Swiss Re announced today that it has acquired Fathom, a leading provider of water risk intelligence and flood models, based in Bristol, UK. Through this transaction, Swiss Re's Reinsurance Solutions division gains valuable expertise and a robust set of products, complementing its own data and risk capabilities in the field of flood perils – a major driver for constantly rising losses from natural catastrophes globally.

Russell Higginbotham, CEO of Swiss Re Reinsurance Solutions, said: "We are very pleased to join forces with Fathom in our quest to narrow the protection gap for natural catastrophe risks, such as floods. Fathom's market-leading research and innovative tools in this area create great synergies with Swiss Re's risk knowledge and digital capabilities. I'm thrilled to welcome the Fathom team to the Swiss Re organization and look forward to a successful collaboration."

Stuart Whitfield, CEO of Fathom, said: "We are committed to helping organizations around the world to analyze, understand and respond to flood risk and the changing climate landscape. Thanks to the strong alignment between our ethos and approach, I'm excited to see us work together with Swiss Re Reinsurance Solutions to bring our sophisticated risk insights to even more customers and help deliver greater global resiliency. This transaction represents a further key step in helping us achieve our vision of becoming the gold standard in the provision of water risk intelligence."

According to latest Swiss Re data, the re/insurance industry covered roughly 40% of the economic losses related to natural catastrophes in 2023, indicating a large protection gap across the world. Swiss Re estimates that, globally, natural catastrophes caused USD 100 billion insured losses this year alone. At least USD 12 billion of these total insured losses can be attributed to flood-related events, which is more than 30% higher than the past ten years' annual average.

Advanced data modelling, combined with scientifically robust tools and intelligence, enable insurance and risk management professionals to better understand the impact of floods on people, buildings, and businesses. Fathom is dedicated to leveraging its expertise in this field to help its customers efficiently identify, analyze and mitigate flood risks. By working closely with Swiss Re Reinsurance Solutions, Fathom gains access to Swiss Re's client franchise and long-standing expertise in the field of natural catastrophes.

As part of this transaction, Fathom will retain its own brand and continue its well-established research activities.