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This dissertation consists of two topics. Chapter 1 examines the relationship between contingent commission use and underwriting performance as well as underwriting risk using data from 2005 to 2016. Top brokers were banned from receiving contingent commissions following the inquiry in 2004 led by Eliot Spitzer, former New York Attorney-General. But the ban raised concerns about whether it created a level playing field across the industry, as smaller brokers continued taking them. In addition, despite the possible conflicts of interest, contingent commissions have also been recognized as a way to better align agent and insurer incentives. Regulators agreed to relax the terms for the leading brokers in 2010, resulting in a less onerous compliance regime for contingent commission use. It is important to study the effectiveness of contingent commission use on improving underwriting performance. This study finds strong evidence supporting the hypothesis that contingent commissions’ usage is associated with better underwriting performance as well as lower underwriting risk. This study also finds a curvilinear relationship between underwriting performance and the level of contingent commission use. Chapter 2 investigates the impact of executive overconfidence on capital structure decisions and reinsurance purchases using a sample of 37 publicly-traded property-liability insurance groups for the period 2002 to 2016. This study finds that insurance firms with overconfident executives have significantly higher leverage ratios than those without overconfident executives. This study also finds evidence that insurance firms with overconfident executives cede more reinsurance, and this evidence is stronger for insurers with more limited business capacity than those with ample business capacity. The results of this study also indicate that overconfident executives prefer internal reinsurance to external reinsurance. This research provides evidence that personality traits of executive impact capital structure decisions and reinsurance purchases for insurance firms, which should be of interest to policyholders and regulators. / Business Administration/Risk Management and Insurance

This dissertation consists of two topics. Chapter 1 explores the relationship between U.S. Property-Casualty (P/C) insurers’ underwriting risk, investment risk, and leverage risk, using data from 1998 to 2013. I test the trade-off hypothesis using a simultaneous equation model framework with partial adjustment effects. The three equations model intend to examine the interrelations between insurers’ leverage and two measures of firm risks: underwriting risk and investment risk. The empirical evidence, various to different sample periods and model specifications, suggests there is no significant relationship existing between insurers’ underwriting risk and investment risk. But these two types of risks are both significantly and negatively related to the leverage ratio. The overall results imply that insurers tend to tradeoff leverage risk and underwriting risk/investment risk, but it appears that they have not taken an integrated approach between the total level of underwriting risk and investment risk yet. The second part of this dissertation empirically investigates the impact of credit risk on insurers’ reinsurance demand, using data on the U.S. P/C insurance industry from 2000 to 2014. I mainly explore how insurers’ credit rating status and downgrade risk affects their reinsurance demand. Using a two-stage least square (2SLS) regression model, I find that low-rated insurers are associated with a higher utilization of reinsurance. In addition, insurers that are downgraded in the previous year tend to have a higher reinsurance demand than the others. Results also show that downgraded group-affiliated insurers tend to significantly increase their internal reinsurance demand from the group-affiliated members while decreasing the purchase of external reinsurance significantly. In general, I find that insurers’ reinsurance demand is affected by their credit rating and downgrade risk. / Business Administration/Risk Management and Insurance

This dissertation consists of two essays. The first essay develops a new methodology for estimating the probability of informed trading from the observed quotes and depths, by extending the Copeland and Galai (1983) model. This measure (PROBINF) can be computed for each quote and it represents the specialist's ex-ante estimate of the probability of informed trading. I show that PROBINF exhibits a strong and robust relationship with the observed level of insider trading and with measures of the price impact of trades (ë) estimated based on the models of Glosten and Harris (1988), Madhavan and Smidt (1991) and Foster and Viswanathan (1993). In contrast, the alternative measure of the probability of informed trading (PIN) developed by Easley, Kiefer, O'Hara and Paperman (1996) exhibits a weaker and less robust relationship with insider trading and price impact of trades. The time series pattern of PROBINF in an intra-day analysis around earnings announcement is consistent with previous findings regarding informed trading. An important advantage of PROBINF over PIN and other measures of information asymmetry such as price impact of trades and adverse selection component of the spread is that, unlike these measures, it can be estimated for each quote, and thus can also be used to measure intra-day changes in informed trading and information asymmetry. In the second essay, I examine whether the underwriting syndicate composition influences the secondary market liquidity for initial public offerings (IPOs). Specifically, I argue that co-managers improve the liquidity of IPOs through the other services they provide, besides market making. Using a comprehensive sample of initial public offerings completed between January 1993 and December 2005, I find that IPOs with a high number of co-managers in their syndicates have lower spreads and a lower level of information asymmetry in the aftermarket. I argue that the information produced during the premarket and the analyst coverage in the aftermarket are the main channels through which co-managers mitigate the information asymmetry risk in the secondary market. / Ph. D.

本研究以風險管理觀點，由風險自留與再保險層面切入，探討核保風險之風險管理規劃理論與實務全貌。 經由了解風險自留與再保險之理論與應用，風險量化資料準備之前置作業實務以及如何解讀風險量化之數據，綜合提供風險自留與再保險之規劃流程全貌，以利管理者之決策參考。 本研究首先以剖析保險公司營運一般性風險與核心風險，針對核保風險之自留或轉嫁的風險控管方式。 以股東、核保經理人以及財務管理人不同觀點看待風險自留之差異性，以及不同再保方式對穩定經營績效之效益。 呈現實務作業流程，尋求理論與實務之相輔相成。 引用虛擬個案產險公司之風險量化數據，學習如何解讀分析資料，從中了解風險自留與再保險之利弊與效益。 關鍵詞：核保風險、風險管理、風險量化、核保經理人、財務經理人 / This study based on risk management viewpoint, tries to evaluate from the two directions of risk retention and reinsurance, to assess the theory and practices of underwriting risks management planning. Through the understanding of the theories and applications of risk retention and reinsurance, the preparation work of quantitative data of risks and analyze of quantitative risk data, summarize and provide a whole picture of risk retention and reinsurance planning workflow, to provide management people information of making decisions. This study begins with analysis of the general business risks and core business risks of an insurer, targeting at the two risk control vehicles which are the risk retention or the transfer of underwriting risks. From the viewpoints of shareholders, underwriting manager and finance manager to look at the difference of risk retention, and the stabilizing effects of various reinsurance that could create for the business performance. Both to present practical operation workflow, and to seek the integration of theory and real practice in daily business. This article also introduces the quantitative risk data of a simulation case of an example non-life insurance company, to explain how to interpret and analyze data, and to understand the benefits or shortages of using risk retention and reinsurance. Key words: Underwriting Risks, Risk Management, Risk Quantitative, Underwriting Manager, Finance Manager

本研究探討費率自由化政策與台灣產物保險市場經營效益，利用實證資料評估產物保險公司之整體經營績效及核保利潤。本研究自保險年鑑、台灣經濟新報資料庫及保險市場重要指標，選取1998年至2006年間財務及業務資訊來進行實證分析。 依Klein (1999)分類，台灣產物保險市場屬於類似獨占性競爭市場，產物保險公司高度競爭。依實證結果顯示，實施費率自由化政策，公司自留費用率持續緩慢增加，自留綜合成本率亦呈現上升趨勢。多數產物保險公司之實際核保利潤仍大於依Fairley (1979)計算之均衡核保利潤。 實證結果摘要如下： (1) 類似獨占性競爭市場：赫芬多指數皆小於0.1，市場呈現競爭狀態。1996年後，火險及車險之簽單保費成長率似乎每四、五年會呈現負成長。另外，1998-2003年費用率與公司規模呈現顯著負相關(p=0.01)。2004-2006年，此負相關並不顯著(p=0.1)，顯示大公司漸不具有成本優勢，即產險市場之進入障礙有減少之趨勢。 (2) 成本費用支出增加：除2001年外，1998至2006年之產物保險公司自留綜合成本率介於91.09% 和 93.49%。2006年之自留綜合成本率為93.49%。2006年之產物保險公司費用率上升至40.51% 且損失率下降至52.97%。 (3) 核保利潤呈現正值：依Fairley(1979)計算之2006年預期均衡核保利潤。20家產物保險公司，17家實際核保利潤大於預期均衡核保利潤。 / This paper provides an empirical study of rate deregulation plan and profit performance in Taiwan property-liability insurance market. The data used in this study are from Insurance Year Book, Taiwan Economic Journal Data Bank, and Important Indexes of Insurance Industry (Taiwan) during the period from 1998 to 2006. Based on the classification by Klein (1999), the market structure of Taiwan property-liability insurance industry is similar to monopolistic competitive market and the property-liability insurers are engaged in intense competition. The results of this study show that the expense ratios of insurers rise slightly from year to year and the combined ratios also follow a trend of increase. The actual underwriting profits of most property-liability insurers are larger than the expected numbers estimated by using the methodology in Fairley (1979). The empirical results are as follows: (1) The market structure is similar to monopolistic competitive market for that the Herfindahl indexes are all below 0.1. The growth ratios of written premium on fire insurance and automobile insurance seem to become negative every four or five years after 1996. Besides, the negative correlation between expense ratio and the scale of economics in insurance market from 1998 to 2003 was significant at the p = 0.01 level. However, this correlation from 2004 to 2006 was not significant at the p = 0.1 level. It seems that larger insurers do not have significant cost advantages over smaller insurers in the recent years, namely the entry barriers decline. (2) The expenses and costs keep increasing. Except 2001, the combined ratios ranged from 91.09% in 1998 to 93.49% in 2006. The expense ratio increased to 40.51% while the net loss ratio decreased to 52.97% in 2006. (3) The underwriting profits of most insurers are positive. The expected underwriting profits by using the methodology in Fairley (1979) is less than the actual ones in 2006. Among the 20 property-liability insurers, the actual underwriting profits of 17 insurers were larger than their expected underwriting profits.

This diploma thesis is centred on the importance of State support for exports. It defines the international rules which must be respected by State export policies, and deals with the basic principles and activities of institutions which together form the integrated system of State support for exports in the Czech Republic. Within this overall context, the practical component of this diploma thesis examines the work of the Czech State Export Credit Agency (EGAP), and describes their newly created Export Promotion Effectiveness methodology (EPE) which aims to evaluate the economic risk-benefit of a each business case. It goes on to describe the phases and steps of the underwriting process which every business case must go through. The underwriting process is illustrated with the help of a process map, and defines points at which the EPE model can be used. An important part of this diploma thesis represents a case study which demonstrates the application of the EPE model to a real business case.

Crop insurance is an essential risk management tool for America's agricultural producers because a single crop failure or disastrous year can eliminate the results of multiple years of profitability. Crop insurance is designed to provide financial protection to farmers; however, insurance managers who lack managerial underwriting strategies disrupt companies to the point of financial distress. Self-insurance and self-protection theory were the conceptual frameworks for this single-case study to explore successful strategies that insurance managers used to mitigate net underwriting losses. Four insurance and senior strategic managers from an insurance company in the midwestern United States were recruited through a purposeful sampling method to participate in semistructured interviews. Data gathered from these interviews and from the company's website and its public financial reports were analyzed through a reflective interpretation process, which was guided by the Van Kaam method. Five themes that emerged from this study, including disruptive technology, traditional underwriter vs. integrated profit-and-loss expert, streamlined applications by in-house technology or strategic alliances, opportunity assessment, and underwriting discipline. By implementing executive support for strategies to mitigate net underwriting losses, managers of crop insurance companies can overcome the challenges of net underwriting losses. The findings from this study may promote positive social change by lowering insurance premiums to the farm community and enabling managers to reduce risk to companies and farmers by distributing financial risk across a pool of participants thus enriching the stakeholders' investments.

Thesis (MBA (Business Management))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since its inception in 1998 as a wholly owned captive insurer, Sasguard has successfully supplied the short-term insurance needs of its parent company, Pioneer Foods Pty Ltd. Although the financial results of Sasguard increased steadily over this entire period, the insurer has never investigated the quality of its service regarding the perceptions of its internal support staff, who represent Sasguard to its client Pioneer. The objective of this research report was to critically analyse the insurer’s current risk underwriting and claims management procedures to determine if the current situation was acceptable and if not, to present proposals to reduce costs and to supply Sasguard’s internal clients (members of the parent company) with a better service. The tasks that were completed for this report were: • a literature study on aspects of risk management directly applicable to Sasguard; • critical analysis of the current risk underwriting and claims management procedures; • identification of shortcomings in the current structure; • collection of responses from internal support staff members by an electronic questionnaire; • critical analysis of those responses; and • proposals which Sasguard can implement to address identified shortcomings. The questionnaire was posted on Pioneer’s intranet site, and the entire population of 30 members was notified by email to complete and submit it within a specified period. Twenty-eight staff members did, with two on leave, for a 93% response rate. The responses were analysed in detail to form the basis of the empirical investigation. They were compared to the writer’s own observations, and together were used to develop conclusions and recommendations which Sasguard can implement in future to reduce both risk and costs associated with claims submitted by its internal clients. The main findings follow. Not enough representatives are at management level. Most (89%) want to increase their background knowledge of insurance, mainly through Sasguard. They want a paperless system to view claims. They were divided on whether to establish a workshop to recover parts of disused vehicles; more study is needed. They want to simplify the process of getting quotes and thus facilitating claims. They want better two-way communication. They favoured using the claims history of a branch, along with other forms of reward, to motivate supervisors and drivers, and others, to reduce the accident rate. The issue of whether out-sourced drivers have increased accident claims needs more study. Indeed, the legal employment status of out-sourced drivers needs to be addressed. Most of the internal client representatives were satisfied with the speed of claims settlement, but nearly a third were not entirely satisfied, which the researcher interprets as a cause for concern. Furthermore, one fourth would consider moving to a traditional insurer; this perception also is worrying and can be addressed, possibly through better understanding of the captive insurer and its practices. Proposals followed from the findings, hopefully to be implemented in due course. While results cannot be generalised, they can be provide insight to other captive insurers, especially those in a manufacturing environment similar to that at Pioneer Foods. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Vanaf die totstandkoming van Sasguard as ‘n alleenbeheerde gevange versekeraar in 1998, was die maatskappy deurgaans instaat om in sy moeder maatskappy se korttermyn verskeringsbehoeftes te voorsien. Alhoewel Sasguard se finansiële resultate vir die totale periode voortdurend gegroei het, het die versekeraar dit nooit voorheen nodig geag om ‘n ondersoek te loods om te bepaal of dit werklik in sy interne kliënte se verskeringsbehoeftes voorsien het aldan nie. Die oogmerk van hierdie navorsingsverslag was om ‘n kritiese analise op die versekeraar se huidige onderskrywings en eise besturingsmetodes toe te pas om daaruit te bepaal of die huidige metodes wel voldoende is aldan nie. Indien daar bevind sou word dat die huidige metodes nie voldoende is nie, voorstelle te ontwikkel om die koste van eise te verminder en ‘n beter diens aan sy interne kliënte te kan lewer. Die voortvloeinde take van die werkstuk is: • ‘n Literatuurstudie op daardie aspekte van risikobestuur wat ‘n direkte invloed op Sasguard se besigheidsomgewing het; • Kritiese analise van die huidige metodes om risko te onderskryf en eise te bestuur; • Om tekortkominge in die huidige struktuur te identifiseer; • Verkryging van die versekeraar se interne ondersteuningspersoneel se opinies deur ‘n elektroniese vraelys; • ‘n Kritiese analise van die respondente se antwoorde; en • Voorstelle wat Sasguard kan gebruik om die geidentifiseerde tekortkominge suksesvol aan te spreek. Die vraelys was op die maatskappy se intranet netwerk geplaas en e-posse is gebruik om elke individuele respondent in kennis te stel om die vraelys te voltooi binne ‘n bepaalde tydperk. ‘n Totaal van 28 uit die 30 populasie het die vraelys voltooi, vir ‘n totale reaksie van 93 persent. Die antwoorde vanaf respondente is getabuleer en het gedien as basis van die empiriese studie. Deur die getabuleerde data met die skrywer se eie observasies te vergelyk kon voorstelle ontwerp word wat die versekeraar in die toekoms kan gebruik om aan die een kant sy blootstelling aan risiko te verminder en aan die ander kant sy eisekoste te verlaag. Die hoofbevindinge van die studie volg hiernaas. ‘n Grooter aantal interne kliënt verteenwoordigers moet op bestuursvlak dien by die interne kliënt. Die meeste van hierdie verteenwoordigers het ‘n behoefte daaraan om hulle verskeringskennis uit te brei, hulle verkies ‘n papierlose sisteem waarop vordering van hulle ingediende eise vertoon word, hulle het ‘n behoefte aan ‘n meer eenvoudige proses om kwotasies te verkry en hulle benodig verbeterde tweerigting kommunikasie. Hulle is optimisties dat aksies waardeur goeie drywers erkenning ontvang ‘n positiewe invloed kan hê op hierdie drywers, asook ander individue, wat daardeur ook toekomstige eise sal verlaag. Die terugvoer was dubbelsinnig rakende die oprigting van ‘n sentrale onderdele verskaffer, die ongeluksratio van uitgekontrakteerde drywers, sowel as die wetlike aspekte rondom die status van hierdie drywers. Areas van kommer is die ontevredenheid van sommige interne verteenwoordigers ten opsigte van die spoed van eise afhandeling, asook die siening dat tradisionele versekering moontlik meer waarde kan bied as gevange versekering. Alhoewel die resultate van hierdie navorsingsprojek nie veralgemeen kan word nie, voorsien dit wel insig aan ander gevange versekeraars, veral vir organisasies wat in dieselfde vervaardigings-sektor as Pioneer Foods sake doen.

Résumé: Les progrès réalisés dans le domaine médical ont permis un prolongement de l’espérance de vie, l’amélioration de la qualité de vie des patients; ce qui implique aussi des changements dans des domaines comme l’assurance-vie. Le principe de la tarification en assurance-vie est basé sur la comparaison du risque (probabilité) de décès d’un individu candidat à une police d’assurance à celui d’une population de référence la plus proche possible du candidat. C’est ainsi que l’analyse de la littérature médicale est devenue un outil indispensable dans la sélection des risques. L’assurance-vie est présente en Afrique subsaharienne depuis environ deux cents ans, mais les assureurs ne disposaient pas jusqu'à nos jours d’outils de tarification spécifiques au contexte africain. A notre connaissance notre travail est le premier effort de ce type à s’intéresser à ce sujet. Son objectif est d’élaborer un outil de tarification qui tiendra compte des aspects spécifiques de la mortalité et de la morbidité sur le continent africain. Dans une première partie nous avons conduit une revue de la littérature médicale disponible sur différents problèmes de santé; dans une seconde étape nous avons identifié les facteurs de risque de morbidité et de mortalité afin de proposer une sélection des risques pour une tarification. Les résultats montrent que les études de mortalité, et principalement les cohortes de suivi à long terme sont rares en Afrique subsaharienne; la majorité des études sont de courte durée et en plus elles enrôlent un nombre restreint de patients. Ces insuffisances ne permettent pas une analyse actuarielle approfondie et les résultats sont difficiles à extrapoler directement dans le domaine de la tarification. Cependant, l’identification des facteurs d’aggravation de la mortalité et de la morbidité permettra un ajustement de la tarification de base. Le sujet noir africain présente un profil de mortalité et de morbidité qui est sensiblement différent de celui du sujet caucasien, d’où la nécessité d’adapter les outils de tarification actuellement utilisés dans les compagnies d’assurance qui opèrent en Afrique subsaharienne. L’Afrique au sud du Sahara a besoin aujourd’hui plus que jamais de données épidémiologiques solides qui permettront de guider les politiques sanitaires mais aussi servir au développement d’une sélection des risques adaptés au contexte africain. Ceci passera par la mise en place d’un réseau coordonné de santé publique, un système de surveillance démographique fiable et un suivi continu des mouvements de la population. Pour atteindre un tel objectif, une collaboration avec les pays développés qui sont déjà très avancés dans de tels domaines sera nécessaire. / Abstract: Progress in medical research has prolonged life expectancy, improved patient quality of life; these changes translate in such domain as life insurance underwriting. The principle of underwriting in life insurance is based on the comparison of the probability of death of an individual candidate for an insurance policy to the probability of death of a reference population closed to the candidate. A review and analysis then becomes an of the medical literature become an indispensable tool for risk selection. Life insurance has been present in sub-Saharan Africa for approximately two hundred years, but up to date the insurers do not have specific underwriting tools which are adapted to the African context. This work is the first one in our knowledge to explore risk selection for Life insurance in Africa. Its purpose is to elaborate underwriting tools which will take into account specific aspects of mortality and morbidity in sub-Saharan Africa. First, we made a literature review of all available medical publications on different health problems; then, in a second step, we sorted out the risk factors for both morbidity and mortality, in order to suggest algorithms for underwriting risk selection. It appeared rapidly that mortality studies, and mainly long-term follow-ups, are scarce in sub-Saharan Africa. When they exist, they are of short duration, and enrol a limited number of patients. This makes our analysis and extrapolation of risk difficult for underwriting purposes. However identification of morbidity and mortality factors is important to allow some basic underwriting. The black African has a mortality and morbidity profile which are appreciably different from the one of a Caucasian subject. Consequently it will be important to adapt the underwriting tools used for underwriting life insurance in sub- Saharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa needs more than ever solid epidemiological data, and health policies implementation for the development of risk selection in insurance medicine. These changes mean the implementation of a coordinated public health network, a reliable demographic monitoring system and a continuous follow-up of the population’s migration. To reach such objectives, the collaboration with developed countries which are already very advanced in these fields will be very useful.