Aon named to Fast Company’s 2026 World Changing Ideas List

AON, a leading global professional services firm, announced it has been named to Fast Company’s 2026 World Changing Ideas for developing an innovative catastrophe bond with the World Bank that enabled the Government of Jamaica to rapidly access recovery funding following landfall of Hurricane Melissa in October 2025.

Aon and the World Bank structured the $150 million catastrophe bond as a parametric model, which pays a pre-determined, fixed amount when a qualifying event occurs, in this case a catastrophic storm. This structure allows funds to be released more rapidly to support emergency response and recovery efforts for the affected communities of Jamaica, in this instance, within weeks.

This project demonstrates how Aon’s Risk Capital capabilities, including predictive climate analytics, securities structuring and access to capital markets, help organizations and governments better anticipate, manage and transfer risk, while strengthening financial resilience as climate events become more frequent and severe.

“This recognition from Fast Company highlights what is possible when capital markets and innovation come together to address global challenges,” said Greg Case, president and CEO, Aon. “By combining advanced analytics with capital solutions, we are helping countries build resilience with greater speed and certainty — with the objective of improving the availability of critical resources when they are needed most — transforming disaster financing from reactive aid into a more resilient, forward-looking model.”

Delivering faster funding for community recovery

Traditional catastrophe bonds have long been used by insurers to transfer risk to capital markets. Aon’s work with the World Bank and the Government of Jamaica demonstrates how this model can be extended to sovereign governments, expanding access to pre-arranged funding for countries most exposed to climate risk.

“Access to timely funding is critical following a natural disaster, particularly for countries most exposed to disaster risk,” said Jorge Familiar, vice president and treasurer for The World Bank Group. "The World Bank's Crisis Preparedness and Response Toolkit helps member countries build financial resilience, with instruments ranging from contingent credit lines to catastrophe bonds, which transfer disaster risk directly to global capital markets. Our collaboration with Aon exemplifies how sovereign governments can harness the depth of global capital markets to build financial resilience — and Jamaica's experience shows that this example illustrates how the model may function in practice, setting a blueprint we hope more countries will follow."

Expanding access to resilience through public-private collaboration

The Jamaica catastrophe bond reflects an evolution in global disaster finance where public-private collaboration and capital markets play an increasing role in complementing traditional funding mechanisms and strengthening financial resilience. By helping Jamaica become the first Caribbean government and first small island state to sponsor such a transaction, Aon expanded the application of risk transfer solutions globally.

"The Government of Jamaica welcomes this recognition of a pioneering initiative that has transformed the way disaster risk is financed in our region,” said Hon. Fayval Williams, MP, CFA, minister of finance and the public service for the Government of Jamaica. “The catastrophe bond represents the power of innovation, strategic partnerships and prudent financial stewardship in building national resilience. We extend our appreciation to Aon and the World Bank for their invaluable support in helping Jamaica secure rapid access to critical funding when it is needed most. This achievement reinforces our commitment to safeguarding lives, protecting economic stability and ensuring that Jamaica remains at the forefront of climate and disaster risk management."

Using parametric triggers based on storm intensity and location, the bond enabled fast, transparent payouts when Hurricane Melissa met the predefined criteria, intended to support access to funding for response and recovery following a storm that caused approximately $8.8 billion in estimated damage (approximately 41 percent of GDP, based on publicly reported data at the time), one of the most severe recorded storms in Jamaica’s history.

“Designing this bond required aligning sovereign risk needs with global investor demand to provide the potential for faster and more predictable access to funding following events that can devastate economies, displace populations and threaten everyday life,” said Chris Lefferdink, head of insurance linked securities in North America for Aon. “The transaction demonstrates how catastrophe bonds may contribute to addressing aspects of the protection gap, illustrating a potential development in how such structures may be applied for speed, transparency and the application of risk capital to sovereign challenges.”

Interest in the catastrophe bond market continues to grow, with governments and organizations seeking new ways to strengthen resilience and manage volatility. This is evident in the continued development of the Jamaica program, which has recently expanded to $200 million in coverage, marking the country’s largest catastrophe bond to date.