel spoke with AM Best TV at the Verisk Insurance Conference 2024, held in Orlando, Florida.

Sarah Rueppel, host of the Agent Survival Guide, discusses her podcast which dispenses industry updates on Medicare Advantage and Part D plans and helps agents stay compliant while offering sales and marketing advice.

Conning CEO Woody Bradford is set to become CEO of Generali Investments. Generali has a majority ownership stake in Conning, while Cathay Life Insurance and Cathay Financial Holdings own a minority stake.

AM Best Senior Industry Analyst Christopher Graham discusses a new Best's Special Report that finds management of emerging risks will be critical to ensuring that carriers are prepared for stresses posed by long-tail lines and their liabilities.  

Thomas Holzheu, chief economist, Swiss Re, discusses the company’s latest natural catastrophe sigma report that shows the types of events that lead to major losses, where those events took place, and the impact on the insurance industry.

Sean Kevelighan, CEO of the Insurance Information Institute, discusses how so called nuclear verdicts, litigation funding and other legal-system abuse drive up claims costs and ultimately lead to higher premiums for consumers.

Theresa Young, CSAA Insurance Group; Michael Angelina, St. Joseph's College; and Steve Clarke, Verisk, said issues also arise from lack of regulation of third-party vendors, public adjusters, and service providers, which can lead to higher claim payouts than were anticipated in pricing.

In his book, Agent to Agent: Revealing the Story and Strategy for Insurance People, BI&I Group Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Leo Bados Jr. shares tips for building an insurance business and leading a team with confidence.  

Tim Nunziata, vice president and head of cyber risk, Commercial E&O at Nationwide said that when it comes to a cyber incident, the idea of being able to put a plan in place post‑breach is not realistic.  

Sridhar Manyem, senior director, AM Best, said other key issues with data from wearables include using it ethically and compliantly. Manyem spoke with AM Best TV at Insurtech Hartford Symposium 2024.