Helios grows 2024 portfolio to over £500m capacity

Helios Underwriting Plc

15 December 2023

 

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS RESTRICTED AND IS NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN, INTO OR FROM THE UNITED STATES, AUSTRALIA, CANADA, JAPAN, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA OR ANY OTHER JURISDICTION IN WHICH SUCH RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION WOULD BE UNLAWFUL.

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION

Helios Underwriting PLC

("Helios" or the "Company")

Helios grows 2024 Lloyd's portfolio to exceed £500m capacity

·    2024 capacity portfolio increases to £501 million

·    Helios retained capacity increases by 58% to £387 million

·    "Rental Capacity" initiative with Argenta Private Capital likely to support £55million of capacity

·    Issue of up to US$100 million A- rated Senior Unsecured Notes

Helios Underwriting, the investment vehicle that provides investors access to a spread vehicle portfolio at Lloyd's of London, has delivered significant growth into 2024 building on its diversified and curated portfolio of syndicates. Capacity for 2024 will grow to more than £500m thanks to the strategic decision to position the portfolio to maximise opportunities.

Helios - 2024 Year of Account Capacity
£m	Retained	Third Party	Total
Expected Capacity for 2024 Year of Account	386.9	114.9	501.8
2023 Year of Account Capacity	244.5	66.3	310.8
% Increase	58%	73%	61%

Capacity for the 2024 Year of Account is expected to grow by 61%. This growth has been achieved through a combination of exercising pre-emption rights across the freehold portfolio, by building the tenancy portfolio and with new syndicate opportunities, some of which will commence in H1 2024.  This growth has enabled the Company to increase the retained position by 58% to £387m which will drive Helios' earnings in the future.

This growth has also allowed Helios to accommodate the strategic shift to a hybrid fee earning model by increasing the capacity allocated to Third Party capital providers. The company has pursued its ambition by launching a ground-breaking sidecar initiative to "rent" up to £55m of capacity to private capital in conjunction with Argenta Private Capital Limited. 

Helios is also pleased to announce that it has secured an A - / stable rating from Kroll Bond Rating Agency LLC, (KBRA) for up to US$100m seven-year unsecured debt at a fixed coupon of 9.5%.  An initial tranche of US75m of the debt has been raised. The Company believes that this facility will assist in the funding of the growth in the retained capacity and will facilitate growth in the future.  Acrisure Re Corporate Advisory and Solutions ("ARCAS") were the structuring and placement agent on the transaction.

The Company recently published its pro-forma NAV per share, which as at Sept 30 2023 has increased 17% to £1.76, driven by strong performance and results of the recent capacity auctions.

Martin Reith, CEO, commented:

"I am delighted to report that we have substantially grown our portfolio into 2024 and further positioned Helios to benefit from market discipline and the attractive pricing environment. We have built the portfolio to deliver superior returns across a diversified and volatility managed portfolio.  As a consequence we expect to have in excess of £500m capacity deployed for the '24 YoA.

"We have also started to shift the quality of our earnings away from pure underwriting returns and into a hybrid model where we have repeatable fee income generated by allowing access to our portfolio. Our "rental capacity" initiative with private capital is ground-breaking and allows investors a fast and efficient way to participate at the heart of some of the best syndicates trading at Lloyd's and removes the requirement to buy and own freehold capacity to access a Lloyd's portfolio.

"While deploying our own funds to the maximum, we have also added to the capital stack that supports the portfolio with proportional and non-proportional reinsurer support, sidecar capacity and rated debt. We are well positioned to secure further growth if we can originate other opportunities.

"I am thrilled that we have been able to significantly build the portfolio and to reinforce our value proposition as a key part of private capital at Lloyd's".

This announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (ED No.596/2014) (and all delegated regulations, implementation directives, technical standards and guidance issued by European Securities and Markets Authority from time to time, as implemented in the UK by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2020)) ("UK MAR"), encompassing information relating to the issue of unsecured debt as described above, and is disclosed in accordance with the Company's obligations under Article 17 of UK MAR.

For the purposes of UK MAR, the person responsible for arranging for the release of this announcement on behalf of the Company is Arthur Manners.

For further information, please contact:

Helios Underwriting PLC

Martin Reith, Chief Executive Officer                      (+44) (0)20 3965 6441

Nigel Hanbury, Executive Deputy Chairman

Arthur Manners,Chief Financial Officer

Deutsche Numis (Nomad and Broker)                                       

Giles Rolls / Charles Farquhar                                     [phone]

Buchanan (PR)

Helen Tarbet / George Beale                                      [phone] / [phone]

About Helios

Helios provides a limited liability direct investment into the Lloyd's insurance market and is quoted on the London Stock Exchange's AIM market (ticker: HUW). Helios trades within the Lloyd's insurance market writing approximately £501m of capacity for the 2024 account. The portfolio provides a good spread of business being concentrated in property & casualty insurance and reinsurance. For further information please visit www.huwplc.com.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

The release, publication or distribution of this announcement in jurisdictions other than the United Kingdom may be restricted by law and therefore any persons into whose possession this announcement comes should inform themselves about and observe any applicable restrictions or requirements.  No action has been taken by the Company that would permit possession or distribution of this announcement in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required.  Any failure to comply with such restrictions or requirements may constitute a violation of the securities laws of any such jurisdiction.

 

END