We are living through an era of strategic instability. Multinational businesses now operate in a world increasingly defined by geopolitical fragmentation, grey zone threats, and accelerating crises—from cyber sabotage and political violence to coercive trade policies and regulatory divergence.

In this keynote address, Yvan De Mesmaeker (M.Sc.Eng.), Secretary General of the European Corporate Security Association and senior advisor to multiple EU and defence bodies, will explore how corporate security is evolving in response to this volatility—and what lessons global programme leaders can draw from it. He will examine the most pressing systemic threats facing European multinationals, the shifting nature of resilience, and why alignment between corporate security, risk, and insurance functions is essential in today’s risk environment.

A brief rundown of the global insurance markets, looking at Europe, the US and Asia. The hard market is moderating but there are still issues such as the hardening reinsurance market, especially for property, and continued concerns overs inflation, social inflation and political and economic uncertainty around the globe.

• Where is the global insurance market headed in terms of rates, coverage and T&Cs?
• What are the outliers in terms of risks and covers, the areas of concern?
• Is there insurer appetite for emerging and difficult risks?
• What should risk and insurance managers do to secure the best possible deal in this fluid market environment?
• What were the big messages from Monte Carlo?

What are the major claims trends in the core property and liability lines? Which types of claims are causing risk managers and their insurers the biggest headaches and why? What are the expected claims black-spots and in which territories? What factors are driving these trends, both in property and liability. How is new technology and digitalisation improving claims management? And how can claims information be best used to inform risk mitigation and loss prevention efforts and improve risks?

As political and economic instability grows, there is an increasing risk of political violence and terrorism globally. Terrorism incidents, riots, political violence around elections, and civil disturbances are becoming increasingly common, impacting global business operations.
-       What insurance covers are available to corporates in this area?
-       Is the market expanding? Is capacity available? What is the pricing outlook?
-       What are the key developments in wordings and exclusions?
-       What is covered under standard property policies?

Global M&A activity has been growing in the last year or so and is expected to grow steadily in the next few years. Transactional risk insurance is playing an increasingly important role in the M&A sector, helping to protect both buyers and sellers in deals. Covers include warranty and indemnity, representation and warranties, tax liability, contingent legal risk, and environmental liability insurance.
-       What are transactional risks and how can they be mitigated?
-       What insurance covers are available and what do they cover?
-       How is the transactional risk insurance market looking for 2025?

Climate-related risks are on the increase as climate change brings record-breaking temperatures, increased flooding, devastating wildfires and more powerful storms. Adapting to the new climate “norms” is crucial, and the key is building resilience.
-       What is happening in the nat cat re/insurance market?
-       Where is the current market in terms of covers, pricing, T&Cs and availability of insurance for extreme weather.
-       How is the insurance industry looking to help corporates improve their resilience?
-       What is the role of parametric covers and captives in financing climate risks?

Around the world, liability risks are increasing, driven by litigation, regulations and consumer awareness. Social inflation is a huge issue, leading to massive claims and legal expenses. Class actions are a continuing problem in the US, where costs are spiralling and becoming unsustainable, with a worrying trend toward nuclear verdicts.
There are concerns that the EU’s Collective Redress Directive and the Product Liability directive will see the issue growing in Europe. There is a significant trend towards opt-out class actions in Europe, with the UK, the Netherlands and Slovenia introducing far-reaching mechanisms in recent years. Third party litigation funders across Europe are growing, and some US plaintiffs’ attorneys are opening offices in Europe.
-       What does this mean for the liability insurance sector in terms of capacity, rates, T&Cs?
-       What strategies are there available to corporates to tackle social inflation?
-       Will US style nuclear verdicts start to be seen in Europe?
-       Which areas are most affected by social inflation?

Many multinationals with global programmes will also have a captive insurer. A captive’s involvement in the setting and funding of retentions can be vital to a multinational programme. A captive is the one of the most cost-efficient ways to fill the gap between the group retention and the local retention levels. In addition, a captive can facilitate the ability to allocate premium to subsidiaries and operating units, and thereby improve loss control and risk management.
-       How important is a captive to a global insurance programme?
-       Is there a central role to be played, especially around retention levels and co-ordinating the different covers of subsidiaries around the world?
-       How can a captive be used in a global programme – as a primary insurer, reinsurer, or excess insurer?
-       Is the location of the captive relevant to a global programme in terms of regulatory and tax compliance?

Global regulations are continually shifting and impacting local markets as never before. This session provides an overview of the shift in regulations and the likely direction of travel for future regulation. It also provides an update on the tax situation around global programmes, and will examine some of the key considerations around insurance premium tax for multinational insurance programmes, including the implications of differing coverage mechanisms in global programmes, including Freedom of Services, non-admitted, DIC-DIL covers and financial interest clauses.

The UK chancellor’s announcement that it will support the creation of a regime for captives in the UK has been very well received in the UK risk and insurance management community. One leading captive expert has suggested that if done well the UK could become the world’s biggest captive domicile in 10 years. This session will investigate how exactly the regime will be created, what types of captives will be formed and how the London market can support the initiative among other important questions for risk managers.

This session will address the following core questions:

• UK captive regime: What’s the status, timeline and future of the UK onshore captive plan?
• Location strategy: Why choose the UK over traditional offshore captive centres?
• Captive scope: What types of captives will the new regime support (e.g. PCCs, third-party writers)?
• London market advantage: How do Lloyd’s and the wider market boost the UK’s captive appeal?
• Capability & talent: Does London have the expertise to support captives, and how can gaps be filled?
• Global positioning: Can the UK become a leading domicile and attract global captives?

Crucial areas for a successful global programme include premium allocation and the setting of retention levels. What needs to be considered when allocating premium? How much flexibility is there? What tax and regulatory requirements are there? It is vital to avoid conflict with local operations and this requires dialogue and clear communication of benefits.
On the setting of retention levels, multinationals must achieve a balance between the parent’s desire for a higher retention level and the benefits that it will bring, and the need to satisfy the subsidiaries’ requirements of a realistic retention level and the ability to finance it. This issue of internal pooling and funding the gap is crucial, and a captive can often play a key role.