Background
      AXIS was one of the companies formed after the events of September 11, 2001. Its founding investor was Trident II, L.P., a private equity fund managed by MMC Capital, a unit of Marsh & McLennan. Other lead investors included private equity funds managed by JPMorgan Partners, Thomas H. Lee Partners, The Blackstone Group, Credit Suisse First Boston and the company’s management.
      More than $1.6 billion was raised to start AXIS, which could have raised more. The fund-raising was led by chairman Robert Newhouse, a founder of ACE, XL Capital and several other major Bermudian entities, and John Charman, a well-known and respected name in the London market.
      AXIS has proved one of the most durable of the post-9/11 companies. Headquartered in Bermuda, AXIS has two distinct global underwriting platforms: AXIS Insurance and AXIS Re. AXIS Insurance consists of two operating units: global insurance and US insurance. AXIS Re includes global reinsurance, European reinsurance and US reinsurance operating units.
      The company has offices in Bermuda, Ireland, the United Kingdom, the United States, Switzerland and Singapore.
      In the three and half trading years since AXIS was formed, the company has gone from strength to strength. In the first year, 2002, it wrote gross premiums of $1.1 billion, as it began to establish the global structure necessary to support its ambitions. In 2003, gross premiums written doubled to $2.2 billion, and for 2004, the figure topped $3.0 billion. With almost $2 billion in gross premiums written in the first half of 2005, AXIS has maintained its extraordinary growth record, simultaneously boosting its assets to more than $10 billion.

Spotlight – Insurance and reinsurance
       The tradition in the insurance industry prior to 9/11 had been for companies to write either insurance or reinsurance. The two disciplines were considered separate. Along with some of the other post-9/11 companies, AXIS broke that mould by deciding from the outset to write both. An increasing number of other established Bermudian companies have also moved in this direction.
      The decision was based in the capacity crisis in both disciplines that occurred after 9/11. The loss of the World Trade Centre had resulted in what is known as a “clash”, a loss stretching across the property/casualty and health/annuity lines of business, and most commentators and industry insiders were focused on that unusual occurrence.
      But Mr. Charman and Mr. Newhouse were tuned in, during the days following 9/11, to an understanding that the event was of sufficient magnitude to cause shortages in both direct insurance (sold to customers) and reinsurance (sold to insurance companies).
      Mr. Newhouse has stated point blank that he would not have come out of retirement to act as the first chairman of AXIS (he remains chairman of the board’s executive committee) for any reason other than to build a company operating in both spheres of the insurance and reinsurance industry.

Analysis
      On the insurance side, AXIS offers specialty insurance products to a variety of niche markets, globally, through two major operating units: AXIS Global Insurance and AXIS US Insurance. Distinct principally by regulatory environment and distribution, these units are structured to encourage innovation by allowing cross-fertilisation of underwriting expertise globally, provide immediate access to decision-makers, and enable producers to deliver expeditious, high-quality value solutions to clients.
      AXIS Global Insurance provides a broad spread of global specialty lines, predominantly through the London broker network. These specialty products are often complex or significant in size, thereby necessitating deep and long-standing client knowledge and partnership. The principal lines of business written in this unit include: onshore and offshore energy, aviation and aerospace, commercial property, marine, terrorism, marine and aviation war, professional lines and political risk.
      AXIS US Insurance accesses specialty lines of business in the United States through a number of channels. Many property and casualty insurance products for non-standard and complex risks are offered through wholesale brokers. These include: catastrophe-exposed property, products liability, general liability, commercial umbrella, professional liability and other coverages tailored for unique exposures. The unit also writes risks that are unique and difficult to place in the standard market, but must remain with an admitted insurance company for marketing and regulatory purposes. In addition, AXIS US Insurance’s underwriting businesses write some specialty programme insurance for well-defined niche markets.
     AXIS Re provides treaty property and casualty reinsurance to insurance companies on a worldwide basis. From its start as a global reinsurer of natural and man-made catastrophe risks, AXIS Re now reinsures traditional and specialty property and casualty, motor, credit and other select risks worldwide.

Senior management
Chairman: Michael Butt
President and CEO: John Chairman
CFO: Andrew Cook

Financial data
(half-year to June 30, 2005)
Gross premiums written: $1.966 billion, up 17 percent
Net premiums earned: $1.250 billion, up 31 percent
Net income: $324.6 million, up 6 percent
Shareholders’ equity: $3.167 billion, up 4 percent

Website
www.axiscapital.com