Fosun International, the Chinese investment group and industrial conglomerate, has set up a pan-Asian operation to become the region’s leading reinsurer.
Fosun has linked up with former Swiss Re executives and IFC, the financing arm of the World Bank, to back Peak Re, only the second privately owned reinsurer to be set up in the region.
It will have $550m of capital, of which $468m is from Fosun. The four-strong founding team behind Hong Kong-listed Fosun are admirers of Warren Buffett, the billionaire who controls Berkshire Hathaway, and the deal takes them a step closer to emulating his investment empire, which generates most of its funds from the huge reinsurance business at its core.