Cat Bond Issuance Tops $11 Billion in Q2 as J.P. Morgan Sees Disciplined ILS
Updated
Updated · Artemis.bm · Aug 7
Cat Bond Issuance Tops $11 Billion in Q2 as J.P. Morgan Sees Disciplined ILS
1 articles · Updated · Artemis.bm · Aug 7
Summary
Q2 2026 became the first cat bond quarter to exceed $11 billion, with 20 May deals alone bringing nearly $7 billion of risk capital to market.
J.P. Morgan said the surge has not brought the undisciplined behavior seen in the 2013-17 soft market, because 2026 pricing is being driven mainly by redeployed traditional industry capital rather than major new entrants.
More than $18 billion of cat bonds has been raised year to date in 2026, with net issuance of $4 billion—below 2025's pace but already above the 10-year average.
Catastrophe bonds now represent about $65 billion of capital, or roughly 8% of total reinsurance industry capital, which J.P. Morgan said is not especially disruptive to pricing.
ILS returns reached 3.93% year to date versus 2.04% a year earlier, extending a rebound after wildfire-hit early 2025 and supporting the asset class's improving long-term record.