return $100 million to founding institutional shareholders, the property catastrophe reinsurer said.

The move included a repurchase of 2.1 million common shares at $34.50 for $72 million completed Friday.

The remaining $28 million includes 813,190 shares to be repurchased at $34.50 from public shareholders in January.

"RenaissanceRe has had a very good year in 1996. We cannot fully deploy capital generated in underwriting activity because of underlying market conditions,'' RenaissanceRe senior vice president and CFO Keith Hynes said.

After the common share repurchases, the company's equity has grown in 1996 and is expected to be sufficient to support 1997 business, he said.

Through nine months of its fiscal year, RenaissanceRe's profit was $115 million.

The property catastrophe reinsurance market has been soft for about a year.

After the repurchase, founding shareholder stakes will be roughly the same.