SageSure Moves up to Third in Our Cat Bond Sponsor Leaderboard, as Largest Gateway Re Closes

Why It Matters

The deal demonstrates the increasing reliance on capital‑markets solutions for reinsurance capacity and signals that agile MGUs can compete with legacy insurers for ILS market share.

Key Takeaways

• SageSure now ranks third cat bond sponsor globally
• $670M Gateway Re 2026-1 cat bond closed in February
• Total outstanding risk capital reaches $3.1B across 12 issuances
• Multi‑peril coverage expands beyond storm‑focused offerings
• Upcoming $175M bond could push SageSure to second place

Pulse Analysis

The insurance‑linked securities (ILS) market has accelerated as capital‑intensive reinsurers seek alternative sources of risk transfer. SageSure, a catastrophe‑exposed property MGU, has leveraged this trend by embedding cat bonds into its reinsurance towers, allowing investors to provide multi‑peril capacity at market‑driven spreads. The recent closure of its largest Gateway Re issuance underscores how quickly a focused MGU can scale, positioning it alongside traditional insurers that have long dominated the cat‑bond arena.

The $670 million Gateway Re Ltd. Series 2026‑1 bond, priced in early February, delivered the broadest multi‑peril coverage in the series to date, moving beyond storm‑only structures to include a wider geographic footprint. Pricing remained within the original guidance despite a modest reduction in the target size, reflecting strong investor appetite for transparent underwriting and diversified risk layers. Swiss Re Capital Markets acted as sole structuring agent and bookrunner, further validating the transaction’s credibility and reinforcing the role of capital‑markets expertise in ILS execution.

With $3.1 billion of outstanding notional across twelve issuances, SageSure now sits third on Artemis’s cat‑bond sponsor leaderboard, trailing only Florida Citizens and Allstate. The firm’s pipeline includes a $175 million follow‑on bond that could lift its total risk capital above $3.3 billion, potentially elevating it to second place. This ascent signals a broader shift in the reinsurance landscape, where agile MGUs are challenging legacy carriers for ILS market share and prompting investors to diversify their exposure across emerging sponsors.