Full Capacity: ElementaRe: Approaches to solving the protection gap

February 7 2026 by

Welcome to Full Capacity, a weekly briefing on all the most important developments of the past week with a personal take on the news from our editor-in-chief, Mithun Varkey, delivered to your inbox every Saturday.   

Switching sides. Ardonagh-backed Australian broker Aviso announced a raft of senior leadership and specialty line appointments following a raid on Lockton this week. 

The broker has hired about 20 people from Lockton, including confirming the appointment of Patrick Moore as general manager for growth and client strategy. InsuranceAsia News had first flagged up the Lockton exodus in September. 

New arrival. Senior Australian industry heavyweights Nigel Fitzgerald and Grant Cairns announced the launch of their specialist MGA this week. Named Kaibridge, the MGA was launched with the acquisition of Blend Insurance. Chris Newing, the current Blend CEO, will also join Kaibridge as co-founder and chief digital information officer. We had first reported on the new MGA back in May. 

Fourth time’s the charm. After three failed attempts, Zurich and Beazley have finally inked a deal for a proposed acquisition of the Lloyd’s carrier at GBP13.35 (US$18.08) per share. The offer includes GBP13.10 in cash per share, along with potential dividends of up to 25 pence for Beazley’s shareholders. 

If the dividend is fully paid, Beazley shareholders could see total returns around US$11 billion – a stunning 62.8% premium over its market cap based on its January 16 close of GBP8.20 apiece.  

Steady decline. In Q4 2025, Asia’s insurance rates fell for the eighth straight quarter, declining 5% amid abundant capacity and intense competition, according to Marsh. This consistent drop matches the declines seen in the previous quarters. 

While the Pacific region experienced a significant 12% drop – the largest among major global regions. Insurers generally offered more negotiable terms, including higher limits and reduced deductibles. 

Fac sheet. Asia’s rapidly expanding tech sector and robust manufacturing growth are driving demand for facultative cover beyond local capacity. 

Cynthia Cui, managing director at Howden Re, noted that while capacity is steadily increasing with new market entrants, it still lags behind the needs of booming industries. Clients often turn to international markets, such as the UK and Europe, for additional coverage. 

While fac cover is bought for a lot of heavy occupancies, Gallagher Re’s Phil Robinson-Moore noted that the market is seeing a lot of fac placements on lighter occupancies, driven by nat cat exposures. 

Public interest (re)insurance

Last month, Australian island state Tasmania hit the headlines by appointing industry heavyweight John Trowbridge to spearhead the creation of Tasinsure, a state-backed insurer.  

The proposal is a defensive state-capacity solution to soaring premiums and the grim preview provided by bushfires in Victoria and Cyclone Kirrily in Queensland.  

Jeremy Rockliff, Tasmania’s Liberal premier said: “We know the insurance market is broken, and this again highlights the need for a Tasmanian solution.”  

But not everyone is on board. Industry lobby, the Insurance Council of Australia (ICA), decried it as a wasteful distortion, a band-aid on a bullet wound that ignores core cost drivers. 

But this protest sits in contrast to a parallel experiment unfolding on the other side of the world. 

In Germany, the private industry is leading the charge for a public backstop. The German Insurance Association has proposed Elementar Re – a reinsurance scheme that is the antithesis of Tasmania’s direct play.  

Here, the state is not a primary insurer. Instead, it acts as a backstop of last resort, stepping in only after private reinsurance and a built-up industry reserve fund are exhausted in mega-catastrophes exceeding EUR30 billion (US $35.37 billion) in damages. 

The German model marries coercion and choice. Nat cat coverage becomes the default – automatically included in new policies, but policyholders can opt out. The catch? If they opt out, they forgo any future state disaster aid.  

It drives penetration without a full mandate, supports the market rather than replacing it.  

It would seem that the German experiment answers the ICA’s critique of Tasmania.  

It doesn’t flood the market with new, state-subsidised capacity. It provides a targeted safety net for the “tail risks”. 

These two proposals in sophisticated insurance landscapes reflect an urgent need for adaptive solutions, especially in regions vulnerable to natural disasters. 

Tasmania and Germany are betting on different blueprints – both acknowledge the same truth: the old model needs a reset. And the question seems to be no longer if the state must step in, but how. The answer likely lies somewhere in between. 

Nevertheless, for cat-exposed Asian nations, where insurance penetration remains stubbornly low despite escalating perils, watching this wager unfold, the lessons will be instructive. 

People moves

In a flurry of strategic moves within the insurance sector in the past week, Peak Re has welcomed Philip Hough from Aspen Re as its new CUO. 

Meanwhile, Jimmy Tong is set to take helm of the newly unified Liberty Insurance Singapore unit. 

Over in the Philippines, Aon is shaking things up as Karl Hamann steps in as country CEO. 

At Marsh, Gigi Liu has rejoined as the finpro leader for Hong Kong and Macau.  

Meanwhile, Willis has promoted Mareli Vermeulen to lead its Asia M&A team. 

Do check out our weekly people move round-up to stay up to speed on the most important appointments in the region. 

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