Still no official word on Clarendon/Hannover Re deal
There is still no official word on the status of Hannover Re's proposed acquisition of the Clarendon insurance group, which has companies in the US and Bermuda.
TOPS Insurance goes into voluntary liquidation
TOPS Insurance Ltd., which is managed by Bermuda-based Oil Management Services Ltd., announced on February 2, 1999 that it was going into voluntary liquidation.
TOPS wrote total loss insurance coverage for offshore oil platforms mainly situated in the North Sea.
First International Bank of Grenada Ltd. et al v. David Marchant et al: Libel Complaint
Libel Complaint in First International Bank of Grenada Ltd., of Grenada; International Depositors' Reinsurance Corporation, Ltd., doing business as IDIC, of Nevis, and World Investors' Stock Exchange, of Grenada v. David Marchant and Offshore Business News & Research, Inc. at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
‘I see no evidence of fraud’, writes Grenada’s Chief Regulator
Letter to the Editor of Offshore Alert from Michael Creft, Grenada's Chief Regulator regarding the First International Bank of Grenada.
‘I see no evidence of fraud by FIBG,’ writes Grenada regulator Michael Creft
Letter to OffshoreAlert from Grenada's financial regulator Michael Creft regarding the First International Bank of Grenada, World Investors' Stock Exchange, Fidelity International Bank, International Exchange Bank, and International Deposit Insurance Corporation. Disturbingly, the letter was faxed to OffshoreAlert from FIBG's office.
In the Matter of The South African Mutual Life Assurance Society et al
In the Matter of The South African Mutual Life Assurance Society and In the Matter of Old Mutual Life Assurance Company (Bermuda) Limited at Bermuda Supreme Court.
Mutual Risk Management is Bermuda’s top insurance stock for second straight year
For the second consecutive year, the common stock of Mutual Risk Management has outperformed all other Bermuda-based, publicly-listed companies operating in the insurance/reinsurance sector. MRM's stock achieved a total investment return of 31.39 per cent for 1998, way ahead of its nearest rival, EXEL, which returned 20.93 per cent to investors. MRM's stock has now returned 100 per cent in two years.
Lloyd’s of London to investigate Stirling Cooke
Lloyd's Regulatory Board, the body that regulates the Lloyd's of London market, is soon to begin an investigation into Bermuda-based Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings that, in the worst scenario, could lead to the company's Lloyd's broking licence being suspended or even revoked.
Mutual Risk Management officers in heavy selling
Senior officers of Mutual Risk Management engaged in heavy selling of their company's stock from November 20-December 14, 1998, collectively off-loading 247,214 shares for $9,121,767 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Attorneys threaten OffshoreAlert with lawsuit over exposé of insurance-banking fraud
Offshore Alert has received two letters from attorneys threatening to sue us over the banking/insurance scandal involving World Investors Stock Exchange, International Deposit Insurance Corporation, First International Bank of Grenada, International Exchange Bank and Fidelity International Bank, that is exposed in the January 29, 1999 edition of Offshore Alert.
Banking-insurance scam advertisements ask investors to sign away their assets
Avertisement from 'Vincent Lachmi' and 'Dr. Vincent Kumar' starts appearing on the Internet in connection with fraud perpetrated in the names of the International Deposit Insurance Corporation, the World Investors Stock Exchange, Fidelity International Bank, International Exchange Bank and the First International Bank of Grenada.
Clarendon Insurance-Hannover Re deal may be off
Robert Ferguson, who is the President of the US/Bermuda-based Clarendon insurance group, was in Germany from January 20-23 in a last ditch bid to save the proposed sale of the company to German giant Hannover Re, we have been told. Although the outcome of his visit was not known to us at publication time, Ferguson told acquaintances before the trip that the deal was "99 per cent dead", according to a source.
OffshoreAlert exposes massive offshore banking and insurance fraud
Offshore Alert can today expose a massive fraud involving at least three banks, an insurance company and a stock exchange into which investors are believed to have invested tens of millions of dollars. Participants in the scam include the World Investors Stock Exchange in Grenada, the International Deposit Insurance Corporation in Nevis, the First International Bank of Grenada, the International Exchange Bank, which is registered in either Nauru or Grenada but operated out of Bermuda and Texas; and Fidelity International Bank, which is registered in Nauru but operated from St. Vincent.
David Brown’s ‘no downside’ $20 m share loan
Former Centre Solutions boss David Brown can hardly lose in his new venture, Gemini Re Holdings, which recently filed a prospectus with the SEC in relation to a planned $400 million IPO.
‘Apologize and pay damages’, demands IDIC’s attorney
Letter to the Editor from Gerald Burton threatening to sue OffshoreAlert for libel on behalf of his client, IDIC, a fraudulently-operated offshore 'insurer'.
Gemini Re Holdings files SEC prospectus for $400 million IPO
Bermuda-registered Gemini Re Holdings Ltd. today filed an S-1 registration statement with the SEC as the first step towards a proposed $400 million IPO.
It is intended at this stage that the offering, which is being handled by Merrill Lynch and Chase Securities, will be valued at $15 per share and that the shares will be listed on NASDAQ.
IDIC – a bogus insurance company in Nevis
A Nevis company that purports to provide insurance for depositors at offshore banks may be a scam similar to one used to attract funds to the European Union Bank in Antigua that was closed down last year after fleecing investors of several millions of dollars, we can disclose.
International Depositor's Reinsurance Corporation Ltd., which does business as International Deposit Insurance Corporation or IDIC, has all the hallmarks of a fraud. It is in breach of Nevis law by using the word 'Insurance' in its trading name and by passing itself off as an insurance company in its promotional literature at its web-site at http://www.depositinsurance.com.
Bruce Barone abruptly leaves Overseas Partners
Bruce Barone suddenly left as President and CEO of Bermuda-based reinsurer Overseas Partners Ltd. amid rumours that the company may have lost money trading in derivatives.
No official reason has been given for Barone's departure but the speed of his exit and the fact that no replacement has been lined up indicates there was a major disagreement between Barone and the company's board of directors.
Grant Gibbons involved with proposed $1 billion Bermuda reinsurer
Former Bermuda Finance Minister Grant Gibbons has been appointed a founding director of a newly-formed holding company set up to raise $1 billion for a new reinsurer in Bermuda, we can disclose.
The involvement of Gibbons, who is part of one of the most influential and wealthiest families in Bermuda, is a shot in the arm for the project, whose existence we revealed last month.
Carlos Miro: ‘Mark Cooke knew I was a crook but did business with me anyway’
The seemingly never-ending flow of negative information that is passed our way about Bermuda-based Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings Limited continued this month when our attention was drawn to Page 43 of the 1994 'Wishful Thinking' report published by a US congressional sub-committee chaired by John Dingell.
The content of this page formed part of a look at the illegal activities of Carlos Miro, who received a lengthy prison sentence in the US for insurance fraud in connection with his Louisiana-based company, Anglo-American Insurance, which also had a UK arm.
MRM’s Legion Insurance fined for selling unapproved policies
Legion Insurance, the Philadelphia based subsidiary of Mutual Risk Management, has been fined $75,000 by regulators in Washington State for violating state insurance laws.The fine was levied earlier this month "for continuing to market and sell medical malpractice insurance in
Mark Hardy has work cut out to attract business in Bermuda
Businessman Mark Hardy, whose Bermuda based insurance group collapsed over 1990 91, has set himself up in London as a 'Regulatory and Statutory Compliance Consultant' and has started soliciting business from insurers and reinsurers on the island, claiming to have
Sealed indictment in Dai Ichi Kyoto Re, Kobe Re and North American Fidelity & Guarantee fraud
The US Attorney's office has filed sealed indictments against two people believed to have been responsible for one of the world's biggest insurance frauds, involving Dai Ichi Kyoto Re, Kobe Re and North American Fidelity & Guarantee, Offshore Alert can reveal.
Belvedere Insurance Company Ltd.: Section 304 Petition
Section 304 Petition for Assistance in Insolvency Proceedings in Bermuda by Malcolm Butterfield and Anthony McMahon, as the Foreign Representatives of Belvedere Insurance Company Limited, at the U. S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
State of Florida v. John McGarrity et al: Criminal Indictment
Criminal Indictment alleging racketeering and securities fraud in State of Florida v. John McGarrity James T. Staples, Joseph Monaco, James Deas, Francis Clarkson, John McGarrity, John Manion, Jeff Mann, Rich Mann, David Trotter, Steven Schaefer, Jeno Koch, and Julie Gilvary at Florida Supreme Court.
Stirling Cooke share price roller-coaster
The share price of Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings has endured a roller-coaster ride on the NASDAQ stock exchange since our disturbing revelations about the company last month.
Following our story, the share price quickly dropped to an all-time low of $11.125, which represented a 63 per cent drop in just five months and a fall of 49 per cent on its IPO price of $22 last November when the company was taken public by Goldman Sachs.
Details of Clarendon insurance group’s past shady dealings
An extract that mentions the Clarendon Insurance Group that appeared in the 'Failed Promises' report into the insurance industry that was published in the early 1990s by a US Congressional committee chaired by John Dingell.
Bermuda Insurance Index loses 22 per cent of value
The FTSE/BSX Bermuda Insurance Index, which was launched on July 15, 1998 with a value of 1,000 and broadly tracks the performance of the island's insurance market, had lost 22 per cent of its value by September 29, falling to 773.36. Such a large fall could indicate it might be an opportune time to buy into the Bermuda Insurance Index Fund Limited, which received approval this month to list up to 10 million non-voting common shares.
Arbitration farce forces Belvedere Insurance into liquidation
Belvedere Insurance Company Limited has gone into permanent liquidation after an arbitration hearing that could have saved the company turned into a fiasco. BICL had been pinning its hopes for survival on a favourable ruling on its claim for $9.6 million in underwriting and run-off fees against fellow Bermuda company GTE Reinsurance Company Limited. But the arbitration hearing on September 21, 1998 ended almost as soon as it began after panel chairman Sir Charles Staughton QC rejected BICL's choice of liquidator, Richard Grey.
GTE Re cites reasons why Belvedere Insurance is insolvent
GTE Re applies to wind-up Bermuda-based Belvedere Insurance Company Limited.
Arbitrations: What public companies must disclose
Virtually every insurance or reinsurance contract written in Bermuda these days has a clause stating that claims disputes should be arbitrated, rather than litigated. The intention is to save money and time but a massive drawback for insurance and reinsurance buyers is that, unlike lawsuits, arbitrations are held in secret so you never know who the bad payers are or which companies have practices that border on the criminal.
MRM takes battering on Yahoo! stock message board
Mutual Risk Management has been one of the best-performing stocks in any sector since it went public in June, 1991 but you wouldn't think so from the postings on a popular Internet message board run by Yahoo! and used by analysts, investors and others to 'discuss' the firm's stock.
Reports implicate Stirling Cooke in fraudulent insurance schemes
Two reports into Stirling Cooke Brown that were compiled two years ago by a London firm of insurance investigators on behalf of a client gives an interesting insight into the history of the Bermuda-based insurance broker, particularly allegations that the company was involved in a reinsurance spiral.
The alleged spiral that we have been told has dragged Stirling Cooke and the Clarendon group into arbitrations in London at least partly involves North American Fidelity & Guarantee and Stockholm Re (Bermuda).
Lawsuits brought against Clarendon, Martin Hoffman and Eton Management
Further allegations of wrongdoing against entities involving Clarendon Insurance Group Managing General Agent Martin Hoffman and Clarendon itself are contained in two US lawsuits currently awaiting trial.
Both actions were filed at the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York by the administrators of Qualis Care L. P., which is currently in bankruptcy.
Stirling Cooke’s share price drops like a stone amid more allegations of murky past
As the share price of Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings Limited continues to plummet for reasons that appear unrelated to the general market slide, Inside Bermuda has uncovered fresh evidence that casts an extraordinarily negative light over the company and its main business partner, the Clarendon insurance group.
USA v. Zenichi Konishi et al: Criminal Indictment
Criminal Indictment in USA v. Zenichi Konishi and John Doe, a.k.a. Steven Baker, at the U. S. District Court for the District of Delaware.
GTE Re applies to wind-up Belvedere Insurance in dispute over $9M fee
A dispute between Belvedere Insurance and GTE Reinsurance Company, which are both based on the island, turned ugly this month when the latter applied to Bermuda Supreme Court to have the former wound up.
The irony of GTE Re's application is that the company is believed to be a net debtor of Belvedere's, rather than a net creditor.
Raydon/Stockholm Re in arbitration
Two applications have been filed at Bermuda Supreme Court recently in relation to an arbitration between Stirling Cooke Brown subsidiary Raydon Underwriting Management and Stockholm Re (Bermuda), which folded a few years ago.
Florida businessman indicted, Stirling Cooke ordered to place $500,000 into escrow
Businessman David Sanz was criminally indicted in the US last month to face charges of racketeering, grand theft and fraud in relation to Florida-based Gulf Atlantic Management Group Inc., which he owned.
The offences include an allegation that Sanz illegally stripped off millions of dollars from GAMG over several years and, in a final flourish as the regulatory net closed in, sold its entire book of business of GAMG and that of a related company to Stirling Cooke Insurance Services for $1 million.
More trouble for Clarendon Insurance and Martin Hoffman new lawsuit filed in New York
Clarendon National Insurance Company, Eton Management and Martin Hoffman have all been named as defendants in a lawsuit filed on June 15, 1998 in New York Southern Bankruptcy Court by Qualis Care LP, an entity owned by Hoffman that is currently in administration.
Last year, the same plaintiff brought an action in the same court against Hoffman's Barbados-based Knightsbridge International Reinsurance company: a case that is currently awaiting trial.
Shurely Shome Mishtake! Clarendon Insurance Group’s questionable regulatory disclosures
Annual statements filed with regulators by Clarendon National Insurance Company are becoming increasingly confusing, not to mention inaccurate in places.
Take, for example, its 1996 filing with the New Jersey State Insurance Department, the home regulator for this operating arm of a group that has subsidiaries in Bermuda and the US.
David Brown takes reduced role at Centre Solutions
Has David Brown stepped down as head of Centre Solutions?
Bermuda Fire & Marine liquidators rejected $10-$15 m offer to settle lawsuit
Defendants in a fraud lawsuit involving Bermuda Fire & Marine Insurance Company made an offer last year of between $10 million and $15 million to settle the case, OffshoreAlert can reveal.
However, Bermuda Fire's liquidators, Ernst & Young, rejected the offer on the grounds that it fell substantially short of what was acceptable, said a source whose company is owed money by Bermuda Fire.
Mark Hardy’s bankruptcy annulled in the UK
The bankruptcy of former Bermuda-based businessman Mark Hardy has been annulled in London, OffshoreAlert can reveal.
Creditors of seven failed Hardy companies, including Forum, Focus and Aneco, which were all based in Bermuda, agreed to the annulment three months ago in return for Hardy signing over various assets and debt recovery rights relating to his failed business empire.
John Deuss lays off staff at Transglobal Insurance after disappointing results
Transglobal Insurance (Holdings), which is owned by Bermuda-based oil magnate John Deuss, is changing its senior management, cutting back expenses and altering its marketing focus in the wake of disappointing results in its first 18 months in business.Transglobal president Lionel ‘Kip' Herring is being laid off shortly and the company's controller, Beau Franklin, left recently to join another firm in Bermuda.
Lawsuit alleged impropriety against Martin Hoffman, proves his links with Clarendon/Spencer-Arscott
A lawsuit filed three years ago in New York is revealing in that it includes details of another business deal involving Martin Hoffman that ended in tears amid allegations of fraud and dishonesty and shows a link between Hoffman, the Bermuda/US-based Clarendon insurance group and Bermuda insurance consultant Robin Spencer-Arscott.
Kemper Re settles with EMLICO liquidators
Kemper Reinsurance and the Bermuda-based joint liquidators of Electric Mutual Liability Insurance Company have announced a settlement of their long and acrimonious dispute over EMLICO's insolvency.
Bermuda Stock Exchange ready to launch insurance index
The Bermuda Stock Exchange will next month launch an index and mutual fund that will track the performance of ten publicly-listed insurers and reinsurers based in Bermuda.
Stirling Cooke – profit up but what lies around the corner?
Stirling Cooke Brown Holdings, a publicly-listed company over which there are several question marks, has reported a profit of $4 million for the three months ended March 31, 1998 - a 41 per cent increase on the same period a year earlier.
The company reported that revenues went up by 39 per cent to $19.9 million, while reporting that expenses also increased by 39 per cent to $15 million.
Bermuda Insurance Market Ownership Review: 21 officers worth over $10 million
RenaissanceRe president and CEO James Stanard has topped a survey valuing the shareholdings held by the top officers of Bermuda-registered publicly-listed insurers in their own companies, with a stake valued at $48.7 million on March 16, 1998.