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Article: BOND INSURERS: Buffett Stays Cautious; BHAC Limits Business, Rakes in Premiums.(Underwriters & Dealers)
- Article from:
- The Bond Buyer
- Article date:
- March 3, 2009
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 SourceMedia, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Byline: Jack Herman
Since Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Assurance Co. entered the bond insurance market, it has limited its production of new business and asked for high premiums.
Last year, it wrapped just 22 issues with a par value of $3.3 billion in the primary market, according to Thomson Reuters.
In his annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway Co. shareholders released this weekend, Buffett explained why the business has stayed small. He wrote that the company remains "very cautious" about the new public finance business it writes and "regard it as far from a sure thing that this insurance will ultimately be profitable."
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