GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD. - Quarter Report: 2009 May (Form 10-Q)
UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington,
DC 20549
FORM
10-Q
(Mark
One)
þ
|
QUARTERLY
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
|
For
the quarterly period ended March 31, 2009
or
o
|
TRANSITION
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
|
For
the transition period from to
Commission
file number 001-33493
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
(Exact
Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
CAYMAN
ISLANDS
|
N/A
|
(State
or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)
|
(I.R.S.
Employer Identification No.)
|
THE
GRAND PAVILION
802
WEST BAY ROAD
P.O.
BOX 31110
GRAND
CAYMAN
CAYMAN
ISLANDS
|
KY1-1205
|
(Address
of Principal Executive Offices)
|
(Zip
Code)
|
(345)
943-4573
(Registrant’s
Telephone Number, Including Area Code)
Not
Applicable
(Former
Name, Former Address and Former Fiscal Year, if Changed Since Last
Report)
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be
filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the
preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required
to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for
the past 90 days.
Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark
whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate
web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and
posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or
for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such
files).
Yes
o No
o
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an
accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See
the definitions of ‘‘large accelerated filer,’’ ‘‘accelerated filer,’’ and
‘‘smaller reporting company’’ in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check
one):
Non-accelerated
filer o (Do not check if a smaller
reporting
company)
Smaller reporting company o
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule
12b-2 of the Exchange Act).
Yes o No x
Class A
Ordinary Shares, $0.10
par value
|
29,986,192
|
Class
B Ordinary Shares, $0.10 par value
|
6,254,949
|
(Class)
|
(Outstanding
as of April
30, 2009)
|
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
Page
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PART
I — FINANCIAL INFORMATION
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Item
1.
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3 | |||||
4 | |||||
5 | |||||
6 | |||||
7 | |||||
Item
2.
|
22 | ||||
Item
3.
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34 | ||||
Item
4.
|
35 | ||||
PART
II — OTHER INFORMATION
|
|||||
Item
1.
|
36 | ||||
Item
1A.
|
36 | ||||
Item
2.
|
36 | ||||
Item
3.
|
36 | ||||
Item
4.
|
36 | ||||
Item
5.
|
37 | ||||
Item
6.
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37 | ||||
38
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|
PART
I — FINANCIAL INFORMATION
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
March
31, 2009 and December 31, 2008
(expressed
in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
March
31,
2009
(unaudited)
|
December
31,
2008
|
|||||||
Assets
|
||||||||
Investments
in securities
|
||||||||
Debt
securities, trading, at fair value
|
$ | 109,091 | $ | 70,214 | ||||
Equity
securities, trading, at fair value
|
436,490 | 409,329 | ||||||
Other
investments, at fair value
|
11,755 | 14,423 | ||||||
Total
investments in securities
|
557,336 | 493,966 | ||||||
Cash
and cash equivalents
|
56,310 | 94,144 | ||||||
Restricted
cash and cash equivalents
|
344,520 | 248,330 | ||||||
Financial
contracts receivable, at fair value
|
23,563 | 21,419 | ||||||
Reinsurance
balances receivable
|
87,932 | 59,573 | ||||||
Loss
and loss adjustment expense recoverables
|
7,000 | 11,662 | ||||||
Deferred
acquisition costs, net
|
24,347 | 17,629 | ||||||
Unearned
premiums ceded
|
6,464 | 7,367 | ||||||
Notes
receivable
|
16,915 | 1,769 | ||||||
Other
assets
|
4,417 | 2,146 | ||||||
Total
assets
|
$ | 1,128,804 | $ | 958,005 | ||||
Liabilities
and shareholders’ equity
|
||||||||
Liabilities
|
||||||||
Securities
sold, not yet purchased, at fair value
|
$ | 319,337 | $ | 234,301 | ||||
Financial
contracts payable, at fair value
|
26,465 | 17,140 | ||||||
Loss
and loss adjustment expense reserves
|
99,734 | 81,425 | ||||||
Unearned
premium reserves
|
112,482 | 88,926 | ||||||
Reinsurance
balances payable
|
37,176 | 34,963 | ||||||
Funds
withheld
|
3,382 | 3,581 | ||||||
Other
liabilities
|
6,651 | 6,229 | ||||||
Performance
compensation payable to related party
|
3,032 | — | ||||||
Total
liabilities
|
608,259 | 466,565 | ||||||
Shareholders’
equity
|
||||||||
Preferred
share capital (par value $0.10; authorized, 50,000,000; none
issued)
|
— | — | ||||||
Ordinary
share capital (Class A: par value $0.10; authorized, 100,000,000; issued
and outstanding, 29,986,192 (2008: 29,781,736); Class B: par value $0.10;
authorized, 25,000,000; issued and outstanding, 6,254,949 (2008:
6,254,949))
|
3,624 | 3,604 | ||||||
Additional
paid-in capital
|
478,516 | 477,571 | ||||||
Non-controlling
interest in joint venture
|
6,388 | 6,058 | ||||||
Retained
earnings
|
32,017 | 4,207 | ||||||
Total
shareholders’ equity
|
520,545 | 491,440 | ||||||
Total
liabilities and shareholders’ equity
|
$ | 1,128,804 | $ | 958,005 |
The
accompanying Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements are
an
integral
part of the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
3
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
(UNAUDITED)
For
the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008
(expressed
in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Revenues
|
||||||||
Gross
premiums written
|
$ | 71,871 | $ | 70,766 | ||||
Gross
premiums ceded
|
(1,220 | ) | (9,272 | ) | ||||
Net
premiums written
|
70,651 | 61,494 | ||||||
Change
in net unearned premium reserves
|
(24,458 | ) | (34,002 | ) | ||||
Net
premiums earned
|
46,193 | 27,492 | ||||||
Net
investment income (loss)
|
27,717 | (5,762 | ) | |||||
Other income | 2,124 | — | ||||||
Total
revenues
|
76,034 | 21,730 | ||||||
Expenses
|
||||||||
Loss
and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net
|
30,196 | 12,124 | ||||||
Acquisition
costs, net
|
13,245 | 9,929 | ||||||
General
and administrative expenses
|
4,378 | 4,460 | ||||||
Total
expenses
|
47,819 | 26,513 | ||||||
Net
income (loss) before non-controlling interest and corporate
income tax expense
|
28,215 | (4,783 | ) | |||||
Non-controlling
interest in (income) loss of joint venture
|
(330 | ) | 33 | |||||
Net
income (loss) before corporate income tax
expense
|
27,885 | (4,750 | ) | |||||
Corporate
income tax expense
|
75 | — | ||||||
Net
income (loss)
|
$ | 27,810 | $ | (4,750 | ) | |||
Earnings
(loss) per share
|
||||||||
Basic
|
$ | 0.77 | $ | (0.13 | ) | |||
Diluted
|
$ | 0.77 | $ | (0.13 | ) | |||
Weighted
average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of
|
||||||||
Basic
|
36,078,258 | 35,981,312 | ||||||
Diluted
|
36,334,870 | 35,981,312 |
The
accompanying Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements are
an
integral
part of the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
4
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
For
the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008
(expressed
in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
Three
months ended March 31, 2009
|
Three
months ended March 31, 2008
|
|||||||
Ordinary
share capital
|
||||||||
Balance
– beginning of period
|
$ | 3,604 | $ | 3,610 | ||||
Issue
of Class A ordinary share capital
|
20 | 13 | ||||||
Balance
– end of period
|
$ | 3,624 | $ | 3,623 | ||||
Additional
paid-in capital
|
||||||||
Balance
– beginning of period
|
$ | 477,571 | $ | 476,861 | ||||
Issue
of Class A ordinary share capital
|
221 | — | ||||||
Share-based
compensation expense
|
724 | 569 | ||||||
Balance
– end of period
|
$ | 478,516 | $ | 477,430 | ||||
Non-controlling
interest
|
||||||||
Balance
– beginning of period
|
$ | 6,058 | $ | 6,745 | ||||
Non-controlling
interest in income (loss) of joint venture
|
330 | (33 | ) | |||||
Balance
– end of period
|
$ | 6,388 | $ | 6,712 | ||||
Retained
earnings
|
||||||||
Balance
– beginning of period
|
$ | 4,207 | $ | 125,111 | ||||
Net
income (loss)
|
27,810 | (4,750 | ) | |||||
Balance
– end of period
|
$ | 32,017 | $ | 120,361 | ||||
Total
shareholders’ equity
|
$ | 520,545 | $ | 608,126 |
The
accompanying Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements are
an
integral
part of the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
5
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
(UNAUDITED)
For
the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008
(expressed
in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Cash
provided by (used in)
Operating
activities
|
||||||||
Net
income (loss)
|
$ | 27,810 | $ | (4,750 | ) | |||
Adjustments
to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating
activities
|
||||||||
Net
change in unrealized losses on securities and financial
contracts
|
6,738 | 31,913 | ||||||
Net
realized gains on securities and financial contracts
|
(42,477 | ) | (42,560 | ) | ||||
Foreign
exchange loss on restricted cash and cash equivalents
|
2,298 | 15,310 | ||||||
Non-controlling
interest in income (loss) of joint venture
|
330 | (33 | ) | |||||
Share-based
compensation expense
|
743 | 582 | ||||||
Depreciation
expense
|
10 | 10 | ||||||
Change
in
|
||||||||
Reinsurance
balances receivable
|
(28,359 | ) | (33,507 | ) | ||||
Loss
and loss adjustment expense recoverables
|
4,662 | (1,195 | ) | |||||
Deferred
acquisition costs, net
|
(6,718 | ) | (7,833 | ) | ||||
Unearned
premiums ceded
|
903 | (4,513 | ) | |||||
Other
assets
|
(2,281 | ) | (833 | ) | ||||
Loss
and loss adjustment expense reserves
|
18,309 | 9,762 | ||||||
Unearned
premium reserves
|
23,556 | 38,594 | ||||||
Reinsurance
balances payable
|
2,213 | 8,361 | ||||||
Funds
withheld
|
(199 | ) | 1,434 | |||||
Other
liabilities
|
422 | 1,036 | ||||||
Performance
compensation payable to related party
|
3,032 | (6,885 | ) | |||||
Net
cash provided by operating activities
|
10,992 | $ | 4,893 | |||||
Investing
activities
|
||||||||
Purchases
of securities and financial contracts
|
(250,091 | ) | (383,978 | ) | ||||
Sales
of securities and financial contracts
|
314,677 | 284,503 | ||||||
Change
in restricted cash and cash equivalents
|
(98,488 | ) | 83,302 | |||||
Change
in notes receivable
|
(15,146 | ) | — | |||||
Non-controlling
interest in joint venture
|
— | 6,745 | ||||||
Net
cash used in investing activities
|
(49,048 | ) | $ | (9,428 | ) | |||
Financing
activities
|
||||||||
Net
proceeds from exercise of stock options
|
222 | — | ||||||
Net
cash provided by financing activities
|
222 | $ | — | |||||
Net
decrease in cash and cash equivalents
|
(37,834 | ) | (4,535 | ) | ||||
Cash
and cash equivalents at beginning of the period
|
94,144 | 64,192 | ||||||
Cash
and cash equivalents at end of the period
|
56,310 | $ | 59,657 | |||||
Supplementary
information
|
||||||||
Interest
paid in cash
|
$ | 1,574 | $ | 3,227 | ||||
Interest
received in cash
|
629 | 4,554 |
The
accompanying Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements are an
integral
part of the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.
6
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
(UNAUDITED)
March
31, 2009 and 2008
(expressed
in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)
1.
|
GENERAL
|
Greenlight
Capital Re, Ltd. (‘‘GLRE’’) was incorporated as an exempted company under the
Companies Law of the Cayman Islands on July 13, 2004. GLRE’s wholly-owned
subsidiary, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. (the ‘‘Subsidiary’’), provides global
specialty property and casualty reinsurance. The Subsidiary has an unrestricted
Class ‘‘B’’ insurance license under Section 4(2) of the Cayman Islands Insurance
Law. The Subsidiary commenced underwriting in April 2006. Effective May 30,
2007, GLRE completed an initial public offering of 11,787,500 Class A ordinary
shares at $19.00 per share. Concurrently, 2,631,579 Class B ordinary shares of
GLRE were sold at $19.00 per share in a private placement
offering. On December 9, 2008, Verdant Holding Company, Ltd.
(“Verdant”), a wholly owned subsidiary of GLRE, was incorporated in the state of
Delaware.
The Class A ordinary shares of GLRE are listed on Nasdaq Global Select Market
under the symbol ‘‘GLRE’’.
As used
herein, the ‘‘Company’’ refers collectively to GLRE and its
subsidiaries.
These
unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements are prepared in conformity
with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America
(‘‘U.S. GAAP’’) and in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article
10 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information
and footnotes required by U.S. GAAP for complete consolidated financial
statements. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should
be read in conjunction with the Company’s audited consolidated financial
statements for the year ended December 31, 2008. In the opinion of management,
these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all the
normal recurring adjustments considered necessary for a fair presentation of the
Company’s financial position and results of operations as of the dates and for
the periods presented.
The
results for the three months ended March 31, 2009 are not necessarily indicative
of the results expected for the full year.
2.
|
SIGNIFICANT
ACCOUNTING POLICIES
|
Basis
of Presentation
The
condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of GLRE and the
consolidated financial statements of all of its wholly owned subsidiaries. All
significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in
consolidation.
Use
of Estimates
The
preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP
requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported
amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and
liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the
reported amounts of income and expenses during the period. Actual results could
differ from these estimates.
Restricted
Cash and Cash Equivalents
The
Company is required to maintain cash in segregated accounts with prime brokers
and swap counterparties. The amount of restricted cash held by prime brokers is
used to support the liability created from securities sold, not yet purchased.
Cash held for the benefit of swap counterparties is used to collateralize the
current value of any amounts that may be due to the counterparty under the swap
contract.
Loss
and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves and Recoverables
The
Company establishes reserves for contracts based on estimates of the ultimate
cost of all losses including losses incurred but not reported. These estimated
ultimate reserves are based on reports received from ceding companies,
historical experience as well as the Company's own actuarial estimates. These
estimates are reviewed periodically and adjusted when deemed necessary. Since
reserves are estimates, the final settlement of losses may vary from the
reserves established and any adjustments to the estimates, which may be
material, are recorded in the period they are determined.
Loss and
loss adjustment expense recoverables include the amounts due from
retrocessionaires for paid and unpaid loss and loss adjustment expenses on
retrocession agreements. Ceded losses incurred but not reported are estimated
based on the Company’s actuarial estimates. These estimates are reviewed
periodically and adjusted when deemed necessary. The Company may not be able to
ultimately recover the loss and loss adjustment expense recoverable amounts due
to the retrocessionaires’ inability to pay. The Company regularly evaluates the
financial condition of its retrocessionaires and records provisions for
uncollectible reinsurance recoverable when recovery becomes
unlikely.
Notes
Receivable
Notes
receivable include promissory notes receivable from third party entities. These
notes are generally recorded at cost along with accrued interest, if any. The
Company regularly reviews all notes receivable for impairment and records
provisions for uncollectible notes and interest receivable for non-performing
notes. At March 31, 2009, the notes earned interest at annual interest rates
ranging from 5% to 10% and had maturity terms ranging from 2 years to 10 years.
Included in notes receivable balance were accrued interest of $0.2 million at
March 31, 2009 (December 31, 2008: $19,000) and all notes were considered
current and performing.
Deposit
Assets and Liabilities
The
Company accounts for reinsurance contracts in accordance with Statement of
Financial Accounting Standards ("SFAS") No. 60, ‘‘Accounting and Reporting by
Insurance Enterprises,’’ and SFAS No. 113, ‘‘Accounting and Reporting for
Reinsurance of Short-Duration and Long-Duration Contracts.’’ In the event that a
reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient risk, or a contract provides
retroactive reinsurance, deposit accounting is used. Any losses on such
contracts are charged to earnings immediately. Any gains relating to such
contracts are deferred and amortized over the estimated remaining settlement
period. All such deferred gains are included in reinsurance balances payable in
the condensed consolidated balance sheets. Amortized gains are recorded in the
consolidated statements of income as other income. At March 31, 2009, included
in the condensed consolidated balance sheets under reinsurance balances
receivable and reinsurance balances payable were $2.0 million and $1.9
million of deposit assets and deposit liabilities, respectively. There were
no deposit assets or liabilities at December 31, 2008.
Financial
Instruments
Investments
in Securities and Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased
Effective
January 1, 2008, the Company adopted SFAS No. 157, “Fair Value
Measurements,” which establishes a framework for measuring fair value by
creating a hierarchy of fair value measurements based on inputs used in deriving
fair values and enhances disclosure requirements for fair value measurements.
The adoption of SFAS No. 157 had no material impact to the Company’s
results of operations or financial condition as there were no material changes
in the valuation techniques used by the Company to measure fair value. The
Company’s investments in debt and equity securities that are classified as
“trading securities” are carried at fair value. The fair values of the listed
equity and debt investments are derived based on quoted prices (unadjusted) in
active markets for identical assets (Level 1 inputs). The fair values of
most private debt securities are derived based on inputs that are observable,
either directly or indirectly, such as market maker or broker quotes reflecting
recent transactions (Level 2 inputs), and are generally derived based on
the average of multiple market maker or broker quotes which are considered to be
binding. Where quotes are not available, debt securities are valued using cash
flow models using assumptions and estimates that may be subjective and
non-observable (Level 3 inputs).
The
Company’s “other investments” may include investments in private equity
securities, limited partnerships, futures, exchange traded options and
over-the-counter (“OTC”) options, which are all carried at fair value. The
Company maximizes the use of observable direct or indirect inputs (Level 2
inputs) when deriving the fair values for “other investments”. For limited
partnerships and private equity securities, where observable inputs are not
available, the fair values are derived based on unobservable inputs
(Level 3 inputs) such as management’s assumptions developed from available
information using the services of the investment advisor. Amounts invested in
exchange traded and OTC call and put options are recorded as an asset or
liability at inception. Subsequent to initial recognition, unexpired exchange
traded option contracts are recorded at fair value based on quoted prices in
active markets (Level 1 inputs). For OTC options or exchange traded options
where a quoted price in an active market is not available, fair values are
derived based upon observable inputs (Level 2 inputs) such as multiple
market maker quotes.
For
securities classified as “trading securities,” and “other investments,” any
realized and unrealized gains or losses are determined on the basis of specific
identification method (by reference to cost and amortized cost, as appropriate)
and included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of
income.
Dividend
income and expense are recorded on the ex-dividend date. The ex-dividend date is
the date as of when the underlying security must have been traded to be eligible
for the dividend declared. Interest income and interest expense are recorded on
an accrual basis.
Derivative
Financial Instruments
SFAS No.
133, ‘‘Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging
Activities,’’ (“SFAS No. 133”) establishes accounting and reporting
standards for derivative instruments and hedging activities. It requires that an
entity recognize all derivatives in the balance sheet at fair value. It also
requires that unrealized gains and losses resulting from changes in fair value
be included in income or comprehensive income, depending on whether the
instrument qualifies as a hedge transaction, and if so, the type of hedge
transaction. Derivative financial instrument assets are generally included in
investments in securities or financial contracts receivable. Derivative
financial instrument liabilities are generally included in financial contracts
payable. The Company's derivatives do not constitute hedges for financial
reporting purposes.
Financial
Contracts
The
Company enters into financial contracts with counterparties as part of its
investment strategy. Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments under
SFAS No. 133, include total return swaps, credit default swaps, and other
derivative instruments which are recorded at their fair value with any
unrealized gains and losses included in net investment income in the
consolidated statements of income. On the consolidated balance sheets, financial
contracts receivable represents derivative contracts whereby the Company is
entitled to receive payments upon settlement of the contract. Financial
contracts payable represents derivative contracts whereby the Company is
obligated to make payments upon settlement of the contract.
Total
return swap agreements, included on the consolidated balance sheets as financial
contracts receivable and financial contracts payable, are derivative financial
instruments whereby the Company is either entitled to receive or obligated to
pay the product of a notional amount multiplied by the movement in an underlying
security, which the Company does not own, over a specified time frame. In
addition, the Company may also be obligated to pay or receive other payments
based on either interest rate, dividend payments and receipts, or foreign
exchange movements during a specified period. The Company measures its rights or
obligations to the counterparty based on the fair value movements of the
underlying security together with any other payments due. These contracts are
carried at fair value, based on observable inputs (Level 2 inputs) with the
resultant unrealized gains and losses reflected in net investment income in the
consolidated statements of income. Additionally, any changes in the value of
amounts received or paid on swap contracts are reported as a gain or loss in net
investment income in the consolidated statements of income.
Financial
contracts may also include exchange traded futures or options contracts that are
based on the movement of a particular index or interest rate, and are entered
into for non-hedging purposes. Where such contracts are traded in an active
market, the Company’s obligations or rights on these contracts are recorded at
fair value measured based on the observable quoted prices of the same or similar
financial contract in an active market (Level 1) or on broker quotes which
reflect market information based on actual transactions (Level 2).
The
Company purchases and sells credit default swaps ("CDS") for the purposes of
either managing its exposure to certain investments, or for other strategic
investment purposes. A CDS is a derivative instrument that provides protection
against an investment loss due to specified credit or default events of a
reference entity. The seller of a CDS guarantees to the buyer a specified amount
if the reference entity defaults on its obligations or fails to perform. The
buyer of a CDS pays a premium over time to the seller in exchange for obtaining
this protection. The Company does not designate a CDS as a hedging
instrument. CDS trading in an active market are valued at fair value based on
broker or market maker quotes for identical instruments in an active market
(Level 2) or based on the current credit spreads on identical contracts
(Level 2) with any unrealized gains and losses reflected in net investment
income in the consolidated statements of income.
Earnings
(loss) Per Share
Basic earnings per share
is based on the weighted average number of common shares and participating
securities outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share
include the dilutive effect of additional potential common shares issuable under
our stock options and are determined using the treasury stock method. As
discussed below under the caption, “Recently Issued Accounting Standards,” FASB
Staff Position (“FSP”) EITF 03-6-1 was adopted effective January 1,
2009. This FSP requires that unvested stock awards
which contain non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents,
whether paid or unpaid (referred to as “participating securities”), be included
in the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per
share calculations. Our unvested restricted stock is considered a
participating security. All prior period earnings per share data presented
is required to be adjusted retrospectively to conform to the provisions of the
FSP. In the event of a net loss, the participating securities are excluded
from the calculation of both basic and diluted earnings per share. Due to our
net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2008, 252,889 unvested restricted
shares were not included in determining both basic and diluted earnings per
share. In addition, stock options for 1,529,000 shares of common stock were
anti-dilutive and were not included in determining diluted earnings per share
for the three months ended March 31, 2008. Weighted average diluted common
shares outstanding equals the weighted average common shares outstanding during
the three month periods ended March 31, 2008 due to the net loss recorded during
that period.
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding
|
36,078,258 | 35,981,312 | ||||||
Effect
of dilutive service provider stock options
|
98,156 | — | ||||||
Effect
of dilutive employee and director options
|
158,456 | — | ||||||
36,334,870 | 35,981,312 |
Taxation
Under
current Cayman Islands law, no corporate entity, including the Company, is
obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains.
The Company has an undertaking from the Governor-in-Cabinet of the Cayman
Islands, pursuant to the provisions of the Tax Concessions Law, as amended,
that, in the event that the Cayman Islands enacts any legislation that imposes
tax on profits, income, gains or appreciations, or any tax in the nature of
estate duty or inheritance tax, such tax will not be applicable to the Company
or its operations, or to the Class A or Class B ordinary shares or related
obligations, until February 1, 2025.
The
Company’s wholly owned subsidiary, Verdant, is incorporated in the U.S. and
therefore subject to taxes in accordance with the rates and regulations
prescribed by the Internal Revenue Service. Verdant’s taxable income is taxed at
an effective rate of 35%.
Recently
Issued Accounting Standards
In April
2009, the FASB issued FSP FAS 157-4, “Determining Fair Value When the
Volume and Level of Activity For the Asset or Liability Have Significantly
Decreased and Identifying Transactions That Are Not Orderly." FSP FAS 157-4
provides further clarification of the principles established by SFAS No. 157 for
determining the fair values of assets and liabilities in inactive markets and
those transacted in distressed situations. This FSP is effective for periods
ending after June 15, 2009 with early adoption permitted for periods ending
after March 15, 2009. Retrospective application is not permitted. The Company
did not early adopt this FSP and is evaluating the impact of this FSP, but does
not expect the adoption of this FSP to have a material impact on the Company’s
results of operations or financial position.
In April
2009, the FASB issued FSP FAS 115-2, and FAS 124-2, “Recognition and
Presentation of Other-Than-Temporary Impairments.” This FSP, which is limited to
debt securities, provides guidance that aims to make other-than-temporary
impairments (“OTTI”) of debt securities more operational and improve the
presentation of OTTIs in the financial statements. This FSP is effective for
periods ending after June 15, 2009 with early adoption permitted for periods
ending after March 15, 2009. The Company did not early adopt this FSP
and does not expect the adoption of this FSP to have any impact on the
Company’s results of operations or financial position.
In April
2009, the FASB issued FSP 107-1 and APB 28-1, “Interim Disclosures about Fair
Value of Financial Instruments.” This FSP amends FASB Statement No. 107,
“Disclosures about Fair Value of Financial Instruments”, to require an entity to
provide disclosures about fair value of financial instruments in interim
financial information. This FSP is effective for periods ending after June 15,
2009 with early adoption permitted for period ending after March 15, 2009. The
Company did not early adopt this FSP and is evaluating the impact of this FSP,
but does not expect the adoption of this FSP to have a material impact on the
Company’s disclosures since its financial instruments are currently carried at
fair value.
In June
2008, the FASB issued FSP No. EITF 03-6-1 "Determining Whether Instruments
Granted in Share-Based Payment Transactions Are Participating Securities." This
FSP addresses whether instruments granted in share-based payment transactions
are participating securities prior to vesting and, therefore, need to be
included in the earnings allocation in computing earnings per share ("EPS").
This FSP is effective for periods beginning after December 15, 2008,
and interim periods within those years. The implementation of this FSP
did not have a material impact to the Company's EPS calculations given
that the Company has declared no dividends since inception and the number
of unvested restricted shares are insignificant compared to the total number of
outstanding shares. The Company does not anticipate the EPS calculations to
be materially affected in the foreseeable future as a result of adopting this
FSP.
In March
2008, the FASB issued SFAS No. 161, ‘‘Disclosures about Derivative Instruments
and Hedging Activities – an amendment of FASB Statement No. 133.’’ SFAS No. 161
is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years and interim
periods beginning after November 15, 2008, with early application encouraged.
This statement changes the disclosure requirements for derivative instruments
and hedging activities by requiring enhanced disclosures about how and why an
entity uses derivative instruments, how an entity accounts for the derivatives
and hedged items, and how derivatives and hedged items affect an entity’s
financial position, performance and cash flows. The effect of the statement’s
implementation did not have a material impact on the Company’s derivative
disclosures.
In
February 2008, the FASB issued FSP FAS 157-2 "Effective Date of FASB
Statement No. 157." FSP FAS 157-2 deferred the effective date of SFAS No. 157
until January 1, 2009 for non-financial assets and non-financial liabilities
except those items recognized or disclosed at fair value on an annual or more
frequently recurring basis. The implementation of this
FSP did not have a material impact on the Company’s results of operation or
financial position.
In
December 2007, the FASB issued SFAS No. 160, ‘‘Non-controlling Interests in
Consolidated Financial Statements – an amendment of ARB No. 51.’’ SFAS No. 160
is effective for fiscal years beginning on or after December 15, 2008 and early
adoption is prohibited. This statement establishes accounting and reporting
standards for the non-controlling interest in a subsidiary and for the
deconsolidation of a subsidiary. Upon adoption of this statement, the
Company's non-controlling interest in joint venture (previously referred to
as minority interest in joint venture) was reclassified from liabilities to
shareholders’ equity for all years presented. This reclassification resulted in
an increase in shareholders’ equity and a decrease in total liabilities.
However, the effect of the statement's implementation did not have
any impact on the Company's results of operations or retained
earnings.
Reclassifications
Certain
prior period balances have been reclassified to conform to the
current period presentation. The reclassifications resulted in no changes
to net income (loss) or retained earnings for any of the periods
presented.
3.
|
FINANCIAL
INSTRUMENTS
|
Fair
Value Hierarchy
All of the Company’s financial instruments are carried at fair value, and the net
unrealized gains or losses are included in net investment income in the
consolidated statements of income.
The
following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of
the fair value hierarchy as at March 31, 2009:
Fair
value measurements as at
March
31, 2009
|
||||||||||||||||
Description
|
Quoted
prices in active
markets (Level
1)
|
Significant
other observable
inputs (Level
2)
|
Significant
unobservable
inputs
(Level
3)
|
Total
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Debt
securities
|
$ | — | $ | 99,739 | $ | 9,352 | $ | 109,091 | ||||||||
Listed
equity securities
|
436,490 | — | — | 436,490 | ||||||||||||
Private
equity securities
|
— | 1,147 | 9,807 | 10,954 | ||||||||||||
Call
options
|
— | 801 | — | 801 | ||||||||||||
Financial
contracts receivable (payable), net
|
— | (2,902 | ) | — | (2,902 | ) | ||||||||||
$ | 436,490 | $ | 98,785 | $ | 19,159 | $ | 554,434 | |||||||||
Listed
equity securities, sold not yet purchased
|
$ | (319,337 | ) | $ | — | $ | — | $ | (319,337 | ) |
The
following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments
measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level
3):
Fair
value measurements using
significant
unobservable inputs
(Level
3)
|
||||||||||||
Debt
securities
|
Private
equity
securities
|
Total
|
||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||
Beginning
balance, January 1, 2009
|
$ | 4,115 | $ | 11,776 | $ | 15,891 | ||||||
Purchases,
sales, issuances, and settlements, net
|
1,732 | (82 | ) | 1,650 | ||||||||
Total
gains or losses (realized & unrealized) included in earnings,
net
|
(1,485 | ) | (1,887 | ) | (3,372 | ) | ||||||
Transfers
in and/or (out of) Level 3
|
4,990 | — | 4,990 | |||||||||
Ending
balance, March 31, 2009
|
9,352 | 9,807 | 19,159 |
Transfers
into Level 3 represent the fair value on the date of transfer of debt securities
for which there was not an active market and multiple broker quotes were not
available. The fair values of these debt securities were estimated using the
last available transaction price, adjusted for credit risk, expected cash flows,
and other non-observable inputs.
For the
three months ended March 31, 2009, realized gains of $5,000 and change in
unrealized gains of $3.4 million on securities still held at the reporting date,
and valued using unobservable inputs, are included as net investment income
(loss) in the condensed consolidated statements of income.
Debt
Securities, trading
At March
31, 2009, the following investments are included in debt
securities:
2009
|
Cost/amortized
cost
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Corporate
debt – U.S
|
$
|
100,433
|
$ |
9,750
|
$ |
(11,110)
|
$ |
99,073
|
||||||||
Corporate
debt – Non U.S
|
9,251
|
|
948
|
(181)
|
10,018
|
|||||||||||
Total
debt securities
|
$
|
109,684
|
$ |
10,698
|
$ |
(11,291)
|
$ |
109,091
|
At
December 31, 2008, the following investments are included in debt
securities:
2008
|
Cost/amortized
cost
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Corporate
debt – U.S
|
$
|
74,833
|
$
|
1,204
|
$
|
(8,750
|
)
|
$
|
67,287
|
|||||||
Corporate
debt – Non U.S
|
2,978
|
109
|
(160
|
)
|
2,927
|
|||||||||||
Total
debt securities
|
$
|
77,811
|
$
|
1,313
|
$
|
(8,910
|
)
|
$
|
70,214
|
The
maturity distribution for debt securities held at March 31, 2009 is as
follows:
Cost/amortized
cost
|
Fair
value
|
|||||||
($ in thousands) | ||||||||
Within
one year
|
$ | 15,337 | $ | 15,683 | ||||
From
one to five years
|
50,017 | 55,676 | ||||||
From
five to ten years
|
36,146 | 29,829 | ||||||
More
than ten years
|
8,184 | 7,903 | ||||||
$ | 109,684 | $ | 109,091 |
Investment
in Equity Securities, Trading
At March
31, 2009, the following long positions are included in investment securities,
trading:
2009
|
Cost
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Equities
– listed
|
$
|
582,708
|
$ |
20,995
|
$ |
(230,542)
|
$ |
373,161
|
||||||||
Exchange
traded funds
|
52,088
|
11,241
|
—
|
63,329
|
||||||||||||
$
|
634,796
|
$ |
32,236
|
$ |
(230,542)
|
$ |
436,490
|
At
December 31, 2008, the following long positions are included in investment
securities, trading:
2008
|
Cost
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Equities
– listed
|
$
|
552,941
|
$
|
14,822
|
$
|
(219,173
|
)
|
$
|
348,590
|
|||||||
Exchange
traded funds
|
53,364
|
8,092
|
(717
|
)
|
60,739
|
|||||||||||
$
|
606,305
|
$
|
22,914
|
$
|
(219,890
|
)
|
$
|
409,329
|
Other
Investments
“Other
investments” include options as well as private equity securities for which
quoted prices in active markets are not readily available. Options are
derivative financial instruments that give the buyer, in exchange for a premium
payment, the right, but not the obligation, to either purchase from (call
option) or sell to (put option) the option counterparty, a specified underlying
security at a specified price on or before a specified date. The Company enters
into option contracts to meet certain investment objectives. For exchange traded
option contracts, the exchange acts as the counterparty to specific transactions
and therefore bears the risk of delivery to and from counterparties of specific
positions. For OTC options, a dealer acts as the counterparty and therefore the
Company is exposed to credit risk to the extent the dealer is unable to meet its
obligations. As of March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, the Company did not
hold any OTC options.
At March
31, 2009, the following securities are included in other
investments:
2009 |
Cost
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Equities
– unlisted
|
$ | 15,985 | $ | 1,164 | $ | (6,195 | ) | $ | 10,954 | |||||||
Call
options
|
2,133 | — | (1,332 | ) | 801 | |||||||||||
$ | 18,118 | $ | 1,164 | $ | (7,527 | ) | $ | 11,755 |
At
December 31, 2008, the following securities are included in other
investments:
2008 |
Cost
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Equities
– unlisted
|
$ | 15,395 | $ | 1,236 | $ | (4,734 | ) | $ | 11,897 | |||||||
Call
options
|
2,133 | 393 | — | 2,526 | ||||||||||||
$ | 17,528 | $ | 1,629 | $ | (4,734 | ) | $ | 14,423 |
Investments
in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased
At March
31, 2009, the following securities are included in investments in
securities sold, not yet purchased:
2009
|
Proceeds
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
|||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||||||||
Equities
- listed
|
$ |
386,927
|
$ |
(115,131
|
) | $ |
8,335
|
$ |
280,131
|
||||
Warrants
and rights on listed equities
|
—
|
—
|
574
|
574
|
|||||||||
Exchange
traded funds
|
39,811
|
(1,179
|
) |
—
|
38,632
|
||||||||
$ |
426,738
|
$ |
(116,310
|
) | $ |
8,909
|
$ |
319,337
|
At
December 31, 2008, the following securities are included in investments in
securities sold, not yet purchased:
2008
|
Proceeds
|
Unrealized
gains
|
Unrealized
losses
|
Fair
value
|
|||||||||
($ in
thousands)
|
|||||||||||||
Equities
- listed
|
$
|
343,079
|
$
|
(115,619
|
)
|
$
|
6,841
|
$
|
234,301
|
Financial
Contracts
As of
March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, the Company had entered into total return
swaps, credit default swaps, and interest rate options contracts with various
financial institutions to meet certain investment objectives but not for hedging
purposes. Under the terms of each of these financial contracts, the Company is
either entitled to receive or is obligated to make payments which are based on
the product of a formula contained within the contract that includes the change
in the fair value of the underlying or reference security.
The fair
value of financial contracts outstanding at March 31, 2009 is as
follows:
Underlying
security
|
Listing
currency
|
Fair
value
of
underlying
|
Net
assets/
(obligations)
on
financial
contracts
|
||||
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||
Interest
rate options
|
USD
|
$ |
137,492
|
$ |
4,131
|
||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Sovereign debt
|
USD
|
316,425
|
10,373
|
||||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Corporate debt
|
USD
|
35,765
|
9,059
|
||||
Total
financial contracts receivable, at fair value
|
$
|
23,563
|
|||||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Sovereign debt
|
USD
|
$ |
1,317
|
$
|
(20)
|
||
Credit
default swaps, issued – Corporate debt
|
USD
|
9,180
|
(9,180)
|
||||
Total
return swaps - Equities
|
USD
|
17,035
|
(17,265)
|
||||
Total
financial contracts payable, at fair value
|
$
|
(26,465)
|
The fair
value of financial contracts outstanding at December 31, 2008 was as
follows:
Underlying
security
|
Listing
currency
|
Fair
value
of
underlying
|
Net
assets/
(obligations)
on
financial
contracts
|
||||
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||
Interest
rate options
|
USD
|
$ |
85,935
|
$
|
2,564
|
||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Sovereign debt
|
USD
|
322,516
|
12,881
|
|
|||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Corporate debt
|
USD
|
54,509
|
5,956
|
||||
Total
return swaps - Equities
|
USD
|
3,249
|
18
|
||||
Total
financial contracts receivable, at fair value
|
$
|
21,419
|
|||||
Credit
default swaps, issued – Corporate debt
|
USD
|
$ |
11,089
|
$
|
(7,024
|
)
|
|
Total
return swaps - Equities
|
USD
|
26,844
|
(10,116
|
)
|
|||
Total
financial contracts payable, at fair value
|
$
|
(17,140
|
)
|
As of
March 31, 2009, included in financial contracts payable, was a CDS issued by the
Company relating to the debt issued by another entity ("reference
entity"). The CDS has a remaining term of four years and a notional amount of
$13.9 million. Under this contract, the Company receives fees for
guaranteeing the debt and in return will be obligated to pay the notional
amount to the counterparty if the reference entity defaults under its debt
obligations. As of March 31, 2009, based on the assessment conducted by the
Company’s investment advisor, the risk of default does not appear likely.
As of March 31, 2009, the reference entity had a financial
strength rating of (A2) and a surplus notes rating of (Baa1) from
Moody’s Investors Service. The fair value of the CDS at March 31, 2009 was
$9.2 million which was determined based on broker quotes obtained
for identical or similar contracts traded in an active market (Level 2
inputs).
During
the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008, the Company reported gains and
losses on derivatives as follows:
Derivatives
not designated as hedging instruments
|
Location
of gains and losses on derivatives recognized in income
|
Gain
(loss) on derivatives recognized in income for the three months ended
March 31,
|
||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||
Interest
rate options
|
Net
investment income
|
$ | 970 | $ | — | |||||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Corporate debt
|
Net
investment income
|
3,917 | 175 | |||||||
Credit
default swaps, purchased – Sovereign debt
|
Net
investment income
|
(2,036 | ) | — | ||||||
Total
return swaps – Equities
|
Net
investment income
|
(10,586 | ) | 4,689 | ||||||
Credit
default swaps, issued – Corporate debt
|
Net
investment income
|
(1,986 | ) | — | ||||||
Total
return swaps – Commodities
|
Net
investment income
|
— | (7,292 | ) | ||||||
Options,
warrants, and rights
|
Net
investment income
|
(2,389 | ) | (2,498 | ) | |||||
Total
|
$ | (12,110 | ) | $ | (4,926 | ) |
The
Company generally does not enter into derivatives for risk management or hedging
purposes, and the volume of derivative activities varies from period to period
depending on potential investment opportunities. For the three months ended
March 31, 2009, the Company’s volume of derivative activities was as
follows:
Derivatives
not designated as hedging instruments
|
Purchased
|
Disposed
|
||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||
Credit
default swaps
|
$ | 33,343 | $ | 20,850 | ||||
Total
return swaps
|
— | 2,509 | ||||||
Interest
rate options
|
27,770 | — | ||||||
Options
– equity
|
2,971 | 12,223 | ||||||
Rights
– equity
|
4,126 | 2,613 | ||||||
Total
|
$ | 68,210 | $ | 38,195 |
4.
|
RETROCESSION
|
The
Company utilizes retrocession agreements to reduce the risk of loss on business
assumed. The Company currently has coverages that provide for recovery of a
portion of certain loss and loss expenses incurred on certain contracts. Loss
and loss adjustment expense recoverables from retrocessionaires are recorded as
assets. For the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008, loss and loss
adjustment expenses incurred are net of loss and loss expenses recovered and
recoverable of $3.5 million and $3.0 million, respectively. Retrocession
contracts do not relieve the Company from its obligations to policyholders.
Failure of retrocessionaires to honor their obligations could result in losses
to the Company. The Company regularly evaluates the financial condition of its
retrocessionaires. At March 31, 2009, the Company had loss recoverables of $0.3
million (December 31, 2008: $0.2 million) with a retrocessionaire rated ‘‘A+
(superior)’’ by A.M. Best Company. Additionally, at March 31, 2009, the Company
had loss recoverables of $6.7 million (December 31, 2008: $11.5 million) with
unrated retrocessionaires. At March 31, 2009, the Company retained funds and
other collateral from the unrated retrocessionaires for amounts in excess of the
loss recoverable asset, and the Company had no provision for uncollectible
losses recoverable.
5.
SHARE CAPITAL
The Class
A ordinary shares of the Company are listed on Nasdaq Global Select Market under
the symbol ‘‘GLRE.’’
During
the three months ended March 31, 2009, 186,956 (2008: 131,465) restricted
shares of Class A ordinary shares were issued to employees pursuant to the
Company’s stock incentive plan. These shares contain certain restrictions
relating to, among other things, vesting, forfeiture in the event of termination
of employment and transferability. Each of these restricted shares will cliff
vest after three years from issue date, subject to the grantee's continued
service with the Company.
The
restricted share award activities during the three months ended March 31, 2009
were as follows:
Number
of non-vested
restricted shares
|
Weighted average
grant
date fair
value
|
|||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2008
|
270,349
|
$
|
17.80
|
|||||
Granted
|
186,956
|
15.00
|
||||||
Vested
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
Forfeited
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
Balance
at March 31, 2009
|
457,305
|
$
|
16.66
|
During
the three months ended March 31, 2009, 17,500 stock options were exercised which
had a weighted average exercise price of $12.72 per share. The
Company issued new Class A ordinary shares from the shares authorized for
issuance under the Company’s stock incentive plan. At March 31, 2009,
252,098 Class A ordinary shares were available for future issuance under the
Company’s stock incentive plan. The intrinsic value of options exercised during
the three months ended March 31, 2009 was $39,900. No stock options
were exercised during the three months ended March 31, 2008.
Employee
and director stock option activities during the three months ended March 31,
2009 were as follows:
Number
of options
|
Weighted average
exercise price
|
Weighted average
grant
date fair
value
|
||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2008
|
1,258,340
|
$
|
13.27
|
$
|
6.35
|
|||||||
Granted
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||||
Exercised
|
(17,500)
|
12.72
|
6.75
|
|||||||||
Forfeited
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||||
Expired
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||||
Balance
at March 31, 2009
|
1,240,840
|
$
|
13.28
|
$
|
6.34
|
The
following table is a summary of voting ordinary shares issued and
outstanding:
March
31, 2009
|
March
31, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||
Class
A
|
Class
B
|
Class
A
|
Class
B
|
|||||||||||||
Balance
– beginning of period
|
29,781,736 | 6,254,949 | 29,847,787 | 6,254,949 | ||||||||||||
Issue
of ordinary shares
|
204,456 | — | 131,465 | — | ||||||||||||
Balance
– end of period
|
29,986,192 | 6,254,949 | 29,979,252 | 6,254,949 |
6.
|
RELATED
PARTY TRANSACTIONS
|
Investment
Advisory Agreement
The
Company was party to an Investment Advisory Agreement (the ‘‘Investment
Agreement’’) with DME Advisors, LP (“DME Advisors”) until December 31, 2007. DME
Advisors is a related party and an affiliate of David Einhorn, Chairman of the
Company’s Board of Directors. Effective January 1, 2008, the Company terminated
the Investment Agreement and entered into an agreement (the ‘‘Advisory
Agreement’’) under which the Company and DME Advisors agreed to create a joint
venture for the purposes of managing certain jointly held assets. Pursuant to
this agreement, the monthly management fees or performance compensation remained
the same as those contained in the Investment Agreement.
Pursuant to the Advisory
Agreement, performance compensation equal to 20% of the net income of the
Company’s share of the account managed by DME Advisors is payable to DME
Advisors, subject to a loss carry forward provision. The loss carry forward provision allows DME Advisors
to earn reduced incentive compensation of 10% on net investment income in any
year subsequent to the
year in which the
investment account incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an
additional amount equal to 150% of the aggregate investment loss is earned.
DME Advisors is not entitled to earn performance compensation in a year in which the investment portfolio incurs a loss.
For the year ended December 31, 2008, the portfolio reported a net investment
loss of $126.1 million and as a result no performance compensation was paid to
DME Advisors. In addition,
the performance compensation for fiscal 2009 and subsequent years will be
reduced to 10% of net investment income until all the investment losses have
been recouped and an additional amount equal to 150% of the aggregate loss is
earned. For the three
months ended March 31, 2009, performance compensation of $3.0 million was
recorded at the reduced rate of 10%.
Additionally,
pursuant to the Advisory Agreement, DME Advisors is entitled to
receive a monthly management fee equal to 0.125% (1.5% on an annual basis)
of the Company’s share of the account managed by DME Advisors. Included in net
investment income for the three months ended March 31, 2009, are management fees
of $2.2 million (March 31, 2008: $2.5 million). The management fees were fully
paid as of March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008.
Service
Agreement
In
February 2007, the Company entered into a service agreement with DME Advisors,
pursuant to which DME Advisors will provide investor relations services to the
Company for a monthly compensation of $5,000 plus expenses. The agreement
has an initial term of one year, and will continue for sequential one year
periods until terminated by the Company or DME Advisors. Either party may
terminate the agreement for any reason with 30 days prior written notice to the
other party.
7.
|
COMMITMENTS
AND CONTINGENCIES
|
Operating
Lease
Effective
September 1, 2005, the Company entered into a five-year non-cancelable lease
agreement to rent office space.
On
July 9, 2008, the Company entered into an additional lease agreement for
new office space in the Cayman Islands. Under the terms of the lease agreement,
the Company is committed to annual rent payments ranging from $253,539 to
$311,821. The lease expires on June 30, 2018 and
the Company has the option to renew the lease for a further five year
term. Included in the schedule below are the minimum lease payment obligations
relating to these leases.
The total
rent expense relating to leased office spaces for the three months ended March
31, 2009 was $212,374 (2008: $23,000).
Specialist
Service Agreement
Effective
September 1, 2007, the Company entered into a service agreement with a
specialist whereby the specialist service provider provides administration and
support in developing and maintaining business relationships, reviewing and
recommending programs and managing risks relating to certain specialty lines of
business. The service provider does not have any authority to bind the
Company to any reinsurance contracts. Under the terms of the agreement, the
Company has committed to quarterly payments to the service provider. If the
agreement is terminated after two years, the Company is obligated to make
minimum payments for another two years, as presented in the schedule below, to
ensure any bound contracts are adequately run-off by the service provider.
Included in the schedule below are the minimum payment obligations relating
to this agreement.
Private
Equity
Periodically,
the Company makes investments in private equity vehicles. As part of the
Company's participation in such private equity investments, the Company may make
funding commitments. As of March 31, 2009, the Company had commitments to invest
an additional $17.2 million in private equity investments.
The
following is a schedule of future minimum payments required under the above
commitments for the next five years:
2009
|
2010
|
2011
|
2012
|
2013
|
Thereafter
|
Total
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Operating
lease obligations
|
$ | 282 | $ | 345 | $ | 276 | $ | 276 | $ | 276 | $ | 1,243 | $ | 2,698 | ||||||||||||||
Specialist
service agreement
|
430 | 400 | 150 | — | — | — | 980 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Private
equity and limited partnerships(1)
|
17,236 | — | — | — | — | — | 17,236 | |||||||||||||||||||||
$ | 17,948 | $ | 745 | $ | 426 | $ | 276 | $ | 276 | $ | 1,243 | $ | 20,914 |
(1)
|
Given
the nature of these investments, the Company is unable to determine with
any degree of accuracy when the remaining commitments will be called.
Therefore, for purposes of the above table, the Company has assumed that
all commitments will be called within one
year.
|
Letters
of Credit
At March 31, 2009,
the Company had a $400 million letter of credit facility with Citibank N.A. This
facility will terminate on October 11, 2009, although the termination date is
automatically extended for an additional year unless written notice of
cancellation is delivered to the other party at least 120 days prior to the
termination date. In addition, at
March 31, 2009, the Company had a $25 million letter of credit facility with
Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited (“Butterfield Bank”). This facility will
terminate on June 6, 2009, although the termination date is automatically
extended for an additional year unless written notice of cancellation is
delivered to the other party at least 30 days prior to the termination
date.
At March 31,
2009, an aggregate amount of $203.3 million (December 31, 2008: $167.3
million) in letters of credit was issued under the above facilities. Under
these facilities, the Company provides collateral that may consist of
equity securities and cash equivalents. At March 31, 2009, total equity
securities and cash equivalents with a fair value of $272.2 million (December
31, 2008: $220.2 million) were pledged as security against the letters of
credit issued. Each of the facilities requires that the Company comply with
certain covenants, including restrictions on the Company’s ability to place a
lien or charge on the pledged assets, and restricts issuance of any debt without
the consent of the letter of credit provider. Additionally, if an event of
default exists, as defined in the letter of credit facilities, Greenlight Re
will be prohibited from paying dividends to its parent company. The Company was
in compliance with all the covenants of each of these facilities as of March 31,
2009 and December 31, 2008.
Litigation
In the
normal course of business, the Company may become involved in various claims
litigation and legal proceedings. As of March 31, 2009, the Company was not a
party to any litigation or arbitration proceedings.
8.
|
SEGMENT
REPORTING
|
The
Company manages its business on the basis of one operating segment, Property
& Casualty Reinsurance.
The
following tables provide a breakdown of the Company's gross premiums written by
line of business and by geographic area of risks insured for the periods
indicated:
Gross
Premiums Written by Line of Business
Three
months ended
March
31, 2009
|
Three
months ended
March
31, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||||||||||
Property
|
||||||||||||||||
Commercial
lines
|
$ | 19,413 | 27.0 | % | $ | 4,491 | 6.4 | % | ||||||||
Personal
lines
|
11 | 0.0 | 136 | 0.2 | ||||||||||||
Casualty
|
||||||||||||||||
General
liability
|
2,632 | 3.7 | 1,638 | 2.3 | ||||||||||||
Motor
liability
|
16,688 | 23.2 | 24,845 | 35.1 | ||||||||||||
Specialty
|
||||||||||||||||
Health
|
17,379 | 24.2 | 25,963 | 36.7 | ||||||||||||
Medical
malpractice
|
4,620 | 6.4 | 7,789 | 11.0 | ||||||||||||
Workers’
compensation
|
11,128 | 15.5 | 5,904 | 8.3 | ||||||||||||
$ | 71,871 | 100.0 | % | $ | 70,766 | 100.0 | % |
Gross
Premiums Written by Geographic Area of Risks Insured
Three
months ended
March
31, 2009
|
Three
months ended
March
31, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||||||||||
USA
|
$ | 51,267 | 71.3 | % | $ | 64,637 | 91.3 | % | ||||||||
Worldwide(1)
|
20,358 | 28.3 | 6,129 | 8.7 | ||||||||||||
Caribbean
|
246 | 0.4 | — | — | ||||||||||||
$ | 71,871 | 100.0 | % | $ | 70,766 | 100.0 | % |
(1)
|
‘‘Worldwide’’
risk is comprised of individual policies that insure risks on a
worldwide basis.
|
References
to ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ ‘‘our,’’ ‘‘our company,’’ ‘‘Greenlight Re,’’ or ‘‘the
Company’’ refer to Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. and its wholly-owned
subsidiaries, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Verdant Holding Company,
Ltd., unless the context dictates otherwise. References to our
‘‘Ordinary Shares’’ refers collectively to our Class A Ordinary Shares and Class
B Ordinary Shares.
The
following is a discussion and analysis of our results of operations for the
three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008 and financial condition as of March
31, 2009 and December 31, 2008. This discussion and analysis should be read in
conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and related notes
thereto contained in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended
December 31, 2008.
Special
Note About Forward-Looking Statements
Certain
statements in Management’s Discussion and Analysis (‘‘MD&A’’), other than
purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements
relating to our business plans, objectives and expected operating results, and
the assumptions upon which those statements are based, are ‘‘forward-looking
statements’’ within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). These
forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words ‘‘believe,’’
‘‘project,’’ ‘‘predict,’’ ‘‘expect,’’ ‘‘anticipate,’’ ‘‘estimate,’’ ‘‘intend,’’
‘‘plan,’’ ‘‘may,’’ ‘‘should,’’ ‘‘will,’’ ‘‘would,’’ ‘‘will be,’’ ‘‘will
continue,’’ ‘‘will likely result,’’ and similar expressions. Forward-looking
statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to
risks and uncertainties which may cause actual results to differ materially from
the forward-looking statements. A detailed discussion of risks and uncertainties
that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from such
forward-looking statements is included in the section entitled ‘‘Risk Factors’’
(refer to Part I, Item 1A) contained in our annual report on Form 10-K for
the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008. We undertake no obligation to publicly
update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events, or otherwise. Readers are cautioned not to place
undue reliance on the forward looking statements which speak only to the dates
on which they were made.
We intend
to communicate certain events that we believe may have a material adverse impact
on the Company's operations or financial position, including property and
casualty catastrophic events and material losses in our investment portfolio, in
a timely manner through a public announcement. Other than as required by the
Exchange Act, we do not intend to make public announcements regarding
reinsurance or investments events that we do not believe, based on management's
estimates and current information, will have a material adverse impact to the
Company's operations or financial position.
General
We are a
Cayman Islands-based specialist property and casualty reinsurer with a
reinsurance and investment strategy that we believe differentiates us from our
competitors. Our goal is to build long-term shareholder value by selectively
offering customized reinsurance solutions in markets where capacity and
alternatives are limited, which we believe will provide us with favorable
long-term returns on equity.
We aim to
complement our underwriting results with a non-traditional investment approach
in order to achieve higher rates of return over the long term than reinsurance
companies that employ more traditional, fixed-income investment strategies. We
manage our investment portfolio according to a value-oriented philosophy, in
which we take long positions in perceived undervalued securities and short
positions in perceived overvalued securities.
In
addition, we seek to form strategic alliances with insurance companies and
general agents to complement our property and casualty reinsurance business and
our non-traditional investment approach. To facilitate such strategic alliances,
we formed Verdant Holding Company, Ltd. (“Verdant”), our wholly owned subsidiary
which, among other activities, will make strategic investments in a select group
of property and casualty insurers and general agents.
Because
we have a limited operating history and employ an opportunistic underwriting
philosophy, period-to-period comparisons of our underwriting results may not be
meaningful. In addition, our historical investment results may not be indicative
of future performance. In addition, due to the nature of our reinsurance and
investment strategies, our operating results will likely fluctuate from period
to period.
Segments
We manage
our business on the basis of one operating segment, property and casualty
reinsurance, in accordance with the qualitative and quantitative criteria
established by SFAS 131, ‘‘Disclosure about Segments of an Enterprise and
Related Information.’’ Within the property and casualty reinsurance segment, we
analyze our underwriting operations using two categories:
|
•
|
frequency
business; and
|
|
•
|
severity
business.
|
Frequency
business is characterized by contracts containing a potentially large number of
relatively smaller losses emanating from multiple events. Clients generally buy
this protection to increase their own underwriting capacity and typically select
a reinsurer based upon the reinsurer’s financial strength and expertise. We
expect the results of frequency business to be less volatile than those of
severity business from period to period due to greater predictability of
the frequency business. We also expect that over time the profit margins and
return on equity of our frequency business will be lower than those of our
severity business.
Severity
business is typically characterized by contracts with the potential for
significant losses emanating from one event or multiple events. Clients
generally buy this protection to remove volatility from their balance sheets,
and accordingly, we expect the results of severity business to be volatile from
period to period. However, over the long term, we also expect that our severity
business will generate higher profit margins and return on equity than those of
our frequency business.
Outlook
and Trends
We
believe there currently is a lack of capacity in the property and casualty
industry due to significant loss of capital from combined investment and
underwriting losses in 2008. As a result, we expect to see
significant opportunities to expand our business in 2009 in both frequency and
severity risks. We believe insurance pricing generally will
increase. Further, volatile lines of business may experience
significant increases in pricing along with greater restrictions on the terms
and conditions of their insurance. We believe that these “hardened”
market conditions will persist until at least 2010 due to worldwide economic
conditions and limited available capital expected to enter the industry.
Countering these developments, we also believe that a slowdown in worldwide
economic activity may lead to reduced insurable risk exposures, which in turn
may decrease the demand for insurance, perhaps significantly.
We
believe that we are well positioned to compete for attractive opportunities in
frequency business due to our increasing market recognition, and the
development of certain strategic relationships in 2007 and 2008. In the second
quarter of 2008, we believed there was an excess of capacity in the property and
casualty reinsurance business, primarily due to two consecutive years of
below-average natural peril losses. During the third quarter of 2008, there were
two hurricanes (Gustav and Ike) that made landfall in the U.S; preliminary
estimates indicate total industry-wide insured losses range from $20 to $25
billion. We do not expect to experience any direct losses from these hurricanes.
However, when combined with other natural peril events that occurred
worldwide during 2008 and 2009, certain of our contracts with aggregate
catastrophe excess of loss coverage may be negatively impacted. In addition,
there are a number of insurers and reinsurers that have had significant
investment-related issues that have created uncertainty in their businesses. We
expect write downs of certain asset classes from 2008 to continue to reduce the
capital positions of a number of reinsurers. Finally, we believe that the
financial and credit crisis currently underway in the U.S. and the rest of the
world has the potential to cause significant losses in certain lines of
business.
If
the current challenges facing the insurance industry create significant
dislocations, we believe we will be well positioned to capitalize on resulting
opportunities. In early 2009, we have seen pricing of property catastrophe
retrocession business increase substantially. While it is unclear what other
businesses could be most affected by the current financial and credit issues, we
believe that opportunities are likely to arise in a number of possible
areas, including the following:
-
lines of business that experience poor loss experience;
-
lines of business where current market participants are experiencing financial distress or uncertainty; and
-
business (such as quota share) that is premium and capital intensive due to regulatory and other requirements.
Lines of
business that are likely to be affected by either of these areas include
property catastrophe reinsurance, marine reinsurance, marine retrocession ,
general liability, surety, directors and officers liability and errors and
omissions liability reinsurance. In addition, we believe that attractive
opportunities will likely arise in motor liability, workers compensation,
health and medical malpractice risks.
Significant market dislocations that increase the pricing of
certain insurance coverages could create the need for insureds to retain risks
and therefore fuel the opportunity or need to form new captives. If this
happens, a number of these captives could form in the Cayman Islands, enhancing
our opportunity to provide additional reinsurance to the Cayman Islands' captive
market.
During 2008, our investment strategy had
been affected by the difficulties faced by the overall financial markets. During
the three months ended March 31, 2009, we believe the market has increased the
risk premium on most asset classes as a result of headline news events,
including corporate failures, recent government interventions, current economic
slowdown and the ever-widening credit crisis. We believe that when macro
economic and political uncertainties eventually subside, security selection will
again be the primary driver of performance. This is a basic premise of our value
oriented investment strategy. While our investment results for 2008 were
disappointing, we believe that long-term opportunities for us have been
created due to a significant number of mispriced securities, including
distressed debt of corporate issuers.
In
addition, we recently formed Verdant, a Delaware corporation, which has
made and is expected to make strategic debt and equity investments from
time to time in a select group of property and casualty insurers and general
agents to complement our property and casualty reinsurance business and our
non-traditional investment approach. These strategic investments further
differentiate us from our competition, provide capital and capacity to our
clients and create value for our shareholders through investment returns, fee
income streams and underwriting profits.
We
intend to continue monitoring market conditions to position
ourselves to participate in future underserved or capacity-constrained
markets as they arise and intend to offer products that we believe will generate
favorable returns on equity over the long term. Accordingly, our underlying
results and product line concentrations in any given period may not be
indicative of our future results of operations.
Critical Accounting
Policies
Our
consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP,
which requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect reported
and disclosed amounts of assets and liabilities and the reported amounts of
revenues and expenses during the reporting period. We believe that the critical
accounting policies set forth in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2008, continue to describe the more significant
judgments and estimates used in the preparation of our consolidated financial
statements. These accounting policies pertain to premium revenue recognition,
investment valuations, loss and loss adjustment expenses, acquisition costs, and
share-based payments. If actual events differ significantly from the underlying
judgments or estimates used by management in the application of these accounting
policies, there could be a material effect on our results of operations and
financial condition.
Recently issued accounting standards and their impact to the Company
have been presented under "Recently Issued Accounting Standards" in note 2
of the accompanying consolidated financial statements.
Results
of Operations
Three
Months Ended March 31, 2009, and 2008
For the
three months ended March 31, 2009, we reported net income of $27.8 million, as
compared to a net loss of $4.8 million reported for the same period in 2008. The
increase in net income is principally due to our investment
portfolio reporting a net gain of $27.7 million, or a return of 4.6%,
for the first quarter of 2009 as compared to a net investment loss of $5.8
million, or a loss of 0.9%, for the same period in 2008. In addition,
through our wholly owned subsidiary, Verdant, we generated other income of $2.0
million from fees earned relating to strategic investments in property and
casualty insurance companies and general agents.
As a
result of adopting SFAS No. 160, the non-controlling interest in joint venture
was reclassified from liabilities into shareholder’s equity for all periods
presented. As a result of this reclassification, the recalculated fully diluted
book value per share at December 31, 2008 was $13.55 per share (compared to
$13.39 per share at December 31, 2008 prior to adopting SFAS No.
160).
One of
our primary financial goals is to increase the long-term value in fully diluted
book value per share. During the three months ended March 31, 2009, fully
diluted book value increased by $0.70 per share, or 5.2%, to $14.25 per share
from $13.55 per share at December 31, 2008.
Premiums
Written
Details
of gross premiums written are provided below:
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
$ | 46,799 | 65.1 | % | $ | 56,845 | 80.3 | % | ||||||||
Severity
|
25,072 | 34.9 | 13,921 | 19.7 | ||||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 71,871 | 100.0 | % | $ | 70,766 | 100.0 | % |
We expect
quarterly reporting of premiums written to remain volatile as our underwriting
portfolio continues to develop. Additionally, the composition of premiums
written between frequency and severity business will vary from quarter to
quarter depending on the specific market opportunities that we pursue. The
volatility in premiums is reflected in the premiums written for both frequency
business and severity business when comparing the three month periods ended
March 31, 2009 and 2008. The decrease in frequency premiums written was
primarily attributable to the non-renewal of a 2008 specialty health excess of
loss contract ($13.4 million). In addition, the motor liability line contributed
to the decrease in frequency premiums written ($8.2 million). These decreases in
premiums written were offset by increases in the workers compensation line ($5.2
million) and a new specialty health excess of loss contract written ($5.7
million) during the three months ended March 31, 2009.
The
increase in severity premiums are mainly attributable to increase in commercial
property lines ($14.9 million), primarily from one new excess of loss
contract written ($11.5 million) and additional premium on an existing excess of
loss contract ($2.5 million), offset by a decrease in medical malpractice lines
($3.4 million). A detailed analysis of gross premiums written by line of
business can be found in Note 8 to the condensed consolidated financial
statements.
For the
three months ended March 31, 2009, our ceded premiums were $1.2 million compared
to $9.3 million of ceded premiums for same period in 2008. The decrease in ceded
premiums is primarily the result of a specialty health frequency contract and
its corresponding retroceded contracts which expired during the first
quarter of 2009 and were not renewed.
Details
of net premiums written are provided below:
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
$ | 46,053 | 65.2 | % | $ | 47,573 | 77.4 | % | ||||||||
Severity
|
24,598 | 34.8 | 13,921 | 22.6 | ||||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 70,651 | 100.0 | % | $ | 61,494 | 100.0 | % |
Net Premiums Earned
Net
premiums earned reflect the pro rata inclusion into income of net premiums
written over the life of the reinsurance contracts. Details of net premiums
earned are provided below:
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
$ | 31,877 | 69.0 | % | $ | 17,954 | 65.3 | % | ||||||||
Severity
|
14,316 | 31.0 | 9,538 | 34.7 | ||||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 46,193 | 100.0 | % | $ | 27,492 | 100.0 | % |
The
increase in net premiums earned is attributable principally to increased
premiums earned from the growing underwriting portfolio, as compared to the
corresponding 2008 period.
Losses Incurred
Losses
incurred include losses paid and changes in loss reserves, including reserves
for losses incurred but not reported, or IBNR, net of actual and estimated loss
recoverables. Details of losses incurred are provided below:
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
$ | 16,978 | 56.2 | % | $ | 7,996 | 66.0 | % | ||||||||
Severity
|
13,218 | 43.8 | 4,128 | 34.0 | ||||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 30,196 | 100.0 | % | $ | 12,124 | 100.0 | % |
The loss
ratios for our frequency business were 53.3% and 44.5% for the three months
ended March 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively. The increase in frequency loss
ratio is due to a combination of developing losses on specialty health
contracts, offset by favorable loss development on a personal lines contract. We
expect losses incurred on our severity business to be volatile from period to
period. The loss ratios for our severity business were 92.3% and 43.3% for the
three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively. The increase in the
loss ratio for our severity business during the three months ended March 31,
2009 is primarily due to losses incurred on an aggregate catastrophe excess of
loss contract. During the three months ended March 31, 2009, the insured
reported that the aggregation of several 2008 natural peril losses resulted in
an estimated aggregate loss which exceeded their retention limits and permeated
into the excess of loss limit insured by us. At March 31, 2009, we recorded an
estimated reserve of $9.5 million relating to this
contract. Losses incurred in the three months ended March 31, 2009
can be further broken down into losses paid and changes in loss reserves. Losses
incurred for the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008 were comprised as
follows:
Three
months ended
March
31, 2009
|
Three
months ended
March
31, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
Gross
|
Ceded
|
Net
|
Gross
|
Ceded
|
Net
|
|||||||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Losses
paid (recovered)
|
$ | 8,372 | $ | (1,155 | ) | $ | 7,217 | $ | 5,383 | $ | (1,824 | ) | $ | 3,559 | ||||||||||
Increase
(decrease) in reserves
|
18,317 | 4,662 | 22,979 | 9,760 | (1,195 | ) | 8,565 | |||||||||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 26,689 | $ | 3,507 | $ | 30,196 | $ | 15,143 | $ | (3,019 | ) | $ | 12,124 |
The decrease in ceded reserves of $4.7 million was mainly due to favorable
loss development on an inward contract and the reduction in reserves
recoverable on the corresponding retroceded contract. During the three
months ended March 31, 2009, the aggregate development of prior period
reinsurance reserves was not significant.
Acquisition Costs
Acquisition
costs represent the amortization of commission and brokerage expenses incurred
on contracts written as well as profit commissions and other underwriting
expenses which are expensed when incurred. Deferred acquisition costs are
limited to the amount of commission and brokerage expenses that are expected to
be recovered from future earned premiums and anticipated investment income.
Details of acquisition costs are provided below:
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
$ | 13,493 | 101.9 | % | $ | 8,392 | 84.5 | % | ||||||||
Severity
|
(248 | ) | (1.9 | ) | 1,537 | 15.5 | ||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 13,245 | 100.0 | % | $ | 9,929 | 100.0 | % |
Increased
acquisition costs for the three months ended March 31, 2009, compared to the
corresponding 2008 period are a result of the increases in premiums earned
during the period. For the three months ended March 31, 2009, the acquisition
cost ratio for frequency business was 42.3% compared to 46.7% for the
corresponding 2008 period. The lower ratio was due to a downward swing in profit
commission rates for specialty health contracts which had adverse loss
development during the period, partially offset by increase in profit
commission on a personal lines contract which had favorable loss
development. We expect acquisition costs to be higher for frequency
business than for severity business. The acquisition cost ratio for severity
business was (1.7)% for the three months ended March 31, 2009 compared to 16.1%
for the corresponding 2008 period. The negative acquisition cost ratio is a
result of reversal of profit commissions previously accrued relating to an
aggregate catastrophe severity contract which reported a large loss during the
three months ended March 31, 2009. Overall, the total acquisition cost ratio
decreased to 28.7% for the three months ended March 31, 2009 from 36.1% for the
corresponding 2008 period.
General and Administrative Expenses
Our
general and administrative expenses of $4.4 million for the three months ended
March 31, 2009 remained consistent with the general and administrative expenses
of $4.5 million for the same period in 2008. The general and administrative
expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008 include $0.7 million
and $0.6 million, respectively, for the expensing of the fair value of stock
options and restricted stock granted to employees and directors.
Net Investment Income (Loss)
A summary
of our net investment income (loss) is as follows:
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||
Realized
gains (losses) and movement in unrealized gains (losses)
|
$ | 33,441 | $ | (4,663 | ) | |||
Interest,
dividend and other investment income
|
3,234 | 3,749 | ||||||
Interest,
dividend and other investment expenses
|
(3,722 | ) | (2,377 | ) | ||||
Investment
advisor compensation
|
(5,236 | ) | (2,471 | ) | ||||
Net
investment income (loss)
|
$ | 27,717 | $ | (5,762 | ) |
Investment
income, net of all fees and expenses, resulted in a gain of 4.6% on our
investment portfolio for the three months ended March 31, 2009. This compares to
a 0.9% investment loss reported for the corresponding 2008 period. Pursuant
to the Advisory Agreement, performance compensation equal to 20% of the net
income of the Company’s share of the account managed by DME Advisors is payable
to DME Advisors, subject to a loss carry forward provision. The loss carry forward provision allows DME Advisors
to earn reduced incentive compensation of 10% on net investment income in any
year subsequent to the
year in which the
investment account incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an
additional amount equal to 150% of the aggregate investment loss is earned.
For the year ended
December 31, 2008,
the portfolio reported an
investment loss and as a result no performance compensation was paid to DME
Advisors. The performance
compensation for fiscal 2009 and subsequent years will be reduced to 10% of net
investment income until the total loss carry forward balance is
recovered. As
of March 31, 2009, the loss carry
forward balance was $282.9 million.
Our
investment advisor, DME Advisors, LP ("DME Advisors"), and its affiliates
manage and expect to manage client accounts other than ours, some of which have
investment objectives similar to ours. To comply with Regulation FD, our
investment returns are posted on our website on a monthly basis. Additionally,
on our website we provide the names of the largest disclosed long positions in
our investment portfolio as of the last trading day of each month. DME
Advisors may choose not to disclose certain positions to its other clients in
order to protect its investment strategy. Therefore, our website
presents the largest positions held by us that are disclosed by DME Advisors or
its affiliates to their other clients.
Taxes
We are
not obligated to pay any taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital
gains. We have been granted an exemption by the Governor-In-Cabinet from any
taxes that may be imposed in the Cayman Islands for a period of 20 years,
expiring on February 1, 2025.
Our
wholly owned subsidiary, Verdant, is a Delaware corporation and is subject to
corporate income taxes on its taxable income. The effective tax rate for Verdant
is expected to be 35%. At March 31, 2009, a current tax expense of $75,000 was
recorded based on the pre-tax income earned by Verdant during the period. There
are no deferred tax assets or liabilities relating to Verdant, and therefore no
amounts have been recorded for deferred taxes. An accrual had been recorded for
taxes payable in other liabilities in the condensed consolidated balance sheet
at March 31, 2009 for $75,000.
Ratio Analysis
Due to
the opportunistic and customized nature of our underwriting operations, we
expect to report different loss and expense ratios in both our frequency and
severity businesses from period to period. The following table provides the
ratios for the three months ended March 31, 2009 and 2008:
Three
months ended
March
31, 2009
|
Three
months ended
March
31, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
Severity
|
Total
|
Frequency
|
Severity
|
Total
|
|||||||||||||||||||
Loss
ratio
|
53.3 | % | 92.3 | % | 65.4 | % | 44.5 | % | 43.3 | % | 44.1 | % | ||||||||||||
Acquisition
cost ratio
|
42.3 | % | (1.7 | )% | 28.7 | % | 46.7 | % | 16.1 | % | 36.1 | % | ||||||||||||
Composite
ratio
|
95.6 | % | 90.6 | % | 94.1 | % | 91.2 | % | 59.4 | % | 80.2 | % | ||||||||||||
Internal
expense ratio
|
9.5 | % | 16.2 | % | ||||||||||||||||||||
Combined
ratio
|
103.6 | % | 96.4 | % |
The loss
ratio is calculated by dividing loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred by
net premiums earned. We expect that our loss ratio will be volatile for our
severity business and may exceed that of our frequency business in certain
periods.
The
acquisition cost ratio is calculated by dividing acquisition costs by net
premiums earned. This ratio demonstrates the higher acquisition costs incurred
for our frequency business than for our severity business.
The
composite ratio is the ratio of underwriting losses incurred, loss adjustment
expenses and acquisition costs, excluding general and administrative expenses,
to net premiums earned. Similar to the loss ratio, we expect that this ratio
will be more volatile for our severity business depending on loss activity in
any particular period.
The
internal expense ratio is the ratio of all general and administrative expenses
to net premiums earned. We expect our internal expense ratio to decrease as we
continue to expand our underwriting operations. During the three months ended
March 31, 2009, our net earned premiums increased 68.0% while our general and
administrative expenses decreased 1.8% as compared to the corresponding 2008
period, resulting in a lower internal expense ratio.
The
combined ratio is the sum of the composite ratio and the internal expense ratio.
It measures the total profitability of our underwriting operations. This ratio
does not take net investment income or other income into account. The reported
combined ratio for the three months ended March 31, 2009 was 103.6%. The
increase in the combined ratio during the first quarter of 2009 is primarily
attributable to a $9.5 million loss reserve booked on a natural catastrophe
aggregate excess of loss contract, offset partially by a $1.5 million
reduction in the corresponding profit commission on the
contract. Given the nature of our opportunistic underwriting
strategy, we expect that our combined ratio may be volatile from period to
period.
Financial
Condition
Investment
in Securities
As of
March 31, 2009, our investments in securities reported in the consolidated
balance sheets were $557.3 million compared to $494.0 million as of December 31,
2008, an increase of 12.8%. The increase was partly due to deployment of
available cash into investments, partly due
to investments purchased from net positive cash
flows generated from underwriting operations and partly due to
investment income of $27.7 million for the three months ended March 31,
2009.
Consistent
with SFAS No. 157, our entire investment portfolio, including any derivatives,
is valued at fair value and any unrealized gains or losses are reflected in net
investment income in the consolidated statements of income. As of March 31,
2009, 81.5% of our investment portfolio (excluding restricted and
unrestricted cash and cash equivalents) was comprised of securities valued
based on quoted prices in actively traded markets (level 1), 16.4% comprised of
securities valued based on observable inputs other than quoted prices (level 2)
and 2.1% was comprised of securities valued based on non-observable inputs
(level 3).
In
determining whether a market for a financial instrument is active or inactive,
we obtain information from our investment advisor who makes the determination
based on feedback from executing brokers, market makers, and in-house traders to
assess the level of market activity and available liquidity for any given
financial instrument. Where a financial instrument is valued based on broker
quotes, our investment advisor generally requests multiple quotes. The
ultimate value is based on an average of the quotes obtained. Broker quoted
prices are generally not adjusted in determining the ultimate values and are
obtained with the expectation of the quotes being binding. As of March 31,
2009, $97.6 million of our investments in securities were valued based on
broker quotes, all of which were based on observable market information and
classified as level 2. During the three months ended March 31, 2009, debt
securities with fair value of $5.0 million were transferred from level 2 to
level 3, as there was no longer an active market for these securities and we
were unable to obtain multiple quotes for these securities. The fair values of
these securities were estimated using the last available transaction price,
adjusted for credit risk, expectation of future cash flows, and other
non-observable inputs.
Non-observable
inputs used by our investment advisor include discounted cash flow models for
valuing certain corporate debt securities. In addition, other non-observable
inputs used for valuing private equity investments include investment manager
statements and management estimates based on third party appraisals of
underlying assets.
Loss
and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves
We
establish reserves for contracts based on estimates of the ultimate cost of all
losses including incurred but not reported reserves (“IBNR”) as well as
allocated and unallocated loss expenses. These estimated ultimate reserves are
based on reports received from ceding companies, historical experience and
actuarial estimates. These estimates are reviewed quarterly on a contract by
contract basis and adjusted when appropriate. Since reserves are based on
estimates, the setting of appropriate reserves is an inherently uncertain
process. Our estimates are based upon actuarial and statistical projections and
on our assessment of currently available data, predictions of future
developments and estimates of future trends and other factors. The final
settlement of losses may vary, perhaps materially, from the reserves initially
established and any adjustments to the estimates are recorded in the period in
which they are determined. Under U.S. GAAP, we are not permitted to establish
loss reserves, which include case reserves and IBNR, until the occurrence of an
event which may give rise to a claim. As a result, only loss reserves applicable
to losses incurred up to the reporting date are established, with no allowance
for the establishment of loss reserves to account for expected future
occurrences.
For
natural peril risk exposed business, once an event has occurred that may give
rise to a claim, we establish loss reserves based on loss payments and case
reserves reported by our clients. We then add to these case reserves our
estimates for IBNR. To establish our IBNR loss estimates, in addition to the
loss information and estimates communicated by ceding companies, we rely on
industry information, knowledge of the business written and management’s
judgment.
Reserves
for loss and loss adjustment expenses as of March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008
were comprised of the following:
March
31, 2009
|
December
31, 2008
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
Case
Reserves
|
IBNR
|
Total
|
Case
Reserves
|
IBNR
|
Total
|
|||||||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frequency
|
$ | 8,886 | $ | 51,866 | $ | 60,752 | $ | 6,666 | $ | 49,127 | $ | 55,793 | ||||||||||||
Severity
|
— | 38,982 | 38,982 | — | 25,632 | 25,632 | ||||||||||||||||||
Total
|
$ | 8,886 | $ | 90,848 | $ | 99,734 | $ | 6,666 | $ | 74,759 | $ | 81,425 |
The
increase in loss reserves is mainly a result of the increase in earned premiums
during the three months ended March 31, 2009. In addition, the increase in
severity IBNR was due to $9.5
million in reserves accrued relating to a catastrophe excess
of loss contract. For most of the contracts written as of March 31, 2009, our
risk exposure is limited by the fact that the contracts have defined limits of
liability. Once the loss limit for a contract has been reached, we have no
further exposure to additional losses from that contract. However, certain
contracts, particularly quota share contracts which relate to first dollar
exposure, may not contain aggregate limits.
Our
severity business includes contracts that contain or may contain natural peril
loss exposure. As of May 1, 2009, our maximum aggregate loss exposure to any
series of natural peril events was $106.9 million. For purposes of the preceding
sentence, aggregate loss exposure is equal to the sum of all the aggregate
limits available in the contracts that contain natural peril exposure minus
reinstatement premiums for the same contracts. We categorize peak zones as:
United States, Europe, Japan and the rest of the world. The following table
provides single event loss exposure and aggregate loss exposure information for
the peak zones of our natural peril coverage as of the date of this
filing:
Zone
|
Single
Event
Loss
|
Aggregate
Loss
|
|
|||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||
USA(1)
|
$ | 84,350 | $ | 106,850 | ||||
Europe
|
72,800 | 80,300 | ||||||
Japan
|
72,800 | 80,300 | ||||||
Rest
of the world
|
52,800 | 60,300 | ||||||
Maximum
Aggregate
|
84,350 | 106,850 |
(1)
|
Includes
the Caribbean
|
Liquidity
and Capital Resources
General
We are
organized as a holding company with no operations of our own. As a holding
company we have minimal continuing cash needs, most of which are for
administrative expenses. All of our underwriting operations are conducted
through our sole reinsurance subsidiary, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd.,
("Greenlight Reinsurance"), which underwrites risks associated with our
property and casualty reinsurance programs. Restrictions on Greenlight
Reinsurance’s ability to pay dividends are described in more detail below. It is
our current policy to retain earnings to support the growth of our business. We
currently do not expect to pay dividends on our ordinary shares.
Sources
and Uses of Funds
Our
sources of funds primarily consist of premium receipts (net of brokerage and
ceding commissions), investment income (net of advisory fees and investment
expenses), including realized gains, and other income from fees generated by
Verdant. We use cash to pay losses and loss adjustment expenses, profit
commissions and general and administrative expenses. In addition, during the
three months ended March 31, 2009, we used $15.0 million to purchase promissory
notes as part of our strategic alliance with insurance companies and general
agents. Substantially all of our funds, including shareholders’ capital, net of
funds required for cash liquidity purposes, are invested by our investment
advisor in accordance with our investment guidelines. As of March 31, 2009,
approximately 96% of our investments in securities were comprised of
publicly-traded equity securities and actively traded debt
securities which can be readily liquidated to meet current and future
liabilities. We believe that we have sufficient flexibility to liquidate our
long securities to generate liquidity. Similarly, we can generate liquidity from
our short portfolio by covering securities and by freeing up restricted cash no
longer required for collateral.
For the
three months ended March 31, 2009, we had a negative cash flow of $37.8 million
and we generated $11.0 million in cash from operating activities primarily
relating to net premiums collected and retained from underwriting operations. As
of March 31, 2009, we believe we have sufficient projected cash flow from
operations to meet our liquidity requirements. We expect that our operational
needs for liquidity will be met by cash, funds generated from underwriting
activities, other income from Verdant’s operations and net investment income. We
have no current plans to issue equity or debt and expect to fund our operations
for the foreseeable future using operating cash flow. We
have recently filed a Form S-3 registration statement with the Securities and
Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), which has not yet been declared effective,
in order to provide us with additional flexibility and timely access to public
capital markets should we require additional capital for a future business
opportunity.
Although
we are not subject to any significant legal prohibitions on the payment of
dividends, Greenlight Reinsurance is subject to Cayman Islands regulatory
constraints that affect its ability to pay dividends to us and include a minimum
net worth requirement. Currently, the statutory minimum net worth requirement
for Greenlight Reinsurance is $120,000. In addition, any dividend payment
would have to be approved by the appropriate Cayman Islands regulatory authority
prior to payment.
Letters
of Credit
Greenlight Reinsurance is not licensed or admitted as a
reinsurer in any jurisdiction other than the Cayman Islands. Because many
jurisdictions do not permit domestic insurance companies to take credit on their
statutory financial statements unless appropriate measures are in place from
reinsurance obtained from unlicensed or non-admitted insurers we anticipate that
all of our U.S. clients and some of our non-U.S. clients will require us to
provide collateral through funds withheld, trust arrangements, letters of credit
or a combination
thereof.
As of March 31, 2009, Greenlight Reinsurance had a letter of
credit facility of $400.0 million with Citibank, N.A. with a termination date of
October 11, 2009. The termination date is automatically extended for an
additional year unless written notice of cancellation is delivered to the other
party at least 120 days prior to the termination date.
In addition, at March 31, 2009, the Company had a $25.0 million letter of
credit facility with Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited (“Butterfield Bank”) with
a termination date of June 6, 2009. The termination date is automatically
extended for an additional year unless written notice of cancellation is
delivered to the other party at least 30 days prior to the termination
date.
As of March 31, 2009, an aggregate amount of $203.3 million (December 31,
2008: $167.3 million) in letters of credit was issued from the available $425.0
million facilities. Under the letter of credit facilities, we provide collateral
that may consist of equity securities and cash equivalents. As of March 31,
2009, we had pledged $272.2 million (December 31, 2008: $220.2 million) of
equity securities and cash equivalents as collateral for the above letter of
credit facilities. Each of the facilities contains various covenants
that, in part, restrict Greenlight Reinsurance's ability to place a lien or
charge on the pledged assets and further restrict Greenlight Reinsurance's
ability to issue any debt without the consent of the letter of credit provider.
Additionally, if an event of default exists, as defined in the letter of credit
agreements, Greenlight Reinsurance will be prohibited from paying dividends to
us. For the three months ended March 31, 2009, the Company was in compliance
with all of the covenants under each of these facilities.
Capital
As of
March 31, 2009, total shareholders’ equity was $520.5 million compared to $491.4
million at December 31, 2008. This increase in total shareholders’ equity is
principally due to the net income of $27.8 million reported during the three
months ended March 31, 2009.
Our
capital structure currently consists entirely of equity issued in two separate
classes of ordinary shares. We expect that the existing capital base and
internally generated funds will be sufficient to implement our business
strategy. Consequently, we do not presently anticipate that we will incur any
material indebtedness in the ordinary course of our business. We
have recently filed a Form S-3 registration statement with
the SEC,
which has not yet been declared effective, in order to provide us with
additional flexibility and timely access to public capital markets should we
require additional capital for a future business
opportunity. We did not make any significant capital
expenditures during the three months ended March 31, 2009.
Contractual
Obligations and Commitments
The
following table shows our aggregate contractual obligations by time period
remaining to due date as of March 31, 2009:
Less
than
1
year
|
1-3
years
|
3-5
years
|
More
than
5
years
|
Total
|
||||||||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||||||
Operating
lease obligations(1)
|
$ | 377 | $ | 595 | $ | 552 | $ | 1,174 | $ | 2,698 | ||||||||||
Specialist
service agreement
|
555 | 425 | — | — | 980 | |||||||||||||||
Private
equity investments(2)
|
17,236 | — | — | — | 17,236 | |||||||||||||||
Loss
and loss adjustment expense reserves(3)
|
35,849 | 36,309 | 14,846 | 12,730 | 99,734 | |||||||||||||||
$ | 54,017 | $ | 37,329 | $ | 15,398 | $ | 13,904 | $ | 120,648 |
(1)
|
Reflects
our contractual obligations pursuant to the September 1, 2005 lease
agreement and the July 9, 2008 lease agreement as described
below.
|
(2)
|
As
of March 31, 2009, we had made commitments to invest a total of $27.1
million in private investments. As of March 31, 2009, we had invested $9.9
million of this amount, and our remaining commitments to these investments
were $17.2 million. Given the nature of these investments, we are unable
to determine with any degree of accuracy when the remaining commitment
will be called. Therefore, for purposes of the above table, we have
assumed that all commitments will be made within one year. Under our
investment guidelines, in effect as of the date hereof, no more than 10%
of the assets in the investment portfolio may be held in private equity
securities without specific approval from the Board of
Directors.
|
(3)
|
Due
to the nature of our reinsurance operations the amount and timing of the
cash flows associated with our reinsurance contractual liabilities will
fluctuate, perhaps materially, and, therefore, are highly
uncertain.
|
On
September 1, 2005, we entered into a five-year lease agreement for office
premises in the Cayman Islands. The lease repayment schedule is included under
operating lease obligations in the above table and in note 7 to the accompanying
condensed consolidated financial statements.
On
July 9, 2008, we signed a ten year lease agreement for new office space in the
Cayman Islands with the option to renew for an additional five year term. The
lease term is effective from July 1, 2008 and ends on June 30, 2018. Under
the terms of the lease agreement, our minimum annual rent payments will be
$253,539 for the first three years, increasing by 3% thereafter each year
to reach $311,821 by the tenth year. The minimum lease payments are included in
the above table under operating lease obligations and in note 7 to the
accompanying consolidated financial statements.
Effective September 1, 2007, we entered into a service agreement
with a specialist service provider for the provision of administration and
support in developing and maintaining business relationships, reviewing and
recommending programs and managing risks relating to certain specialty lines of
business. The specialist service provider does not have any authority to bind
the Company to any reinsurance contracts. Under the terms of the agreement, the
Company has committed to quarterly payments
to the specialist service provider. If the agreement is terminated after two
years, the Company is obligated to make minimum payments for another two years
to ensure any bound contracts are adequately run-off by the specialist service
provider. The minimum payments are included in the above table under specialist
service agreement and in the accompanying consolidated financial
statements.
On January 1, 2008, we entered into an agreement wherein the Company and DME
Advisors agreed to create a joint venture for the purposes of managing certain
jointly held assets. The term of the agreement is January 1, 2008, through
December 31, 2010, with automatic three-year renewals unless either the Company
or DME Advisors terminate the agreement by giving 90 days notice prior to the
end of the three year term. Pursuant to this agreement, the Company pays a
monthly management fee of 0.125% on the Company’s share of the assets managed by
DME Advisors and performance compensation of 20% on the net
investment income of the Company’s share of assets managed by DME Advisors
subject to a loss carry forward provision. The loss carry forward provision
allows DME Advisors to earn reduced incentive compensation of 10% on net
investment income in any year subsequent to the year in which the investment
account incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an additional
amount equal to 150% of the aggregate loss is earned. DME Advisors is not
entitled to earn performance compensation in a year in which the investment
portfolio incurs a loss. For the year ended December 31, 2008 the portfolio
reported a net investment loss and as a result no performance compensation was
paid to DME Advisors. The performance compensation for fiscal 2009 and
subsequent years will be reduced to 10% of net investment income until the
total loss carry forward balance is recovered. As of March 31, 2009, the loss carry
forward balance was $282.9 million. For the three months
ended March 31, 2009, $3.0 million was accrued relating to performance
compensation for DME Advisors at the reduced rate of 10% of profits.
In February 2007, the Company entered into a service agreement with DME Advisors
pursuant to which DME Advisors will provide investor relations services to the
Company for monthly compensation of $5,000 plus expenses. The agreement has an
initial term of one year, and will continue for sequential one year periods
until terminated by us or DME Advisors. Either party may terminate the agreement
for any reason with 30 days prior written notice to the other
party.
Off-Balance
Sheet Financing Arrangements
We
have no obligations, assets or liabilities, other than those derivatives in our
investment portfolio that are disclosed in the condensed consolidated financial
statements, which would be considered off-balance sheet arrangements. We do not
participate in transactions that create relationships with unconsolidated
entities or financial partnerships, often referred to as variable interest
entities, which would have been established for the purpose of facilitating
off-balance sheet arrangements.
We
believe we are principally exposed to the following types of market
risk:
• equity
price risk;
• foreign
currency risk;
• interest
rate risk;
• credit
risk;
• effects
of inflation; and
• political
risk.
Equity price risk. As of March 31, 2009, our
investment portfolio consisted primarily of long and short equity securities,
along with certain equity-based derivative instruments, the carrying values of
which are primarily based on quoted market prices. Generally, market prices of
common equity securities are subject to fluctuation, which could cause the
amount to be realized upon the closing of the position to differ significantly
from their current reported value. This risk is partly mitigated by the presence
of both long and short equity securities. As of March 31, 2009, a 10% decline in
the price of each of these listed equity securities and equity-based derivative
instruments would result in a $8.6 million, or 1.4%, decline in the fair value
of our total investment portfolio.
Computations
of the prospective effects of hypothetical equity price changes are based on
numerous assumptions, including the maintenance of the existing level and
composition of investment securities and should not be relied on as indicative
of future results.
Foreign currency risk. Certain of our
reinsurance contracts provide that ultimate losses may be payable in foreign
currencies depending on the country of original loss. Foreign currency exchange
rate risk exists to the extent that there is an increase in the exchange rate of
the foreign currency in which losses are ultimately owed. As of March 31, 2009,
we had no known losses payable in foreign currencies.
While we
do not seek to specifically match our liabilities under reinsurance policies
that are payable in foreign currencies with investments denominated in such
currencies, we continually monitor our exposure to potential foreign currency
losses and will consider the use of forward foreign currency exchange contracts
in an effort to hedge against adverse foreign currency movements.
Through
cash and investments in securities denominated in foreign currencies, we are
exposed to foreign currency risk. Foreign currency exchange rate risk is the
potential for loss in the U.S. dollar value of investments and speculative
foreign cash positions due to a decline in the exchange rate of the foreign
currency in which the cash and investments are denominated. As of March 31,
2009, some of our currency exposure resulting from foreign denominated
securities (longs and shorts) was reduced by offsetting cash balances (shorts
and longs) denominated in the corresponding foreign currencies, leading to a net
exposure to foreign currencies of $162.4 million. As of March 31, 2009, a 10%
decrease in the value of the United States dollar against select foreign
currencies would result in a $16.2 million, or 2.6%, decline in the value of our
investment portfolio. A summary of our total net exposure to foreign currencies
as of March 31, 2009 is as follows:
Original
Currency
|
US$
equivalent fair value
($
in thousands)
|
|||
European
Union euro
|
$ | 115,838 | ||
Canadian
dollar
|
17,381 | |||
Japanese
yen
|
14,382 | |||
Great
Britain pound
|
10,657 | |||
Other
|
4,132 | |||
$ | 162,390 |
Computations
of the prospective effects of hypothetical currency price changes are based on
numerous assumptions, including the maintenance of the existing level and
composition of investment in securities denominated in foreign currencies and
should not be relied on as indicative of future results.
Interest rate
risk. Our
investment portfolio includes interest rate sensitive securities, such as
corporate debt securities, credit default swaps, and interest rate options. The
primary market risk exposure for any debt security is interest rate risk. As
interest rates rise, the market value of our long fixed-income portfolio falls,
and conversely, as interest rates fall, the market value of our long
fixed-income portfolio rises. Additionally, some of our derivative investments
may also be credit sensitive and their value may indirectly fluctuate with
changes in
interest rates. The following table summarizes the impact that a 100 basis point
increase or decrease in interest rates would have on the value of our
investment portfolio.
100
basis point increase
in
interest rates
|
100
basis point decrease
in
interest rates
|
||||||||||||||
Change
in
fair
value
|
Change
in fair value as % of investment portfolio
|
|
Change
in
fair
value
|
Change
in fair value as % of investment portfolio
|
|||||||||||
($
in thousands)
|
|||||||||||||||
Debt
securities
|
$ |
(920
|
)
|
(0.15 |
)
|
% |
$
|
964
|
|
0.15
|
% | ||||
Credit
default swaps
|
(446
|
) |
(0.07
|
)
|
238
|
0.04
|
|||||||||
Interest
rate options
|
2,841
|
0.45
|
|
(1,867
|
)
|
(0.30
|
) | ||||||||
Net
exposure to interest rate risk
|
$ |
1,475
|
0.23
|
%
|
$
|
(665
|
) |
(0.11
|
) | % |
Credit risk. We are exposed to credit risk
primarily from the possibility that counterparties may default on their
obligations to us. The amount of the maximum exposure to credit risk is
indicated by the carrying value of our financial assets. In addition, the
securities of our investment portfolio are held with several prime brokers,
subjecting us to the related credit risk from the possibility that one or more
of them may default on their obligations to us. Other than our investment in
derivative contracts and corporate debt, if any, and the fact that our
investments and majority of cash balances are held by prime brokers on our
behalf, we have no significant concentrations of credit risk.
Effects of inflation. We do not believe that
inflation has had or will have a material effect on our combined results of
operations, except insofar as inflation may affect interest rates and assets
values in our investment portfolio.
Political
risk. We are
exposed to political risk to the extent that our investment advisor, on our
behalf and subject to our investment guidelines, trades securities that are
listed on various U.S. and foreign exchanges and markets. The governments in any
of these jurisdictions could impose restrictions, regulations or other measures,
which may have a material adverse impact on our investment
strategy.
Item
4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Disclosure
Controls and Procedures
As
required by Rule 13a-15 and 15d-15 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the
“Exchange Act”), the Company has evaluated, with the participation of
management, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial
Officer, the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure
controls and procedures (as defined in such rules) as of the end of the period
covered under this quarterly report. Based on such evaluation, the Chief
Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s
disclosure controls and procedures are effective to ensure that information
required to be disclosed by the Company in reports prepared in accordance with
the rules and regulations of the SEC is recorded, processed, summarized and
reported within the time periods specified by the SEC’s rules and forms.
Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and
procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by an
issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is
accumulated and communicated to the issuer’s management, including its principal
executive officer and principal financial officer, or persons performing similar
functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required
disclosure.
Our
management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial
Officer, does not expect that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures
will prevent all errors and all frauds. A control system, no matter how well
conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance
that the objectives of the control system are met. Further, the design of a
control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and
the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of
the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can
provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if
any, within the Company have been detected. These inherent limitations include
the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty, and that
breakdowns can occur because of simple error or mistake.
Additionally,
controls can be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons, by
collusion of two or more people, or by management override of the control. The
design of any system of controls also is based in part upon certain assumptions
about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any
design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future
conditions; over time, controls may become inadequate because of changes in
conditions, or the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may
deteriorate. Because of the inherent limitations in a cost-effective control
system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be
detected.
Changes
in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
There
have been no significant changes in the Company’s internal control over
financial reporting during the three months ended March 31, 2009 that have
materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the
Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Company
continues to review its disclosure controls and procedures, including its
internal controls over financial reporting, and may from time to time make
changes aimed at enhancing their effectiveness and to ensure that the Company’s
systems evolve with its business.
PART
II — OTHER INFORMATION
We are
not party to any pending or threatened material litigation and are not currently
aware of any pending or threatened litigation. We may become involved in various
claims and legal proceedings in the normal course of business, as a reinsurer or
insurer.
Factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those in
this report are any of the risks described in Item 1A ‘‘Risk Factors’’ included
in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008,
as filed with the SEC. Any of these factors could result in a significant or
material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.
Additional risk factors not presently known to us or that we currently deem
immaterial may also impair our business or results of operations.
As of April 30, 2009, there have been no material changes to the risk
factors disclosed in Item 1A ‘‘Risk Factors’’ included in our Annual Report on
Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2008, as filed with the SEC,
except we may disclose changes to such factors or disclose additional factors
from time to time in our future filings with the SEC.
On August
5, 2008, the Company’s Board of Directors adopted a share repurchase plan
authorizing the Company to purchase up to two million of its Class A
ordinary shares. Shares may be purchased in the open market or
through privately negotiated transactions under the plan. The plan, which
expires on June 30, 2011, does not require the Company to repurchase any
specific number of shares and may be modified, suspended or terminated at any
time without prior notice.
During the three months ended March 31, 2009, there were no repurchases of
our Class A ordinary shares were made.
None.
Annual General Meeting of
Shareholders. The Company held its 2009 Annual General Meeting
of Shareholders on April 28, 2009. Pursuant to the Company’s Third Amended and
Restated Articles of Association, each Class A ordinary share is entitled
to one vote per share and each Class B ordinary share is entitled to ten
votes per share; provided, however, that the total voting power of the issued
and outstanding Class B ordinary shares shall not exceed 9.5% of the total
voting power of all issued and outstanding ordinary shares. Since, on the record
date of the 2009 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, the total voting power of the
issued and outstanding Class B ordinary shares exceeded 9.5% of the total
voting power, the voting power of the Class B ordinary shares was reduced
with the excess being allocated to the Class A ordinary shares in
accordance with Article 53 of the Company’s Third Amended and Restated
Articles of Association.
The
following tables summarize the voting results after adjustment of voting power.
For more information on the following proposals, see the Company’s definitive
proxy statement dated March 3, 2009.
(1) The following persons were elected Directors of Greenlight Capital Re,
Ltd. by shareholders to serve for the term expiring at the Annual General
Meeting of Shareholders in 2010.
Director
|
Class
A
For
|
Class
A Against
|
Class
A Abstain
|
Class
A Withheld
|
Class
B
For
|
Class
B Against
|
Class
B Abstain
|
Class
B
Withheld
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alan
Brooks
|
64,391,039
|
18,681
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
David
Einhorn
|
64,376,020
|
67,383
|
3,774
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Leonard
Goldberg
|
64,411,622
|
30,883
|
4,672
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ian
Isaacs
|
64,417,382
|
25,123
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frank
Lackner
|
64,417,382
|
25,123
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bryan
Murphy
|
64,423,824
|
18,681
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Joseph
Platt
|
63,400,187
|
1,042,318
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
(2) The following persons were elected Directors of Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. by shareholders to serve for the term expiring at the Annual General Meeting of Shareholders in 2010.
Director
|
Class
A
For
|
Class
A
Against
|
Class
A
Abstain
|
Class
A Withheld
|
Class
B
For
|
Class
B
Against
|
Class
B
Abstain
|
Class
B
Withheld
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alan
Brooks
|
64,423,824
|
18,681
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
David
Einhorn
|
64,413,075
|
30,322
|
3,777
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Leonard
Goldberg
|
64,423,838
|
18,681
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ian
Isaacs
|
64,417,382
|
25,123
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Frank
Lackner
|
63,983,374
|
25,123
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bryan
Murphy
|
64,423,824
|
18,681
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Joseph
Platt
|
63,508,107
|
934,398
|
4,669
|
0
|
8,771,466
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
(3) The shareholders ratified the appointment of BDO Seidman, LLP to serve as
the independent auditors of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. for 2009.
Class
A
|
Class
B
|
|||||||
For
|
64,444,127
|
8,771,466
|
||||||
Against
|
3,047
|
0
|
||||||
Abstain
|
0
|
0
|
||||||
Withheld
|
0
|
0
|
(4) The shareholders ratified the appointment of BDO Seidman, LLP to serve
as the independent auditors of Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. for
2009.
Class
A
|
Class
B
|
|||||||
For
|
64,444,127
|
8,771,466
|
||||||
Against
|
3,044
|
0
|
||||||
Abstain
|
0
|
0
|
||||||
Withheld |
0
|
0
|
|
On
April 28, 2009, the Company adopted revisions to its Code of Business Conduct
and Ethics. The revisions include, among other things, a new section
regarding the requirements of and penalties under the Foreign Corrupt Practices
Act. In addition, on April 28, 2009, the Company amended and restated
each of its Audit Committee charter, Nominating and Corporate Governance
Committee charter and Compensation Committee Charter as part of its annual
review of each of these charters. The full text of the Amended and
Restated Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and each of the amended and
restated committee charters will be made available free of charge through the
corporate governance page of the Company’s website at www.greenlightre.ky.
31.1
|
Certification
of the Chief Executive Officer filed hereunder pursuant to Section 302 of
the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002
|
31.2
|
Certification
of the Chief Financial Officer filed hereunder pursuant to Section 302 of
the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002
|
32.1
|
Certification
of the Chief Executive Officer filed hereunder pursuant to Section 906 of
the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002
|
32.2
|
Certification
of the Chief Financial Officer filed hereunder pursuant to Section 906 of
the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002
|
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has
duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto
duly authorized.
GREENLIGHT
CAPITAL RE, LTD.
|
||
(Registrant)
|
||
/s/
Leonard Goldberg
|
||
Name:
|
Leonard
Goldberg
|
|
Title:
|
Chief
Executive Officer
|
|
Date:
|
May 4,
2009
|
|
/s/
Tim Courtis
|
||
Name:
|
Tim
Courtis
|
|
Title:
|
Chief
Financial Officer
|
|
Date:
|
May
4, 2009
|
38