MMC

The catastrophe bond market has fully recovered.

Notoriously conservative investors, insurance companies cut their hedge fund allocations in 2009. But as the sting of the financial crisis eases, they'll come back looking for stronger returns.

In an odd twist of logic, it's looking like a good year to be in the catastrophe business. The business of insuring against catastrophes, that is. Industry insiders now expect that catastrophe bond activity will pass the $3 billion mark for 2009, which didn't really seem possible just did six...