Downtown KC attracts company, 400 jobs from Overland Park

Oct. 25--Swiss Re, a reinsurance company based in Switzerland, plans to relocate its Overland Park office and 400 jobs to downtown Kansas City.

The move is expected in late 2018; the company will lease space at One Kansas City Place at 1200 Main Street.

"We're excited about our move to downtown Kansas City, Missouri. This is as an opportunity to be closer to our lead U.S. regulator and update our workspace to meet the work needs of today," Eric Smith, president and chief executive of Swiss Re Americas, said in a written statement. "Kansas City is a great location for our company, and we look forward to partnering with Missouri."

Wednesday's announcement comes not long after Gov. Eric Greitens paid a visit last week to Swiss Re's headquarters in Zurich, Switzerland. Greitens' trip was said to be a mission to promote Missouri's business climate and investigate technology and cybersecurity for the insurance industry.

"My job is to fight for jobs," Greitens said in a statement. "I'm proud to say that our work is getting results. We're taking the state in a new direction, with more jobs and higher pay."

The Missouri Department of Economic Development said Swiss Re could access up to $19.8 million in public incentives through the Missouri Works program over the next 5 years.

Swiss Re is a $33 billion global reinsurance business; reinsurance is insurance for insurance companies.

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