Coface: China protected from supply shock but exposed to weaker demand. Reinsurance News reports that Coface says China is better shielded than many Asian economies from an immediate Middle East supply shock, despite relying on the Strait of Hormuz for around 35% of its oil imports. However, the credit risk picture remains vulnerable. Higher energy and chemical prices are already squeezing sectors such as petrochemicals, textiles, chemicals and synthetic fibres, with smaller firms most exposed. Coface also warns that if energy prices were to double from pre-war levels, global growth could fall by more than 1% in 2026, reducing demand for Chinese exports and adding further pressure to company margins. To read Reinsurance News' article, go to https://www.reinsurancene.ws/china-shielded-from-immediate-supply-shock-despite-middle-east-tensions-coface/.

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Allianz Global Insurance Report flags rising trade credit risks from tariffs. Although Allianz's Trade's report, Allianz Global Insurance Report 2026:The future of Allianz Trade insurance in a fragmenting world, makes only a brief direct reference to trade credit, it flags tariffs as a growing credit risk. The report says tariffs are squeezing margins and increasing insolvency risk in trade credit, particularly for smaller companies exposed to disrupted supply chains. More broadly, Allianz Trade warns that geopolitical fragmentation is making insurance risk harder to price by weakening cross-border diversification, increasing regulatory complexity, raising sanctions and contract-enforceability risks, and disrupting trade, capital flows and supply chains. It says political risk insurance is seeing structurally higher demand as companies build geopolitical exposure into risk management. To read the report, go to https://www.allianz-trade.com/en_global/news-insights/economic-insights/Allianz_Global_Insurance_Report_2026.html.

ICISA report highlights the role of credit insurance in bank lending. ICISA's report, Celebrating 100 Years of Helping Global Trade Flow, includes a feature by Silja Calac, ITFA Board Member, explaining that credit insurance helps banks reduce credit risk and extend more finance. However, she says current EU capital rules have made credit insurance less efficient for some lower-risk transactions and argues that the rules may overstate the losses banks would face when protected by a regulated European insurer. Silja suggests closer cooperation between banking and insurance regulators could help ensure that capital rules better reflect the protection provided by credit insurance. To read ICISA's report, go to https://icisa.org/news/icisa-publishes-centenary-report-on-the-role-of-credit-insurance-and-surety-in-the-global-economy/.

 

Tokio Marine: The UK steel industry faces its toughest operating period since early 2022. Tokio Marine HCC's UK Steel Sector Report says H2 2026 will be the UK steel industry's most challenging operating period since early 2022. The Iran conflict has pushed UK industrial electricity to a 77% premium over French and German competitors, up from around 25% before late February. Credit risk is rising as cost pressures, weaker demand and tighter financing conditions affect the sector. The report says this risk is concentrated among downstream fabricators on fixed-price contracts, while UK construction is experiencing its most sustained downturn since the global financial crisis. To read the report, go to https://www.tmhcc.com/en/news-and-articles/thought-leadership/uk-steel-sector-report.

 

Launch of Credendo Re. Credendo has announced the launch of Credendo Re as the commercial name for its inward reinsurance activities. The move is intended to clarify Credendo's reinsurance positioning as demand across trade credit insurance, political risk and surety becomes more complex. Credendo says it has provided reinsurance capacity in these areas for more than 20 years. The company said the new name reflects the strategic importance of reinsurance within the group. To read Credendo's news release, go to https://credendo.com/en/knowledge-hub/launch-credendo-re.

 

Convex launches a Lloyd's syndicate with a CPRI focus. Global Trade Review (GTR) has reported that specialty re/insurer Convex Group has been approved to launch a Lloyd's syndicate with a portfolio that includes political risk and trade credit insurance. Syndicate 1987 will exclusively cover "long-tail specialty lines", and will also underwrite casualty insurance and reinsurance. Convex was formed in 2019 by industry veterans Paul Brand and Stephen Catlin with US$1.7 billion of initial committed capital to underwrite insurance and reinsurance for complex specialty risks. It expanded its credit and political risk team in 2020 with several hires. Last year, AIG and the Canadian asset manager Onex acquired Convex in a US$7 billion deal. To read GTR's article, go to https://www.gtreview.com/news/europe/insurer-convex-launches-lloyds-syndicate-with-cpri-focus/.

 

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Credit Insurance Fundraising
Help Sally Brown raise funds to support Afghan women.

I am Sally Brown, Editor and Founder of Credit Insurance News. I also volunteer as a mentor and teacher to young women in Afghanistan who are continuing their education online in circumstances that most of us can hardly imagine.

The volunteer-led programme I support is helping more than 1,200 Afghan girls and women keep learning, supported by people around the world who believe their education, hopes and futures should not simply be taken away. Among them are 60 exceptional young women who have already earned life-changing opportunities through their own hard work: 40 are due to begin remote internships with international companies, and 20 are preparing to start online Master's degrees with British universities. But almost all of them are still trying to study, apply and work from smartphones.

For these young women, a laptop is not a luxury. It is the tool that will allow them to attend classes properly, complete assignments, join internships, write applications, communicate professionally and make the most of the opportunities they have fought so hard to reach.

We are raising funds for 60 laptops — one for each of these students.

Any support, however small, would mean a great deal. It will not simply buy a piece of equipment; it will help turn courage, ability and hard-won opportunity into something practical, lasting and real.

To support the campaign, please go to https://givebutter.com/ywtWJv.

To learn more about the charity and its work supporting women in Afghanistan, you can watch this powerful TEDx talk with one of its founders: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jj2fXR3YP_o&t=2s.

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Congratulations to...
Congratulations to TL Dallas in Cockermouth, which has been named Cumbria's Insurance Broker of the Year in the My Local Awards 2026. The award, based on client and public votes, follows rapid growth for the Cockermouth office, which has expanded from two people in May 2023 to a team of 10 serving commercial and agricultural clients.

 

Congratulations to Alan Boswell Group, which has been named the UK's leading insurance broker for online visibility and reputation in Foliume's latest UK Broker Index. The Group achieved a total score of 81.8, more than 10 points ahead of its nearest competitor, with the ranking reflecting customer feedback, search visibility, online credentials and overall business footprint.​

 

Congratulations to Marsh BeLux on winning the TCI New Business Growth Award at the Credit Specialties Growth Summit 2026 in Malaga. The award recognises a strong team effort across Marsh BeLux and the wider Credit Specialties network, as well as the trust placed in the team by its clients.​

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New Appointments

AIG has appointed Daniela Alvarez Escobar as Trade Credit Risk Underwriter. She joins AIG's Middle Market team in London, where she will support its New Business Underwriters. Daniela previously spent more than six years with InSur Perú, most recently as a Risk Analyst in underwriting, having earlier worked as an Underwriting Assistant.

 

Allianz Trade has made two new appointments:

• Giulia Rosa has been appointed Head of Acquisition, Brand & Content for the MMEA region. She has been with Allianz Trade in Italy for more than 13 years, most recently as Head of Office, Marketing & Commercial for the MMEA region. She previously held senior roles in brand, content, digital marketing and project management within the business.

• Martha Dlaboha-Morrison has been promoted to Global Head of Excess of Loss, succeeding Alexia Parmentier, who has decided to leave the company. Martha has been with Allianz Trade in the UK and Ireland for more than nine years and was previously Head of XoL, Northern Europe. She earlier held underwriting roles with AIG.

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Atradius Netherlands has made two new appointments:

• Thomas Candau has been appointed Head of Global Netherlands. He has been with Atradius Nederland for more than 10 years and was previously a Senior Global Account Manager.

• Pieter Postmus has been appointed Head of Financial Institutions Global. He was previously Manager, Global NL at Atradius. He was also Chief Editor of De Credit Manager at VVCM from 2002 to 2022.

 

Bondaval has appointed Joe Hyde as Operations Manager. He joins from Allianz Trade, where he held roles including Global Implementation Manager for Northern Europe, High Value Claims Assessor for Multinationals, and Claims & Collections Administrator for the UK and Ireland.

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BPL has announced two new appointments to BPL Re:

• Alistair McVeigh has joined as Head of Reinsurance, Credit, Political Risks & Surety. He joins from Guy Carpenter, where he was Managing Director, Credit, Bond & Political Risk. He previously held senior political risk and structured credit roles at Marsh, Aon and Willis.

• Louis Harvey has joined as Director - Credit, Political Risks & Surety. He also joins from Guy Carpenter, where he was Senior Vice President, Credit, Bond & Political Risks. He previously spent more than nine years with Aon as a reinsurance broker in its Credit, Surety & Political Risks team.

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Brown & Brown UK has appointed Brenda O'Reilly as Account Manager in London. She joins from Coface, where she spent more than 11 years in account management roles, most recently as National Account Manager. She also previously worked at Atradius as an Account Manager and Customer Service Advisor.

Coface has made four new appointments:

• James Yau has been appointed Head of Commercial, SEA and Head of Mid-Market, APAC. James was previously Head of Trade Credit, APAC at AIG from May 2020, and has also held Asia-Pacific roles with Coface, QBE Insurance and Atradius.

• Stephen Kerkhofs has been appointed Commercial Director, Broker Division and Customer Care, based in Ghent. He joins from Allianz Trade in Belux, where he was Head of Broker from April 2022. He previously held broker management and account management roles at Euler Hermes in Belgium.

• Elizabeth Alva has been appointed Account Manager in Toronto, marking her return to Coface. She joins from Atradius, where she was an Account Manager in Ontario from May 2023. She previously spent five years with Coface Canada as an Account Officer.

• Aleksandra Kaczmarek has been appointed Regional Head of Sales, Coface Global Solutions, Asia Pacific. She returns to Coface from AIG, where she was Head of Multinational, Trade Credit, APAC. She previously held roles with Marsh and Coface in Singapore, including Account Executive, Banks & Financial Institutions.
   

Credit and Surety Brokers Ltd has appointed Hayden Tennant as Director. He was previously a Director at Xenia Broking and co-founder and Director of Credit Risk Solutions Ltd, where he spent nearly 17 years.

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FGI has appointed Victor Espinosa as Managing Director, FGI Risk. He joins from Allianz Trade in North America, where he held roles including Regional Head of Broker Management, Americas, VP, Distribution & Broker Relations, and Director of Strategic Underwriting Initiatives. He previously spent more than 13 years with Marsh McLennan Agency, including as Trade Credit Practice Leader.

 

Liberty Specialty Markets has promoted Dillon Matthews to Regional Lead, Short Term Trade Solutions. He joined Liberty Specialty Markets in 2023 as a Senior Underwriter and previously worked in credit risk strategy at Stripe. He has also held credit and political risk underwriting roles with Markel International and Atradius in Singapore and the Netherlands.
 

Markel International has promoted Sebastian Rice to Global Head of Business Development, Trade Credit, reporting to Phil Amlot, who was named Global Head of International Trade Credit in February. Sebastian joined Markel in January 2024 from QBE Europe, where he spent more than ten years. He previously held roles at Euler Hermes UK and Atradius.

 

Specialist Risk Group has appointed Lee Zong Wen as Principal, Credit & Political Risk, Asia, effective 6 July 2026. He joins from WTW in Singapore, where he was Associate Director in Financial Solutions, and has previously held roles with Standard Chartered Bank, Markel International, Jardine Lloyd Thompson Asia and Coface.

Willis Credit Risk Solutions has appointed Scott Walker as Client Director, Trade Credit, in London. He joins from Marsh, where he was the Trade Credit Practice Leader in London from January 2017. He previously held roles with Bank ABC, Aon Trade Credit and National Trade Credit Insurance Brokers.

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WTW has appointed Martina Montgomery as Senior Director, based in Birmingham. Martina joins WTW after more than ten years with Aon. She became a Client Director in March 2016 and was appointed Branch Director in November 2017, a position she held until June 2026. She took up her new role at WTW in June 2026.

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Retirement:
Julie Foster retires after more than 45 years with Atradius. Julie Foster has retired from Atradius after a career spanning more than 45 years. Based in Cardiff, Julie has worked as a Senior Underwriter and has managed Atradius' Sub-Saharan Africa portfolio, including the Indian Ocean Islands, covering 58 markets in total. Her responsibilities have also included the Southern African portfolio, including South Africa, Swaziland, Lesotho, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Angola.