We review heterogeneous agent-based models of financial stability and their application in stress tests. In contrast to the mainstream approach, which relies heavily on the rational expectations assumption and focuses on situations where it is possible to compute an equilibrium, this approach...

The U.S. legal system has multiple and complex regulatory regimes for insurance which combine statutes, administrative regulations and common law rules. Regulation of insurance is predominantly done by the fifty states, and this increases the system's complexity. The regulatory regimes generally...

Prudential regulation of infrastructure investment plays an important role in creating an enabling environment for mobilizing long-term finance from institutional investors, such as insurance companies, and, thus, gives critical support to sustainable development. Infrastructure projects are...

This paper provides a detailed quantitative assessment of the impact of solvency capital requirements on product pricing and shareholder value for a life insurer. A multi-period firm value maximization model for a life annuity provider, allowing for stochastic mortality and asset returns,...

This article discusses key issues that policymakers should consider when evaluating potential changes to U.S. insurance regulation in the aftermath of the financial crisis, including implications of both the Dodd-Frank Act and the Solvency II initiative in the European Union. Fundamental...

In this paper we compare the main regulatory frameworks: American (US RBC, Risk-Based-Capital), Swiss (SST, Swiss Solvency Test) and European (Solvency II). We improve on the existing literature by focusing on technical aspects of regulation schemes, particularly the capital requirements’...

Debating the minutiae of insurance regulation without a clear understanding of why insurance companies are regulated is futile. In this non-technical essay I discuss the economic rationale for insurance business regulation. I conclude that the appropriate role of the regulator in this industry...

This paper sheds light on the financial turmoil in the insurance sector from a Belgian supervisory perspective.3 An assessment is made of the main difficulties encountered by insurers and their supervisors during the development and acceleration of the financial crisis. Particular attention is...