EDITOR’S LETTER

Further interesting times in store

The physical war in Ukraine continues to shock as it destroys lives and infrastructure and forces civilians to flee their homes. The final outcome of this war being watched live on smart phones and TVs around the world is not yet known. But another, less visible, potential conflict is hiding in plain sight—the digital or cyber war.

Attacks in the cyber arena are nothing new, but the possibility of all-out cyber war has gained substance since Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022. To gain some insight into this relatively unknown quantity, Intelligent Insurer spoke to cyber experts to find out what it could mean for re/insurers.

Rob Rosenzweig of broker and risk management advisory firm Risk Strategies discusses serious marketplace concerns about this systemic risk and how the war has made the cyber landscape more volatile, commenting “it wasn’t a pretty place to begin with”.

William Altman from CyberCube outlines three potential cyber war scenarios, including the possibility of a “cyber disaster”. And space insurtech leader Sarah Bourke, of Skytek, explains how space technology is helping re/insurers assess war damage on the ground and at sea, while supporting sanctions efforts by tracking superyachts.

Intelligent Insurer also spoke to cyber experts Ian Newman and Ed Pocock of Gallagher Re about the cyber market more broadly and why it is one of the fastest-growing lines of business.

Focus on APAC

To get the inside track on the Asia-Pacific renewals for April 1, Intelligent Insurer held a special panel debate with market experts from the region.

They called the renewals “orderly” and “stable” but the diversity of Asia-Pacific countries and lines means that drama is never far away. However, as one Asia-Pacific panellist put it: “A boring renewal isn’t necessarily a bad renewal.”

That’s a feeling that many in the global industry will appreciate. And with more than two years of the COVID-19 pandemic under our belts, people have had their fill of living in interesting times.

But as recent events have shown, the interesting times look as though they’re here to stay.