June 7: Business Briefs

American Safety postpones AGM after merger

American Safety Insurance Holdings, Ltd. annual general meeting scheduled for July 22 will be delayed.

ASI said this was because of its recently announced merger agreement among Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited, Fairfax Bermuda Holdings Ltd. and ASI. The Company anticipates that the meeting will be held in conjunction with the special meeting called for shareholders to vote on the merger.

First Atlantic adds Kount

First Atlantic Commerce (FAC) announced the addition of Kount, a comprehensive risk management and fraud protection service, to the FAC payments platform to protect its merchants against card-not-present fraud.

Online fraud continues to increase in size, sophistication and speed, which means that an all-in-one fraud management system is crucial for online merchants to not only detect fraudulent transactions, but to reduce decline rates on suspicion of fraud.  

CEO of FAC, Chris Burns said in a press release: “We researched and considered all of the top-level suppliers in this space to find the right solution for our merchants. Kount was the obvious choice. We are delighted to be working with Kount to enable our merchants to increase sales, and significantly reduce chargebacks and fraudulent transactions.”

Arden bought for $80m

Enstar Group Limited said it has entered into definitive agreements with Arden Holdings Limited under which Enstar will acquire Atrium Underwriting Group Limited and Arden Reinsurance Company Limited. 

Atrium is an underwriting business at Lloyd’s of London, which manages Syndicate 609 and provides approximately one quarter of the syndicate’s capital. Atrium specializes in accident and health, aviation, marine property, non-marine property, professional liability, property and casualty binding authorities, reinsurance, upstream energy, war and terrorism insurance, cargo and fine art. 

Arden Reinsurance is a Bermuda-based reinsurance company that provides reinsurance to Atrium and is currently in the process of running off certain other discontinued businesses.

The purchase price for Atrium will be approximately $183.0 million and the purchase price for Arden Reinsurance will be approximately $79.6 million. 

Steve Cook, CEO of Atrium, said in a pres release: “We are delighted to be able to play a key role in Enstar’s strategic expansion into the ‘live’ underwriting environment. Atrium intends to continue its existing strategy and plans under Enstar’s ownership whilst evaluating opportunities that may arise from Enstar’s future acquisitions. Atrium believes it has found a culturally compatible and financially secure strategic owner.” n

Appleby makes top 25 list

For the third consecutive year has been named one of Private Client Practitioner’s Top 25 Trust Companies.

The Top 25 Trust Companies initiative aims to identify, recognise, introduce and promote the leading players in the market. The Top 25 are selected based on data received from over 100 companies on areas such as number of client facing directors, number of client facing trust officers/managers, total number of staff and fee income.

Farah Ballands, partner and group head of Appleby’s Fiduciary & Administration Services said in a press release: “We are committed to providing our clients with high quality advice and expertise across our multiple jurisdictions. 

“Our recent accolades, including scooping ‘Caribbean Trust Company of the Year’ at the prestigious Citywealth International Financial Centre Awards 2013, reinforce Appleby’s market-leading position in the field of Trusts. Our recent acquisition of Caledonian in the Isle of Man will further bolster our Fiduciary & Administration capability, offering clients access to unrivalled expertise across the offshore market.” n