CAS Talks Mergers and Acquisitions, Finite Insurance at Phoenix Meeting

The actuarial role in mergers and acquisitions and the future of finite insurance will be among the topics featured at the Spring Meeting of the Casualty Actuarial Society (CAS), May 15-18, at The Pointe South Mountain Resort, Phoenix, Ariz .

The meeting provides a forum for actuaries and other professionals to stay abreast of current issues affecting the insurance industry and the actuarial profession, as well as opportunities to interact with other actuaries from around the globe.

The keynote speaker is Ron Pressman, president and CEO of GE Insurance, and chairman, president and CEO of GE Insurance Solutions.

Four general sessions are planned:

* The Actuarial Role in Mergers and Acquisitions will review the journey of an M&A process from the investment banking perspective, and discuss the various roles and responsibilities that actuaries play during a merger, acquisition or restructuring.

* The Future of Finite Insurance will review some basics of finite insurance and will present the viewpoints of an auditor, a rating agency, an insurer, and a finite insurance purchaser. It will discuss the prevalence of using finite insurance to mask true results and legitimate uses of finite insurance, as well as how to distinguish between the two.

* Actuarial Accountability in a Changing World will explore the possible implications of the review of the Actuarial Profession in the United Kingdom.

* The Industry’s Ability to Attract Capital Given Historically Low ROE will feature a panel of experts who will describe how the historical insurance industry ROE has been low relative to other financial industries such as banking, yet there have been capital infusions in this industry over the last several years. The panel will address questions such as: Is ROE the right measure for the insurance industry’s performance? If not, what is? And what are the motivations of the investors?

Other topics to be covered include: operational risk management, D&O insurance, auto injury claims, aviation pricing and modeling, Caribbean catastrophes and the Caribbean market, California workers’ compensation, loss reserving, enterprise risk management, medical malpractice costs, the future of TRIA, hurricanes and reinsurance, insurance accounting, predictive modeling, dynamic financial analysis, privacy of information, construction defects, and terrorism modeling, among others.

The registration fee is $725 for active members, candidates or subscribers of the CAS or of an actuarial organization worldwide and must be received by April 29. After that date, fees will increase by $50.

For more information, contact the CAS Meetings Department by phone, 703-276-3100; e-mail, meetings@casact.org; or visit the CAS Web site at www.casact.org.