November 3, 2026
A panel discussion at the IFoA Middle East Conference 2026 highlighted that unlocking the GCC insurance market’s growth potential will take stronger collaboration, better data, innovative solutions, and smarter use of capital.
On October 28, Amrita Pattni, Managing Director at Marsh Re, participated in a panel discussion uncovering how global capital markets can play a key role in expanding regional (re)insurance and risk capacity and in making “uninsurable’’ risks insurable again, alongside Hasham Piperdy, CEO of Global Insurance at Gemcorp Capital. The discussion explored where capacity is available today and how insurers, reinsurers, brokers, and regulators can work together to build a stronger regional market.
Find six takeaways from the discussion below.
1. Capacity is available, but not at the same price. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) reinsurance market continues to offer meaningful capacity across many lines of business. However, for more challenging classes, including marine, energy, and political violence and terrorism, capacity can be more expensive. This makes early engagement and renewal discussions particularly important to give insurers and brokers more time to assess the market, refine their data, explore alternative structures, and secure the most appropriate capacity.
2. Data is becoming central to risk transfer. Recent flood events across the region have highlighted the importance of understanding and modeling risk details. As exposure and climate-related risks evolve, locally relevant data and modeling will become increasingly important in supporting effective risk transfer and making better-informed decisions in the face of uncertainty.
3. Governments are helping to create new capacity. Governments across the region are playing an increasingly active role in supporting the development of insurance markets and risk pools. In September 2026, Marsh Re supported the launch of the Saudi Marine War Risk Insurance Pool, bringing together market participants, improving access to capacity, and creating more consistent approaches to managing specific risk classes. Public sector involvement can also help address areas where conventional market capacity may be limited or where a coordinated industry response is beneficial.
4. Regulation is changing the capital conversation. With new risk-based capital requirements being introduced across the region, insurers are increasingly considering how reinsurance can help manage regulatory capital, improve capital efficiency, and support sustainable growth. The most effective approach is not simply to purchase more reinsurance, but to design a program that aligns with the insurer’s risk appetite, balance sheet, business strategy, and regulatory requirements. This requires a clear understanding of how different structures affect volatility, capital requirements, earnings, liquidity, and credit risk.
5. Treaty facilities can provide consistency and certainty. Treaty facilities can provide more predictable and efficient risk transfer by streamlining negotiations, standardizing underwriting and pricing, accelerating decision-making, improving portfolio visibility, and helping insurers manage aggregate exposures. They work best for consistent portfolios supported by reliable data and clear reinsurer risk appetite.
6. Alternative capital is expanding the toolkit. Traditional reinsurance remains the main source of capacity, but alternative capital and solutions are gaining traction. These include parametric products, insurance-linked securities, catastrophe bonds, and multi-year structured solutions that can provide greater certainty, diversify sources of capacity, and address risks that may be difficult to place through conventional reinsurance.
Building the next phase of the GCC insurance market
The GCC insurance market has strong growth potential, and realizing that potential will require collaboration across the market. There is a great opportunity to build a market that understands its risks more clearly, uses capital more efficiently, and can respond effectively as new exposures emerge.
To learn more about how Marsh Re can help, contact our team.