ESG & Investing
Catastrophe Bond Sales Soar as Markets Brace for Unusually Active Hurricane Season
- Unusually high ocean temperatures, La Niña add to market risks
- Cat bonds underpinned the best hedge-fund strategy of 2023
Issuance of catastrophe bonds just hit a record high, as the market braces for a rough hurricane season with the potential to do substantial damage.
Sales of so-called cat bonds are 38% higher this year through May than over the same five-month period in 2023, which was already a record, according to Artemis, a compiler of data on insurance-linked securities. What’s more, the $4 billion issued in May alone represents the greatest volume of catastrophe bonds ever sold in a single month, Artemis said.