Sponsors secure cat bond discounts as spreads drop

Insurance spreads on new cat bond deals this year have dropped
by 12 percent on average during the marketing process, as
insurance-linked securities (ILS) sponsors pressed hard to take
advantage of a softening market.
This figure, based on data collected by sister title
Trading Risk, covers all new deals
marketed in 2017, excluding XL Catlin's Galilei Re 2017-1
transaction that was priced in late 2016.
Including Galilei, the reductions in final
premium compared to pricing targets was a more rest