Life-insurance startup Ethos in May 2021 raised USD 200 million in a funding round valuing the business at more than 2 billion. The San Francisco, California-based company previously had raised a total of USD 100 million. Ethos is a producer and a third-party administrator (TPA) for life insurance carriers. Its platform allows customers to purchase life insurance policies online. Currently, the company works with a list of carriers that

Direct primary care provider Paladina Health in November 2020 changed its name to Everside Health

U.S. direct health insurer Oscar in June 2020 raised another USD 225 million in a late-stage round of funding. Led by co-founder and CEO Mario Schlosser, Oscar now is active in 15 U.S. states and has more than 420,000 members in individual, Medicare Advantage and small group products. Certainly helped by the coronavirus crisis, most U.S. healthcare providers today offer virtual consultations and ever more patients make use of

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

Generali Global Assistance (GGA) in February 2019 announced the acquisition of U.S. travel insurance specialist TripMate. GGA is Europ Assistance’s main brand name outside of Europe, and Europ Assistance is part of Generali Group. Based in Kansas City, Missouri, USA, TripMate is a specialized provider of travel insurance products. It acts as a managing general agent (MGA), operating as an intermediary between travelers and the U.S. travel insurance market. It

AXA Egypt in February 2019 joined pooling network MAXIS Global Benefits Network (MAXIS GBN). AXA Egypt is the second MAXIS partner in the country, along MetLife Egypt, and joins the global network of over 140 local insurers. AXA Egypt was established as recently as 2015 and is a multi-line insurance carrier, offering general insurance, life and protection insurance, health insurance, and micro-insurance plans. The company is ranked fourth in

French regulator ACPR in November 2018 gave its final approval to the merger between Malakoff Médéric and Humanis, effective January 1, 2019. Both companies are paritarian institutions and offer supplementary pensions and life and health insurance. The new leadership team announced in December 2018 includes: Thomas Saunier, CEO Michel Estimbre, Deputy CEO, in charge of supplementary pensions, Human Resources, IT, underwriting, and operations; Christophe Scherrer, Deputy CEO, in charge

Cigna in September 2018 announced the launch of Cigna Ventures, a corporate venture fund focused on transformative and innovative healthcare companies. Cigna has committed $250 million of capital to help it find, assess and sponsor early-stage innovation ideas that call for deeper exploration through pilots and test-and-learn activities. The $250 million will be used to invest in startups and growth-stage companies across three strategic areas: insights and analytics; digital

Insurer – Country of Destination – Date Announced – Source MS Amlin – Brussels – 28 June 2017 – Press release Lloyd’s of London – Brussels – QBE – Brussels – CNA Hardy – Luxembourg – RSA – Luxembourg – AIG – Luxembourg – FM Global – Luxembourg – Hiscox – Luxembourg – Liberty Mutual, Special Markets – Luxembourg – Admiral – Dublin – Beazley – Dublin – Chesnara –

American International Group (AIG) and Munich Re in June 2018 announced that AIG Life Ltd. (AIGLL), a UK subsidiary of AIG Life & Retirement, has agreed to acquire Ellipse, a specialist provider of group life risk protection in the UK, from Munich Re. Ellipse’s group protection products, which include life, critical illness and income protection, along with its technology-enabled business model with high levels of straight through processing (STP),

Manulife Financial Corporation in September 2017 announced a number of structural and leadership changes that are meant to drive better alignment with the company’s strategic priorities, accelerate growth, optimize legacy blocks of business in North America, and leverage its talent across geographies. The company will focus on creating stronger global alignment and direct accountability for its wealth and asset management businesses by bringing them together under the umbrella of

How do employers react to past hiring experiences when it comes to members of specific social categories? In Learning to hire? Hiring as a dynamic experiential learning process in an online market for contract labor, we investigate why job applicants run the risk of not being hired when they reveal their social category – in this case, their country of origin.

The strategic partnership between Allianz and Brokerslink, a company of brokers and risk consultant firms, is intended to give small and mid-sized enterprises better access to Allianz worldwide expertise and market access solutions. Brokerslink was created in 2004 as a global network of independent brokers. Since then, it has integrated a number of risk expert firms with a view to becoming a credible alternative to the mainstream models in

Alight, the former outsourcing business that Aon in February 2017 sold to private equity firm Blackstone, in June 2017 re-emerges as a standalone firm. Chris Michalak, CEO of Alight Solutions: “We are using this opportunity to ignite an entrepreneurial spirit and a culture focused on innovation to help companies and their people meet their rapidly changing benefits, HR and financial needs. […] we believe that businesses are powered by

After Aetna and Humana in December 2016 extended the deadline of their proposed merger to mid-February 2017 ( see here ), Anthem in January 2017 extended to April 30, 2017 its own deadline for completing its proposed merger with Cigna. All four healthcare providers await U.S. federal court rulings to decide the legality of their respective deals.

Employee benefits in France are provided by several types of insurance carriers, some of which are particular to that country—and that results in some confusion. Here is a brief overview of the main types of players. French English Translation Coverage Offered Applicable Laws and Regulations Institutions de Prévoyance (IP) Provident Institutions Paritarian Institutions Group health, life, pensions Social Security Code Groupe de Protection Sociale (GPS) Social Protection Group (grouping

Europ Assistance USA, a subsidiary of Generali Group and global provider of assistance services in the fields of travel, home and family, health, and automotive, has re-branded itself as Generali Global Assistance North America (GGA), effective 12 June, 2016. The multi-phase re-branding operation will begin with the company’s Identity Protection Services division. All products and solutions carrying the Europ Assistance USA name will be transitioned to fall under GGA

Lockton has named two-time British National Cycling champion Mark Kelly as Regional Commercial Lead for its Asia Pacific division after an extensive talent search. Kelly was hired from Aon’s Health and Benefits Asia Pacific division, and arrives with 12 years’ experience providing strategic advice and relationship management solutions to multinational companies around the globe. Kelly, who holds 23 British Championship medals in total, won the top spot first in

Lockton, the Kansas City-based risk management, insurance, and employee benefits consulting service, has just chosen Andrew Merrilees to head their Asia-Pacific Benefits operation based in Singapore. Lockton’s search for new leadership began in 2015, prompted by a surge in investment and growth in the Asia-Pacific region. Mike Tyler, Head of Lockton UK Employee Benefits, expressed confidence that the addition of Merrilees allows the company to drive faster development of

In the 20th-century, companies were predominantly capital intensive and competed on cost efficiency. The 21st-century company is different: competitive success depends on a company’s intangible assets, such as human capital and the capacity for research and development, requiring significant and sustained investment.

Willis announced the acquisition of PMI Health Group, an independent healthcare adviser and broker in the U.K. The deal will  raise Willis’s presence in the U.K. employee benefits and healthcare market, and  enhance its product offerings and skills base.

IGP welcomes Gothaer Lebensversicherung AG as their new Network Partner in Germany. Previously, Victoria Lebensversicherung -part of Ergo group and no longer in existence as a separate brand- was IGP’s German partner. Ergo Germany is no longer a member of a pooling network. Gothaer Germany remains a member of the new AIG network (formerly known as ING Global Network).  

Aetna will acquire Humana for cash and stock valued at $37 billion. The acquisition will push Aetna’s Medicare Advantage membership to  4.4 million and make it possible for the two companies to share knowledge and innovations in order to create better healthcare products, the company said. The deal is subject to regulatory and other approvals; it is expected to be completed in late 2015.

AIG in early May 2015 announced that it has acquired a controlling stake in Brussels-based ING Employee Benefits Global Network and renamed it AIG Global Benefits Network (AIG GBN). AIG’s American General Life Insurance Company unit joined the pooling network as the new US partner, taking the place of ING USA, recently spun-off and renamed VOYA. VOYA, in turn, exits the US global employee benefits market in order to

Willis in July announced three new members to Willis Network, bringing the total number to 119. The three new members are: Smith England Ltd (Cheshire), Bluestone Insurance Services Ltd (Gloucestershire) and Rankin Risk Solutions Ltd (Perthshire). The news follows the addition earlier in the year to the network of Allianz Business Services Ltd and Clark Thomson Insurance Brokers.

Mansard Insurance, a leader in the Nigerian employee benefits market, joins the MAXIS Global Benefits Network as a result of the acquisition by AXA of 100%  of Assur African holdings, which holds a 77% stake in Mansard Insurance plc. Through this acquisition, AXA has become the #4 insurance player in Nigeria. Interestingly, Mansard announced its joining of the Insurope pooling network on May 29, 2015.