Catlin has transferred an underwriter from Bermuda to head its new property reinsurance business in Switzerland.

Christophe Chandler has worked on the Island since 2006 as a class underwriter specialising in property reinsurance for Catlin Bermuda.

Mr. Chandler has been appointed as head of the property portfolio for Catlin Re Switzerland, the new reinsurance company being set up by Catlin with some $1 billion of capital, the company announced on Friday.

Peter Schmidt, CEO, European reinsurance at Catlin and CEO of Catlin Re Switzerland, said: "Christophe is well known to European insurers from his work as an international property reinsurance underwriter at Catlin Bermuda, and he is therefore the ideal person to lead our property underwriting team."

In addition, Jean-Pierre Portman, formerly a director at Swiss Re, has joined Catlin Re Switzerland, specialising in trade credit and surety reinsurance.

Catlin announced earlier this year that it had applied to the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority to establish Catlin Re Switzerland.

The formation of Catlin Re Switzerland will allow Catlin to write classes of European reinsurance business that are not currently underwritten elsewhere within the Catlin Group, including trade credit, surety, property and other classes of specialty reinsurance.

Catlin expects that Catlin Re Switzerland will be authorised to write business with effect from the January 1, 2011 renewals.

Mr. Chandler has worked at Catlin since 2002 specialising in property reinsurance, first as an assistant underwriter in London, then as a class underwriter in London from 2003 to 2006, before he moved to Bermuda.

He began his insurance career with Willis as a surety broker and joined Cox Insurance in 1998.

Prior to joining Catlin, Mr. Portmann worked for 14 years at Swiss Re, most recently serving as a director in the credit and surety department. His main duties included client management and underwriting for large European and Latin American trade credit and surety clients. Before joining Swiss Re, he held various positions with UBS.