What's happening
Carriers are expanding into new territory: Munich Re Specialty entered the Italian market with construction, property and surety lines, Zurich Kotak launched digital SME insurance (picked up by three outlets), and Slide grew its footprint in South Carolina. Behind that expansion sits a capital story: institutional investors poured money into reinsurance at the fastest pace in 2025 per Marsh Re, even as CatIQ raised its loss estimate for Montreal-area flooding to C$442 million, a reminder of what that capital ultimately backs. Meanwhile Co-op's insurance and funeral businesses are still propping up the group as it climbs out of its cyberattack, and a CVC-backed home insurer is reportedly delaying its IPO.
Why it matters
Fresh reinsurance capital gives carriers room to expand into new products and geographies just as cat-loss estimates keep climbing, a combination worth watching for pricing pressure heading into the next renewal season. The stalled IPO alongside a large private AI raise elsewhere in the wire suggests investors still favor funding infrastructure over betting on public insurtech listings, a gap worth watching for signs of narrowing or widening.