The 50th edition of the IBIS Conference will be held online on Wednesday 13 May 2020 at 10am ET (1400 GMT/UTC, 1500 London time, 1600 CEST). It is the second one-hour roundtable of the 2020 IBIS event that covers the evolution of key global employee benefits and global mobility topics. The IBIS Conference will deal with the evolution of the COVID-19 crisis: Lessons learned; Unexpected consequences; and Innovative industry

The USA-based Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in May 2020 announced the cancellation of the 2020 Annual Conference & Exposition, citing “new directives from the San Diego Convention Center, the City of San Diego and the state of California”. The event previously was scheduled for late June in San Diego, CA. The cancellation is not really a surprise, as many U.S. states and foreign countries have prohibited large

The 50th edition of the IBIS Academy starts on Tuesday 12 May 2020 with the first of two one-hour roundtables that cover the evolution of key global employee benefits and global mobility topics. The IBIS Mobility Congress is devoted to refining global mobility strategies. On May 13, the IBIS Conference will deal with the evolution of the COVID-19 crisis: Lessons learned; Unexpected consequences; and Innovative industry response and solutions.

The tax division of global consultancy Deloitte in May 2020 published an analysis of permanent establishment and corporate residency issues in the context of the COVID-19 crisis. In a nutshell, employees stranded in a foreign country and performing remote work from there could unwittingly create a “permanent establishment” and/or a de-facto “corporate presence” in that country, which in turn would trigger tax consequences, potentially making their employer liable for

The 50th edition of the IBIS conference starts on Tuesday 12 May 2020. The longest-running international HR conference is available in a virtual format due (or is it thanks?) to the COVID-19 crisis. Two one-hour roundtables cover the evolution of key global employee benefits and global mobility topics: The IBIS Mobility Congress on May 12th at 10am ET is devoted to refining global mobility strategies. The IBIS Conference on

Multinational employee benefits network MAXIS Global Benefits Network (MAXIS GBN) in May 2020 announced the appointment of Mattieu Rouot as its new CEO. Based in London, UK, Rouot succeeds Mauro Dugulin who oversaw the move from France to London five years ago and the implementation of a strategy focusing on large corporates. Rouot is far from being a newcomer to MAXIS, having played a key role in shaping the

The 50th edition of the IBIS conference will be held on Tuesday 12 and Wednesday 13 May 2020. The longest-running international HR conference was moved online due to the COVID-19 crisis. Two one-hour roundtables cover the evolution of key global employee benefits and global mobility topics: The IBIS Mobility Congress on May 12th is devoted to refining global mobility strategies. The IBIS Conference on May 13th, titled “Crossfire –

Zurich, Switzerland-based ASN, Advisory Services Network AG, in April 2020 announced the appointment of Dr. Guglielmo Callipari as its Practice Leader for Corporate Health. Guglielmo is in charge of the expansion of corporate business outside of Switzerland. Dr. Callipari is a recognized expert in global benefits and multinational pooling. As Regional Managing Director, he developed and opened Generali Employee Benefits (GEB)’s offices across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, as well as

The non-profit association behind the Rendez-Vous de Septembre (RVS) international reinsurance industry conference in April 2020 announced it had canceled the 2020 edition. The organizers cited uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 crisis as the reason behind their decision. RVS brings together around 3 000 leaders from the global insurance, reinsurance, and brokerage industry and marks the beginning of the annual cycle of renewals of corporate insurance contracts and reinsurance treaties.

Willis Towers Watson (WTW) in April 2020 appointed Cyrille de Montgolfier as the new leader of its French business, Gras Savoye Willis Towers Watson (GSWTW), based in Paris. He brings over three decades of insurance industry experience to the role and will be responsible for setting the strategic vision of GSWTW, developing innovative solutions to client needs, and driving revenues across multiple lines of business. Since early 2019, de

MAXIS Global Benefits Network (MAXIS GBN) in April 2020 announced the appointment of David Watts as its new Director of Member Management, leading the network management team. The team includes four professionals. Based in London, UK, Watts reports to Jérôme Picon, Head of Finance & Operations. David previously was Senior Business Development Executive at MAXIS GBN. In 2002 he joined AIG Global Benefits Network (Alico) working as an Account

Due to global travel restrictions in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the organizers of the 2020 Transatlantic Conference in April 2020 announced its postponement to 2021. The conference was originally planned to take place in Brussels on 27 – 29 May 2020 and is now postponed to 2, 3, and 4 June 2021 in Brussels. The venue is the Crowne Plaza Hotel – Le Palace Brussels, Rue Gineste

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)’s Composite Leading Indicators (CLI) in April 2020 went into negative territory as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. The CLI was on the path to recovery after a low point in September 2019 when the trajectory abruptly changed for the worse. In March 2020, the CLI level is at 98.77 vs the Feb 2020 level of 99.57, up from Jan

The 2020 edition of the IBIS conference will be held online on 12 and 13 May 2020. The 50th edition of the IBIS conference initially was organized in Geneva, Switzerland, from May 11 through 15, 2020. The longest-running international HR conference had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 crisis and now has been moved online. Two one-hour roundtables will cover the evolution of key global employee benefits and

AXA in April 2020 struck a deal to sell its Life & Savings, Property & Casualty, and Pension business operations in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia to Austria’s Uniqa Insurance Group for €1bn. Uniqa, which lacked critical mass in major eastern European markets, outbid Generali, and Austria-based AG. Uniqa has core markets in Austria, Central and Eastern Europe, and 20,000 employees serving 10.1 million customers in 18 different

The 2020 edition of the IBIS conference will be held online on 12 and 13 May 2020. The 50th edition of the IBIS conference initially was organized in Geneva, Switzerland, from May 11 through 15, 2020. The longest-running international HR conference had to be cancelled due to the COVID-19 crisis and now has been moved online. Two one-hour roundtables will cover the evolution of key global employee benefits and

Willis Towers Watson’s International Pension Plan Survey Report 2019 was released at the end of January, 2020. The annual report summarises the results of their survey, which includes 932 international pension and savings plans (IPPs and ISPs) sponsored by 877 companies. In particular, the survey revealed that Assets Under Management (AUM) rose to €14.6bn (USD 15.8bn) from €13.6bn (USD 14.7bn), with the largest concentration sponsoring IPPs/ISPs from the banking

EIOPA, the EU’s insurance and pensions regulatory body, is urging insurance companies to halt dividends, buybacks and bonuses in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak. A statement released on 17 March 2020 stated: “Against this background of uncertainty, EIOPA urges that at the current juncture (re)insurers temporarily suspend all discretionary dividend distributions and share buy backs aimed at remunerating shareholders. This suspension should be reviewed as the financial and

Employee Benefits Propositions (EVP) are gaining in importance now that employers are more focused on offering a bespoke employee experience, and the Aon UK Benefits and Trends 2020 Survey shows that although the number of employers who have or are working towards an Employee Value Proposition remain similar (76%), there has been a significant increase in the number of employers who now communicate that EVP to staff. The survey shows

In the interest of fostering a more stable work environment for trans and non-binary workers, Lloyd’s of London in December 2019 published a guide for the insurance sector that helps managers understand how to make trans and non-binary employees feel included in the workplace. The proportion of colleagues who identify as trans or non-binary could rise from about 4% to as high as 20%, as younger people, many of

MAXIS Global Benefits Network announced in January 2020 the appointment of Damian Allepuz Lemmens to the role of Regional Manager, Western Europe. Lemmens is based in Paris, and reports to David Schupak, Regional Director for Western Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Lemmens leads a team of four employee benefits experts who work with MAXIS GBN’s strategic partners (brokers, consultants, and local member insurers) to develop employee benefits solutions

A team of Israeli scientists in December 2019 announced it had discovered a new treatment that reduces pancreatic cancer cells in mice by up to 90%. The survival rate for pancreatic cancer is fewer than 5 years, and current options for treatment require chemotherapy, which stops cell division in the whole body. This affects the whole body as there is no discriminatory targeting – causing, for example, hair loss,

The size of the global international private medical insurance (iPMI) market will reach an estimated US$17bn (£12.7bn) by the end of 2020, according to iPMI advisers from the McGrigor Group. McGrigor’s research reveals that Cigna in particular is number one in global iPMI, ever since its acquisition of Vanbreda in 2012, and advisers see the big regional winners as Sub Saharan Africa and South-East Asia. They noted that countries

New York Life Insurance and Cigna in December 2019 reached a deal for New York Life to acquire Cigna’s group life and disability insurance business for US$6.3 billion. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter of 2020, subject to applicable regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The group life and disability insurance business will operate within New York Life’s portfolio of strategic businesses and support

Aon in January 2020 announced the completion of its acquisition of SMB insurtech broker CoverWallet. Aon aims to increase its presence in the rapidly growing commercial insurance market for smaller businesses. The acquisition will allow Aon to utilise CoverWallet’s technology and data & analytics capabilities. CoverWallet joins the portfolio of Aon’s New Ventures Group, which functions as a growth-stage capability focused on delivering new sources of value to clients

To maintain a “stable corporate structure and capital flexibility” within the European Union, Aon has moved its parent company’s domicile to Ireland, effective April 1, 2020. The New York-listed company had announced its intent to move after the UK’s decision to leave the European Union in October 2019 and was awaiting approval from the Central Bank of Ireland, even though the company would not be a regulated entity. Aon

The French Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR) in January 2020 approved a reinsurance captive in France for payment solutions provider Worldline. The approval marks the first in almost 20 years, and only the fourth reinsurance captive in France. Worldline chose France as a jurisdiction based on the advice of Willis Towers Watson (WTW), which supported Worldline throughout all aspects of the process, from the initial opportunity study to