Arch Insurance Company (Europe) Limited and Alwyn Insurance Company Limited to Write EU Business from Ireland

Business Wire

HAMILTON, Bermuda--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Arch Capital Group Ltd. [NASDAQ: ACGL] (Arch) has announced plans to expand the group’s underwriting operations in Ireland to ensure continuity of its operations across the European Union (EU) once the United Kingdom leaves the EU.

Following discussions with the Central Bank of Ireland, Arch is applying for regulatory approval to continue from Ireland certain underwriting operations of its UK insurer, Arch Insurance Company (Europe) Limited, and its Gibraltar insurer, Alwyn Insurance Company Limited. Those operations will be carried out from an existing Ireland-based insurance platform with supplemental business licenses acquired to match those used in the current UK and Gibraltar operations.

As a large and well diversified international group, Arch has an established footprint in Ireland with significant local experience, having established its Irish reinsurance operations there in 2008 and its insurance operations in 2012. Arch’s selection of Ireland for its Brexit plans is based on a number of key goals, including:

Maintaining continuity of cover for existing policyholders;
Maintaining access to the UK and EU markets;
Minimising disruption for policyholders and the group’s EU insurance operations; and
Building on an established regulatory supervisory relationship.

Arch’s plans to extend its existing licenses in Dublin are underway with the Central Bank of Ireland, and the plans are expected to be approved and in place in good time before Brexit.

“Arch has had an established presence in Ireland for the last decade so Arch’s existing platform in Ireland was the natural choice for Arch from which to ensure continuity of the EU business currently written by its UK and Gibraltar insurance operations, including in particular its motor insurance business. We look forward to continuing our strong relationships with our partners and regulators in Ireland, the UK and Gibraltar, and continuing to serve our policyholders throughout the EU and the UK,” said Maamoun Rajeh, Chairman and CEO of Arch Worldwide Reinsurance Group.

Matt Shulman, President and CEO of Arch Insurance Europe in London added: "This decision provides opportunity for Arch Insurance Europe to strengthen our capabilities in Europe, alongside a continued presence in London through our existing UK operations. We see strong economic fundamentals in the trading block with growth expected in manufacturing, oil and gas and financial services in the next five years, and we know Arch can add significant value in that space."

Through its involvement in the Lloyd’s Market through Syndicate 2012, Arch remains committed to servicing its Lloyd’s clients through the establishment of Lloyd’s Insurance Company in Brussels. Clients and business partners should continue to liaise with their existing market point of contact with regard to the detail of managing the transition to the new arrangements.

About Arch Capital Group Ltd.

Arch Capital Group Ltd., a Bermuda-based company with approximately $11.26 billion in capital at March 31, 2018, provides insurance, reinsurance and mortgage insurance on a worldwide basis through its wholly owned subsidiaries.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for forward−looking statements. This release or any other written or oral statements made by or on behalf of Arch Capital Group Ltd. and its subsidiaries may include forward−looking statements, which reflect our current views with respect to future events and financial performance. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in or incorporated by reference in this release are forward−looking statements.

Forward−looking statements can generally be identified by the use of forward−looking terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "intend," "estimate," "anticipate," "believe" or "continue" or their negative or variations or similar terminology. Forward−looking statements involve our current assessment of risks and uncertainties. Actual events and results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. A non-exclusive list of the important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements includes the following: adverse general economic and market conditions; increased competition; pricing and policy term trends; fluctuations in the actions of rating agencies and our ability to maintain and improve our ratings; investment performance; the loss of key personnel; the adequacy of our loss reserves, severity and/or frequency of losses, greater than expected loss ratios and adverse development on claim and/or claim expense liabilities; greater frequency or severity of unpredictable natural and man-made catastrophic events; the impact of acts of terrorism and acts of war; changes in regulations and/or tax laws in the United States or elsewhere; our ability to successfully integrate, establish and maintain operating procedures as well as integrate the businesses we have acquired or may acquire into the existing operations; changes in accounting principles or policies; material differences between actual and expected assessments for guaranty funds and mandatory pooling arrangements; availability and cost to us of reinsurance to manage our gross and net exposures; the failure of others to meet their obligations to us; and other factors identified in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The foregoing review of important factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with other cautionary statements that are included herein or elsewhere. All subsequent written and oral forward−looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by these cautionary statements. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward−looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.