W. R. Berkley (WRB) risk factors: FY2025 10-K

1. Our results may fluctuate as a result of many factors, including cyclical changes in the insurance and reinsurance industry.
2. We face significant competitive pressures in our businesses, which can pressure premium rates in certain areas and could harm our ability to maintain or increase our profitability and premium volume in some parts of our business.
3. Our actual claims losses may exceed our reserves for claims, which may require us to establish additional reserves.
4. The effects of emerging claim and coverage issues on our business are uncertain.
5. As a property casualty insurer, we face losses from natural and man-made catastrophes.
6. New or emerging pandemics, whether related to COVID-19 or otherwise, may materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and liquidity in the future.
7. Changing climate conditions may alter the frequency and increase the severity of catastrophic events and thereby adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.reworded
8. We, as a primary insurer, may have significant exposure to terrorist acts.reworded
9. We are exposed to, and may face adverse developments involving, mass tort claims.
10. We are subject to extensive governmental regulation, which increases our costs and could restrict the conduct of our business.
11. If market conditions cause reinsurance to be more costly or unavailable, we may be required to bear increased risks or reduce the level of our underwriting commitments.
12. Adverse economic factors, including recessions, inflation, periods of high unemployment, the impact of tariffs or lower economic activity could result in the sale of fewer policies than expected or an increase in frequency or severity of claims and premium defaults or both, which, in turn, could affect our growth and profitability.newTariffs

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1. Our expanding international operations expose us to increased investment, political, legal/regulatory, and economic risks, including foreign currency and credit risk.
2. We may be unable to attract and retain key personnel and qualified employees.
3. We cannot guarantee that our reinsurers will pay in a timely fashion, if at all, and, as a result, we could experience losses.
4. Given the inherent uncertainty of models, the usefulness of such models as a tool to evaluate risk is subject to a high degree of uncertainty that could result in actual losses that are materially different than our estimates. A deviation from our loss estimates may adversely impact, perhaps significantly, our financial results.new
5. We are subject to credit risk relating to our policyholders, independent agents and brokers.
6. Our employees could take excessive risks, which could negatively affect our financial condition and business.new
7. We are rated by A.M. Best, Standard & Poor's, Moody's, and Fitch, and a decline in these ratings could affect our standing in the insurance industry and cause our sales and earnings to decrease.
8. Depending on conditions in the financial markets and the general economy, we may be unable to raise debt or equity capital if needed.
9. We may not find suitable new insurance ventures and acquisition candidates and even if we do, we may not successfully invest in such ventures or successfully integrate any such acquired companies.
10. If our information technology, telecommunications or other computer systems become unavailable or unreliable, our ability to conduct our business could be negatively or severely impacted.
11. Our increasing investment in and use of artificial intelligence technologies or their use by third-parties on which we rely could expose us to technological, security, legal, and other risks.rewordedAI
12. We could be adversely affected if our controls to ensure compliance with guidelines, policies and legal and regulatory standards are not effective.
13. Limitations in risk management and loss limitation methods may adversely impact our business.
14. Scrutiny of our social responsibility and the efforts we take to implement related measures, or the failure to take such measures, may adversely impact our business.

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1. A significant amount of our assets is invested in fixed maturity securities and is subject to market fluctuations.
2. We have invested a portion of our assets in equity securities, merger arbitrage securities, investment funds, private equity, loans and real estate related assets, which are subject to significant volatility and may decline in value.

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1. We are an insurance holding company and, therefore, may not be able to receive dividends in needed amounts.
2. Laws and regulations of the jurisdictions in which we conduct business could delay, deter or prevent an attempt to acquire control of us that stockholders might consider to be desirable, and may restrict a stockholder's ability to purchase our common stock.
3. Certain provisions in our organizational and other documents (such as voting and other arrangements with Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Co., Ltd.) may have the effect of hindering, delaying or preventing third party takeovers and thus may prevent our stockholders from receiving premium prices for their shares in an unsolicited takeover or make it more difficult for third parties to replace our current management.reworded

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