XL chief eyes gains from head start in reinsurer mergers

By Jonathan Gould

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Reinsurer XL Group Plc's (XL.N) rapid $4 billion (2.5 billion pounds) takeover of Lloyds of London [LOL.UL] underwriter Catlin Group will give it an advantage over rivals in an expected wave of reinsurance sector mergers, XL's chief executive said on Wednesday.

Near-zero interest rates and fierce competition have led to predictions the market will split into very large or very specialised reinsurers, with medium-sized players forced to merge to stay profitable.

Renaissance Re (RNR.N) completed its purchase of Platinum Underwriters in March, while Axis Capital Holdings' (AXS.N) move to buy PartnerRe Ltd (PRE.N) is facing a rival bid from investor Exor SpA (EXOR.MI).

"We're awfully happy to be able to take advantage of the confusion that mergers create for others," XL Chief Executive Mike McGavick told Reuters.

XL's takeover of Catlin, which was announced in January and completed in April, catapulted the company to the No. 8 position in property and casualty reinsurance globally with premiums of more than $3 billion, McGavick told Reuters.

Insurance companies are buying more of their reinsurance from a smaller number of reinsurers with larger and safer balance sheets, so being in the top tier will keep XL Catlin in the lineup for that business, McGavick said.

Credit rating agency Moody's listed XL as being No. 19 and Catlin as No. 25 based on 2013 premiums.

Mergers among reinsurers often prompt insurance clients to seek out third parties to avoid placing too much business with the combined company, but McGavick said he saw little chance of this in XL Catlin's case.

"The number of places where there is overlap is very small," he said, adding there would be ample prospects for cross-selling, particularly in the field of energy insurance.

XL Catlin expects more than $200 million in cost reductions in the next few years, including some job losses in back office operations.

XL Group has conducted share buybacks in the past but McGavick declined comment on the merged company's capital management plans ahead of a conference call scheduled for May 28.

(Editing by David Holmes)