The impact of natural catastrophe losses on 2^nd quarter earnings was the insurance story of the summer of 2016.  Virtually every segment of the insurance industry, from primary carriers and reinsurers to non-traditional market capital such as ILS funds, suffered sharp financial losses as a direct result of unprecedented natural catastrophic events worldwide.  

Global mega-deals captured public market attention in 2015, and mergers and acquisitions activity within the private equity sector has continued to progress at a healthy pace throughout 2016. The attributes of today’s transaction environment are the same that drive private capital investment: low interest rates, strong cash reserves, motivated sellers and distressed targets.

Food manufacturers’ economic and brand loyalty issues are the propellers of profitability and market scale.  Corporate investment and oversight attuned to the safety and security of the manufacturing and distribution processes are paramount. While it takes years to establish a respected reputation, food recalls due to contamination and safety concerns can damage that reputation virtually overnight. With due diligence and corporate governance in place, companies within the food industry cannot completely remove the risk of human error, product tampering, product extortion or other influencing factors that trigger a product recall event. 

The regulatory framework for financial institutions in the U.K. continues to evolve in the post-crisis economic environment.  UK regulators are placing increased personal accountability on leadership within the regulated financial services sector.  The Financial Services & Markets Act (FSMA) was amended by the Financial Services (Banking Reform) Act 2013 to include a new Senior Managers Regime, which came into effect on 7th March 2016.

Today, healthcare providers face heightened financial risk as their billing practices come under increased scrutiny.  Federal and state government regulators are dedicating unprecedented resources to recover monies paid under Medicare, Medicaid, and TRICARE (the health care program for the military) reimbursement programs.  Commercial payors also are investigating provider billing procedures to detect improper coding and double-billing practices.   Healthcare fraud recoveries reach into the billions of dollars annually to restore valuable assets to federally funded programs and prevent billions more in losses.