If you ask John Berger, chief executive of reinsurance for Alterra Capital Holdings, to describe his vision of Alterra five years from now, part of the answer he'll provide may surprise you.

While much has changed for two members of the Bermuda Class of 2005, underwriting discipline grounded in analytical models remains a central strategy.

The latest class of Bermuda startups may well be the last of its kind, some members of the Class of 2005 predicted recently, although dissatisfaction with the Bermuda domicile is not the reason, they say.

Will soft pricing in the directors and officers insurance market continue in light of a second-quarter uptick in 2010 securities suits reported recently?

A buyers' market continues for directors and officers liability insurance, with double-digit price declines now possible for financial institutions and non-financial firms alike.

In 2009, the property and casualty insurance industry recovered from a devastating global financial crisis that had drained 12 percent from policyholder surplus and nearly erased the net income recorded the year before.

Early this month, First Mercury Financial Corporation announced one of its subsidiaries will buy Valiant Insurance Group for roughly $55 million.

In a market where growth seems elusive, the leader of Connecticut's newest managing general agency believes his startup could bind $10 million of new business by year's end.