Strategic and tax implications

Solvency II is driving greater integration of risk management and business decision-making. This has significant implications for how risks are evaluated, how capital efficiency is judged and how and where insurers choose to compete. This includes potentially higher capital charges for policies with volatile or uncertain risk profiles such as guaranteed life products and long tail casualty business, and highlighting capital tied up in discontinued business. In addition Solvency II is driving companies to reconsider how they structure their operations, for example moving to branch structures for EU business.

Building Solvency II equivalence into your strategic plans (Video), April 2012 
Questions over equivalence under Solvency II could have important implications for how your business is structured, where it is domiciled and decisions over reinsurance and acquisitions.

Maximising value from your reinsurance spend, September 2011 
For CEOs and CFOs looking to differentiate their company and demonstrate value creation, using their Solvency II capital model to identify hidden redundancies in reinsurance spend is an easy win. The gains from making use of the capital models in this way go straight to the bottom line.

Managing the impact of Solvency II on your credit rating, July 2011 
The overlaps between Solvency II and rating agency analysis suggest that your implementation plans and strategic response to the Directive may have an important influence on your credit rating. However, achieving an improvement in your credit rating as a result of your investment in more effective risk management may be harder than many would hope. So how are rating agencies responding to Solvency II and how can you seek to ensure that the impact on your rating is not negative?

Understanding the implications of QIS5, March 2011 
The results from QIS5 published by EIOPA show that in many areas the requirements tested were broadly appropriate, but a significant number still require change.

Making your capital work harder, February 2011 
The fifth quantitative impact study (QIS5) has demonstrated that capital management structures that are tailored to existing regulation are likely to be less efficient under Solvency II. What can you do to improve your capital position?

How will Solvency II affect your credit rating? (Video), December 2010 
Simon Martin, a director in our Rating Agency Advisory team, assesses how rating agencies are responding to Solvency II and how it could affect your credit rating.

Driving capital efficiency. October 2010
Using Solvency II as a catalyst for more efficient capital, cost and tax structures.

Guide to undertaking QIS 5. July 2010
The fifth Quantitative Impact Study (QIS5) provides a last chance to guage the likely capital requirements and balance sheet impact on your business using the Solvency II European Standard Formula.  Here is a quick guide to undertaking QIS5 including timings, preparations and key people required.

QIS5: Solvency II. July 2010
An overview of QIS5 and how we can help.

Shaping up: Solvency II and M&A. April 2010
How will the strategic implications of Solvency II drive M&A and what will be the impact on the shape of the industry?