Gallagher Re’s new Arthur Re Ltd. platform for index-trigger catastrophe bond transactions demonstrated how it can deliver on efficiency and speed to market with the recent $150 million Arthur Re Ltd. – Quercian Re 2026-1 issuance for first-time cat bond sponsor Oak Global, executives have said.
Originally we understood that Arthur Re was an Artex Risk Solutions managed structure, which had been specifically designed to make accessing the 144A catastrophe bond market more efficient for clients with a focus on index-triggered transactions, such as industry-loss cat bond deals.
It transpires that the driving force behind the Arthur Re platform is actually reinsurance broker Gallagher Re and its Gallagher Securities specialist capital markets and insurance-linked securities (ILS) division.
The idea with Arthur Re Ltd. seems to be to make index-trigger catastrophe bond sponsorship simpler, while also turning more industry-loss warranty (ILW) business into catastrophe bonds, enabling buyers of that kind of retrocessional protection to access multi-year capacity more easily and with lower friction.
Arthur Re is designed to streamline the process of sponsoring and issuing index catastrophe bonds, reducing the cost and the time needed to get transactions to market.
Gallagher Securities acted as the sole structuring agent and sole bookrunner for the debut Oak Global cat bond, Quercian Re 2026-1 which is the first transaction executed using and issued by Arthur Re Ltd.
The upsized 100% $150 million Quercian Re 2026-1 issuance provides OAK Reinsurance Syndicate 2843 with retrocession for US and Canada named storms and earthquakes, as well as US wildfire events, structured on an annual aggregate and industry loss trigger basis to run across a three year term to the end of May 2029.
Gallagher Re explained that the cat bond enhances Oak’s “underwriting portfolio with diversified capital markets capacity.”
Jason Bolding, Global CEO, Gallagher Securities, commented on the deal and its use of the new platform, “Quercian Re 2026-1 demonstrates the strength of Arthur Re as a platform to deliver faster, more efficient index catastrophe bond issuance, enhancing how we connect clients with capital markets.”
Paddy Ellis, Global Head of Retrocession, Gallagher Re, added, “This transaction highlights how Gallagher Re is product agnostic, integrating innovative retrocession solutions such as Arthur Re, and accessing the most suitable and cost-efficient capital for our clients.”
As a reminder, you can read all about this new Arthur Re Ltd. – Quercian Re 2026-1 catastrophe bond and every other cat bond transaction in the Artemis Deal Directory.
