...Catastrophe Bonds Gaining Momentum: Fitch Ratings believes the issuance of catastrophe bonds will catch on in Asia-Pacific, particularly for the catastrophe-prone markets such as Japan and China. Insurers are continually looking for alternative diversified sources of funding, to reduce their heavy dependence on reinsurers. Several catastrophe bonds have been issued in Japan since 2014, and the first Chinese bond was issued in 2015. Investors are attracted to the non-correlation of such bonds with other financial instruments/investments. Formulation of Catastrophe Funds/Pools: A trend has emerged of catastrophe funds/pools being launched in various Asian markets, in order to improve management of catastrophe exposure. Such initiatives are typically led by the governments or industry associations in that specific market. Thus far, Thailand and China have initiated the process of implementing such initiatives as part of their national disaster-management schemes ¡ to help the local (re)insurers...
