Ledger placed $300mn+ of gross premium with capital markets in ‘21

Ledger Investing sourced capital in the casualty ILS market for more than 60 programs in 2021 and placed $300mn+ of premium directly into the capital markets in a year when it also launched its $150mn Nanorock casualty ILS fund which is understood to have backing from Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

In an update, the firm – which looks to match insurance risk with capital markets with a strong focus on the MGA and program space – said it established a “standard of operations” for ILS structures, modelling and deal execution, which led to record speeds of executing transactions.

“Our team condensed the securitization process into a few weeks instead of months. Ledger deals are faster than the industry for risk transfers while delivering better value with capital markets placements.

“2021 was a pivotal year globally for tokens and the commoditization of capital. We believe securitization is tokenization. Ledger securities are attractive to investors looking for insurance risk while resulting in more efficient capital for insurers and MGAs,” Ledger added in a statement.

The firm, which is led by former AIG executive Samir Shah as its founding CEO, said in 2022 it will offer a new “Ledger Connect” service, expand its platform capabilities and new apps to “democratize” access to its securities.

It will also look to provide “even more meaningful connections” for MGAs and brokers accessing licensed insurers and capital.

“We focus on bringing solutions to insurance core problems, expanding better technologies, and helping smarter capital allocations,” said the firm.

As previously reported, Ledger launched the Nanorock Fund to focus on investing in casualty risks and to bring multi-year capacity to MGAs as well as program insurance companies looking for an alternative to traditional reinsurance.

This publication revealed that the ILS fund is understood to have backing from Canadian pension fund Ontario Teachers’.

Ledger enables programs to be blended and bundled for securitization in deals that use the Ledger Connect platform, which aims to match capital markets with insurance risk.

Ledger does private placements with other ILS investors as well as with the recently established Nanorock Fund.

For MGAs the platform brings the prospect of efficient and reliable long-term capital at a time when capacity coming from traditional (re)insurers has proved to be inconsistent as a result of shifting risk appetites in recent years.

The creation of the fund also allows MGAs to access capital directly from pension plans and other institutional investors that otherwise they may not have the scale to reach.

Nanorock Fund will invest in workers’ compensation, general liability, commercial and private passenger auto liability as well as other casualty classes in the US and Europe.

Ledger works with fronting carriers to provide highly rated paper for programs that are securitised through the platform.

The structures are understood to use a capped quota share, including a risk corridor retained by the MGA that helps provide alignment of interest between the various parties in the transaction.