Axa XL is an American subsidiary of global

insurance Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to protect ...

and

reinsurance Reinsurance is insurance that an insurance company purchases from another insurance company to insulate itself (at least in part) from the risk of a major claims event. With reinsurance, the company passes on ("cedes") some part of its own insu ...

company

Axa Axa S.A. is a French multinational insurance corporation headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris. It also provides investment management and other financial services via its subsidiaries. As of 2024, it is the fourth largest financi ...

. It is headquartered in

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, outside of New York City. It is the sixth-most populous city in New England. Stamford is also the largest city in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Weste ...

, domiciled in

Hamilton, Bermuda Hamilton is the capital city of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda, and the main settlement of Pembroke Parish. A port city, Hamilton is Bermuda's financial and commercial centre, and a popular tourist destination. Its population of ...

, and has more than 100 offices on 6 continents. In 2016, the company wrote $13.890 billion in gross premiums, of which 69% was insurance, 29% was reinsurance, and 2% was other. Of the company's gross insurance premiums, 19% was for

professional liability insurance Professional liability insurance (PLI), also called professional indemnity insurance (PII) and commonly known as errors & omissions (E&O) in the US, is a form of liability insurance which helps protect professional advising, consulting, and servic ...

, 32% was for

casualty insurance Casualty insurance is a defined term which broadly encompasses insurance not directly concerned with life insurance, health insurance, or property insurance. Casualty insurance is mainly liability coverage of an individual or organization for n ...

, 25% was to the energy sector, and 24% was for specialty insurance such as

pollution insurance Pollution insurance is a type of insurance that covers costs related to pollution. This can include the costs of brownfield restoration and cleanup, liability for injuries and deaths caused by pollution. Most businesses will purchase broad commerc ...

, aviation and satellite, marine, product recall, political risks, equine, and fine art insurance.

History

EXEL Limited was formed in 1986 in the Cayman Islands by 68 Fortune 500 companies following the financial crisis of the early 1980s. Also in 1986, XL Insurance (Bermuda) Ltd. was incorporated in Barbados. In 1990 both EXEL Limited and Mid Ocean Limited changed domicile to Bermuda. In 1998, EXEL Limited merged with Mid Ocean Limited, and in 1999, EXEL Limited changed its name to XL Capital Ltd. In 1999, XL Capital Ltd. founded Syncora, formerly known as Security Capital Assurance, a provider of bond insurance. Syncora became a

public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of share capital, stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter (finance), over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) co ...

via a

corporate spin-off A corporate spin-off, also known as a spin-out, starburst or hive-off, is a type of corporate action where a company "splits off" a section as a separate business or creates a second incarnation, even if the first is still active. It is distinct ...

and

initial public offering An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...

in July 2006. In 2008, during the

2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...

, to sever ties with Syncora, the company injected $2.5 billion into Syncora, which had stopped writing new business. In June 1999, Bermuda-based XL Capital Ltd. acquired the NAC Re Corp, a United States insurance and reinsurance company, for $1.25 billion, including $200 million in NAC Re debt. Following the merger, the company established the subsidiary, 'XL America' in

. In February 2001, the company acquired Winterthur International, a property and casualty insurance unit that serves large businesses, from

Credit Suisse Credit Suisse Group AG (, ) was a global Investment banking, investment bank and financial services firm founded and based in Switzerland. According to UBS, eventually Credit Suisse was to be fully integrated into UBS. While the integration ...

for $600 million. In September 2003, the company acquired Le Mans Re, an insurer based in France. In June 2007, the company opened an office in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, Texas to focus on the energy sector. In March 2008, Mike McGavick was named chief executive officer of the company succeeding Brian O’Hara. As announces 12 January 2010, on 1 July 2010, XL Capital Ltd. (

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

) changed its name and domicile to XL Group plc (

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

). In April 2015, the company introduced a new venture capital fund called XL Innovate for technology products in the financial services sector. In May 2015, the company completed acquisition of Catlin Group for $4.1 billion in cash and stock. In July 2016, the company changed its domicile from Ireland to

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

and its name changed from XL Group plc to XL Group Ltd. In September 2016, XL Catlin acquired Brooklyn Underwriting Pty. Ltd., an

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

n Sydney-based underwriter. Brooklyn became the trading name in Australia of Catlin Australia Pty Limited. In July 2017, Brooklyn opened branches in Melbourne and Brisbane, and moved its Sydney headquarters into XL Catlin Sydney offices. In September 2017, the company moved its European headquarters from the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

as a result of

Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...

. In September 2018,

acquired XL Group and renamed the division Axa XL.

References

External links

* {{Major insurance companies American companies established in 1986 Financial services companies established in 1986 Insurance companies of Bermuda Companies based in Stamford, Connecticut Companies formerly listed on the New York Stock Exchange 2018 mergers and acquisitions Axa American subsidiaries of foreign companies

History

See also

References

External links