Munich Re obtains first non-U.S. hurricane-exposed cat bond of 2011

NEW YORK—Munich Reinsurance Co. has obtained $150 million in catastrophe bond protection from European windstorms, the first non-U.S. hurricane-exposed cat bond issued since October 2010, GC Securities said Friday.

The variable-rate notes were placed through the Munich Re’s Dublin-based catastrophe bond program Queen Street III Capital Ltd.

The German reinsurer’s asset management company, MEAG Munich ERGO AssetManagement GmbH, set up a U.S. Treasury bill fund to collateralize the debt.

Investors eager

GC Securities, the investment banking arm of reinsurer Guy Carpenter & Co. L.L.C., acted as sole underwriter.

“We found investors—none of which were reinsurers—eager to support a repeat issuer with diversifying peril risk,” Chi Hum, global head of insurance-linked securities distribution at GC Securities, said in a statement.

Boston-based catastrophe modeler AIR Worldwide Corp. estimated risks associated with the $150 million catastrophe bond.