10-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

x ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2014

OR

o TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from      to

Commission file number 001-33493

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)

Cayman Islands	N/A
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)	(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

65 Market Street, Suite 1207, Camana Bay

P.O. Box 31110

Grand Cayman, KY1-1205

Cayman Islands

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: 345-943-4573

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of Class	Name of Exchange on Which Registered
Class A ordinary shares, $0.10 par value per share	The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:  None

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.  Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o    No x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulations S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes x No o

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. x

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of ‘‘large accelerated filer,’’ ‘‘accelerated filer,’’ and ‘‘smaller reporting company’’ in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

Large accelerated filer x Accelerated filer  o Non-accelerated filer o Smaller reporting company o

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes o No x

The aggregate market value of voting and non-voting Class A ordinary shares held by non-affiliates of the registrant as of June 30, 2014 was $976,961,597 based on the closing price of the registrant’s Class A ordinary shares reported on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on June 30, 2014, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter. Solely for the purpose of this calculation and for no other purpose, the non-affiliates of the registrant are assumed to be all shareholders of the registrant other than (i) directors of the registrant, (ii) executive officers of the registrant who are identified as ‘‘named executives’’ pursuant to Item 11 of this Form 10-K, (iii) any shareholder that beneficially owns 10% or more of the registrant’s common shares and (iv) any shareholder that has one or more of its affiliates on the registrant’s board of directors. Such exclusion is not intended, nor shall it be deemed, to be an admission that such persons are affiliates of the registrant.

Class A Ordinary Shares, $0.10 par value	31,159,035
Class B Ordinary Shares, $0.10 par value	6,254,895
(Class)	Outstanding as of February 13, 2015

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE 

Portions of the proxy statement for the registrant’s 2015 annual meeting of shareholders, to be filed subsequently with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, pursuant to Regulation 14A, under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, relating to the registrant’s annual general meeting of shareholders scheduled to be held on April 29, 2015 are incorporated by reference in Part III of this annual report on Form 10-K.

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GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

		Page
PART I		3
ITEM 1.	BUSINESS	4
ITEM 1A.	RISK FACTORS	19
ITEM 1B.	UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS	38
ITEM 2.	PROPERTIES	38
ITEM 3.	LEGAL PROCEEDINGS	38
ITEM 4.	MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES	39
PART II		39
ITEM 5.	MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES	39
ITEM 6.	SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA	41
ITEM 7.	MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS	43
ITEM 7A.	QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK	68
ITEM 8.	FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA	70
ITEM 9.	CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE	70
ITEM 9A.	CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES	70
ITEM 9B.	OTHER INFORMATION	71
PART III		71
ITEM 10.	DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE	71
ITEM 11.	EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION	72
ITEM 12.	SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS	72
ITEM 13.	CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE	72
ITEM 14.	PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES	72
PART IV		73
ITEM 15.	EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES	73
SIGNATURES		74

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PART I

Special Note About Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in Management’s Discussion and Analysis, other than purely historical information, including estimates, projections, statements relating to our business plans, objectives and expected operating results, and the assumptions upon which those statements are based, are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act"). These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words "believe," "project," "predict," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "may," "should," "will," "would," "will be," "will continue," "will likely result," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties which may cause actual results to differ materially from the forward-looking statements. A detailed discussion of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from such forward-looking statements is included in the section entitled "Risk Factors" (refer to Part I, Item 1A) and include but are not limited to:

● Our results will likely fluctuate from period to period and may not be indicative of our long-term prospects; 

● If our losses and loss adjustment expenses greatly exceed our loss reserves, our financial condition may be significantly and negatively affected;

● The property and casualty reinsurance market may be affected by cyclical trends; 

● The effect of emerging claim and coverage issues on our business is uncertain;

● Rating agencies may downgrade or withdraw either of our ratings; 

● We depend on DME Advisors, LP ("DME Advisors"), to implement our investment strategy;

● Loss of key executives could adversely impact our ability to implement our business strategy; and 

● Currency fluctuations could result in exchange rate losses and negatively impact our business.   

We caution that the foregoing list of important factors is not intended to be and is not exhaustive. We undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or individuals acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by this paragraph. If one or more risks or uncertainties materialize, or if our underlying assumptions prove to be incorrect, actual results may vary materially from what we projected. Any forward-looking statements in this Form 10-K reflect our current view with respect to future events and are subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to our operations, results of operations, growth, strategy and liquidity. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements which speak only to the dates on which they were made.

We intend to communicate certain events that we believe may have a material adverse impact on our operations or financial position, including property and casualty catastrophic events and material losses in our investment portfolio, in a timely manner through a public announcement. Other than as required by the Exchange Act, we do not intend to make public announcements regarding reinsurance or investments events that we do not believe, based on management's estimates and current information, will have a material adverse impact on our operations or financial position.

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Item 1. BUSINESS

Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context otherwise requires, all references in this annual report on Form 10-K to ‘‘the Company,’’ ‘‘we,’’ ‘‘us,’’ ‘‘our’’ and similar expressions are references to Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. and its consolidated subsidiaries. Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context otherwise requires, all references in this annual report to entity names are as set forth in the following table:

Reference	Entity’s legal name
Greenlight Capital Re	Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.
Greenlight Re	Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd.
GRIL	Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd.
Verdant	Verdant Holding Company, Ltd.

Company Overview

Greenlight Capital Re is a holding company that was incorporated in July 2004 under the laws of the Cayman Islands. In August 2004, we raised gross proceeds of $212.2 million from private placements of Greenlight Capital Re’s Class A ordinary shares and Class B ordinary shares, or, collectively, the ordinary shares. On May 24, 2007, Greenlight Capital Re raised proceeds of $208.3 million, net of underwriting fees, in an initial public offering of Class A ordinary shares, as well as an additional $50.0 million from a private placement of Class B ordinary shares.

We are a Cayman Islands headquartered global specialist property and casualty reinsurer with a reinsurance and investment strategy that we believe differentiates us from most of our competitors. We conduct our reinsurance operations through two licensed and regulated reinsurance entities: Greenlight Re, based in the Cayman Islands, and GRIL, based in Dublin, Ireland. Greenlight Re provides multi-line property and casualty reinsurance globally, while GRIL focuses mainly on the European market and serves clients located in Europe. Our goal is to build long-term shareholder value by selectively offering customized reinsurance solutions, in markets where capacity and alternatives are limited, which we believe will yield favorable long-term returns on equity.

We aim to complement our underwriting results with a non-traditional investment approach in order to achieve higher rates of return over the long term than reinsurance companies that employ more traditional, fixed-income investment strategies. We manage our investment portfolio according to a value-oriented philosophy, in which we take long positions in perceived undervalued securities and short positions in perceived overvalued securities.

In addition, from time to time, we may seek to form long-term strategic alliances with insurance companies and general agents to complement our property and casualty reinsurance business and our non-traditional investment approach. To facilitate such strategic alliances, we formed Verdant, which, among other activities, has made and may make strategic investments in a select group of property and casualty insurers and general agents in the United States.

Because we employ an opportunistic underwriting philosophy, period-to-period comparisons of our underwriting results may not be meaningful. In addition, our historical investment results may not necessarily be indicative of future performance. Due to the nature of our reinsurance and investment strategies, our operating results will likely fluctuate from period to period.

Description of Business

 Greenlight Re is licensed and regulated by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority ("CIMA") to write property and casualty reinsurance business as well as long term business (e.g., life insurance, long term disability, long term care, etc.); however, to date we have not written any long term business. GRIL is licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland ("CBI") to write property and casualty reinsurance business. Currently, we manage our business on the basis of one operating segment: property and casualty reinsurance. We currently offer excess of loss and quota share products in the property and casualty market. Our underwriting operations are designed to capitalize on inefficiencies that we perceive exist in the traditional approach to underwriting. We believe that we conduct our business differently from traditional reinsurers in multiple ways, including:

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● we focus on offering customized reinsurance solutions to select customers at times and in markets where capacity and alternatives are limited rather than pursuing and participating in broadly available traditional property and casualty opportunities;

● we aim to build a reinsurance portfolio of frequency and severity contracts with favorable ultimate economic results measured after all loss payments have been made rather than focusing on interim reported results when losses may be incurred but not yet reported or paid;

● we seek to act as the lead underwriter on a majority of the contracts we underwrite in an effort to obtain greater influence in negotiating pricing, terms and conditions rather than focusing on taking a minority participation in contracts that have been negotiated and priced by another party; 

● we maintain a small staff of experienced generalist underwriters that are capable of underwriting many lines of property and casualty business rather than a large staff of underwriters, each with an individual, specific focus on certain lines of business; 

● we implement a "cradle to grave" service philosophy where the same deal team underwrites and services each reinsurance contract rather than separating underwriting and servicing duties among many employees; and 

● we compensate our management with a cash bonus structure largely dependent on our underwriting results over a multi-year period rather than on premium volume or preliminary underwriting results in any given financial accounting period.

Our investment strategy, like our reinsurance strategy, is designed to maximize returns over the long term while minimizing the risk of capital loss. Unlike the investment strategies of many of our competitors, which invest primarily in fixed-income securities either directly or through fixed-fee arrangements with one or more investment managers, our investment strategy is to invest in long and short positions primarily in publicly-traded equity and corporate debt instruments exclusively through a joint venture with DME Advisors LLC ("DME"). Our investment advisor, DME Advisors, is compensated with a fixed annual fee based on assets under management and the joint venture participant, DME, is compensated on the positive performance of our portfolio. DME Advisors, which makes investments on our behalf, is a value-oriented investment advisor that analyzes companies' available financial data, business strategies and prospects in an effort to identify undervalued and overvalued securities. DME Advisors and DME are both controlled by David Einhorn, the Chairman of our Board of Directors and the president of Greenlight Capital, Inc. DME Advisors has the contractual right to manage substantially all of our investable assets until December 31, 2016, and is required to follow our investment guidelines and to act in a manner that is fair and equitable in allocating investment opportunities to us. However, DME Advisors is not otherwise restricted with respect to the nature or timing of making investments for our account.

We measure our success by long-term growth in book value per share, which we believe is the most comprehensive gauge of the performance of our business. Accordingly, our incentive compensation plans are designed to align employee and shareholder interests. Compensation under our cash bonus plan is largely dependent on the ultimate underwriting returns of our business measured over a multi-year period, rather than premium targets or estimated underwriting profitability for the year in which we initially underwrote the business.

We characterize the reinsurance risks we assume as frequency or severity and aim to balance the risks and opportunities of our underwriting activities by creating a diversified portfolio of both types of businesses, although we generally have a preference for frequency business.

Frequency business is characterized as contracts containing a potentially large number of smaller losses emanating from multiple events. Clients generally buy this protection to increase their own underwriting capacity and typically select a reinsurer based upon the reinsurer's financial strength, service and expertise. We expect the results of frequency business to be less volatile than those of severity business from period to period due to its greater predictability. We also expect that over time the profit margins and return on equity of our frequency business will be lower than those of our severity business.

Severity business is typically characterized as contracts with the potential for significant losses emanating from one event or multiple events. Clients generally buy this protection to reduce volatility from their balance sheets, and accordingly, we expect the results of severity business to be volatile from period to period. However, over the long term, we also expect that our severity business will generate higher profit margins and return on equity than our frequency business.

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While we intend to continue to add to, and diversify, our portfolio, our allocation of risk will vary based on our perception of the opportunities available in each line of business. Moreover, our focus on certain lines will fluctuate based upon market conditions and we may only offer or underwrite a limited number of lines in any given period. We intend to continue to:  

● target markets where capacity and alternatives are underserved or constrained;

● seek clients with appropriate expertise in their line of business;

● employ strict underwriting discipline;

● select reinsurance opportunities with favorable returns on capital over the life of the contract; and

● strengthen and expand relationships with existing clients.

The following table sets forth our gross premiums written by line of business:

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013					2012
	($ in thousands)
Property
Aviation	$	391	0.1	%	$	168		—	%	$	—		—	%
Commercial	11,529		3.6		9,999			1.9		15,110			3.5
Energy	2,131		0.6		659			0.1		—			—
Motor physical damage	24,008		7.4		57,952			10.8		60,262			14.1
Personal	64,479		19.9		145,807			27.2		81,662			19.1
Total Property	102,538		31.6		214,585			40.0		157,034			36.7
Casualty
General liability (1)	11,639		3.6		(815		)	(0.2	)	22,462			5.3
Marine liability	5,120		1.6		1,956			0.4		2,240			0.5
Motor liability	127,858		39.5		253,698			47.4		178,204			41.7
Professional liability	27,009		8.4		29,901			5.6		17,301			4.0
Total Casualty	171,626		53.1		284,740			53.2		220,207			51.5
Specialty
Financial (1)	5,292		1.6		3,498			0.7		(256		)	(0.1	)
Health	43,837		13.5		37,094			6.9		33,874			7.9
Workers’ compensation (1)	730		0.2		(4,215		)	(0.8	)	16,985			4.0
Total Specialty	49,859		15.3		36,377			6.8		50,603			11.8
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702		100.0	%	$	427,844		100.0	%

(1) The negative balance represents reversal of premiums due to premium adjustments, termination of contracts or premiums returned upon novation or commutation of contracts.

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The following table sets forth our gross premiums written by the geographic area of the risk insured:

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
U.S. and Caribbean	$	275,402	85.0	%	$	496,949	92.8	%	$	399,410	93.4	%
Worldwide (1)	31,106		9.6		9,821		1.8		11,134		2.6
Europe	17,432		5.4		28,932		5.4		17,300		4.0
Asia	83		—		—		—		—		—
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702	100.0	%	$	427,844	100.0	%

(1) “Worldwide” is comprised of contracts that reinsure risks in more than one geographic area and do not specifically exclude the U.S.

Additional information about our business is set forth in ‘‘Item 7 — Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations’’ and Note 15 to our consolidated financial statements included herein.

Marketing and Distribution

A majority of our business is sourced through reinsurance brokers. Brokerage distribution channels provide us with access to an efficient, variable cost and global distribution system without the significant time and expense that would be incurred in creating a wholly-owned distribution network. We believe that our financial strength rating, unencumbered balance sheet and superior client service are essential for creating long-term relationships with clients and brokers.

We aim to build and strengthen long-term relationships with global reinsurance brokers. Our management team has significant relationships with most of the primary and specialty broker intermediaries in the reinsurance marketplace. We believe that by maintaining close relationships with brokers we will be able to continue to obtain access to a broad range of reinsurance clients and opportunities. We focus on the quality and financial strength of any brokerage firm with which we do business. Brokers do not have the authority to bind us to any reinsurance contract. 

We have entered into a service agreement with a specialist service provider. Under the agreement, the specialist provides administration and support in developing and maintaining relationships, reviewing and recommending programs and managing risks on certain specialty lines of business. The service provider does not have any authority to bind us to any reinsurance contracts.

Reinsurance brokers receive a brokerage commission that is usually a percentage of gross premiums written. We seek to become the first choice of brokers and clients by providing:

● customized solutions that address the specific business needs of our clients;  

● rapid and substantive responses to proposal and pricing quote requests; 

● timely payment of claims;  

● financial security; and 

● clear indication of risks we will and will not underwrite.

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The following table sets forth the premiums sourced from brokers who each accounted for more than 10% of our gross written premiums:

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Largest broker	$	161,405	49.8	%	$	282,337	52.7	%	$	242,665	56.7	%
2nd largest broker	61,809		19.1		119,117		22.2		63,044		14.7
3rd largest broker	40,773		12.6		—		—		48,497		11.3
	$	263,987	81.5	%	$	401,454	74.9	%	$	354,206	82.7	%

We believe that by maintaining close relationships with brokers, we are able to obtain access to a range of potential clients that meet our criteria. We meet frequently in the Cayman Islands, Ireland and elsewhere with brokers and senior representatives of clients and prospective clients. All contract submissions are received, reviewed and approved in our executive offices in the Cayman Islands or Ireland. Due to our dependence on brokers, the inability to obtain business from them could adversely affect our business strategy. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Business — The inability to obtain business provided from brokers could adversely affect our business strategy and results of operations”. In addition, we may assume a degree of credit risk of our reinsurance brokers. See ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors — Risks Related to Our Business — The involvement of reinsurance brokers subjects us to their credit risk.’’ 

We believe that diversity in our sources of business helps reduce any potential adverse effects arising out of the termination of any one of our business relationships.

Underwriting and Risk Management

We have established a senior team of generalist underwriters and actuaries to operate our reinsurance business. We believe that our underwriters' experience, coupled with our approach to underwriting, allows us to deploy our capital in a variety of lines of business and to capitalize on opportunities that we believe offer favorable returns on equity over the long term. Our underwriters and actuaries have expertise in a number of lines of business and we also look to outside consultants on a fee-for-service basis to help us with niche areas of expertise when we deem it appropriate. We generally apply the following underwriting and risk management principles:

Economics of Results

Our primary goal is to build a reinsurance portfolio that has attractive economic results. We may underwrite a reinsurance contract that may not demonstrate immediate short-term accounting benefits if we believe it will provide a favorable return on capital over the life of the contract. In pricing our products, we assume investment returns that approximate the risk-free rate, which we review and adjust, if necessary, on an annual basis.

Actuarially Based Pricing

We have developed and use proprietary actuarial models and also use several commercially available tools to price our business. Our models not only consider conventional underwriting metrics, but also incorporate a component for risk aversion that places greater weight on scenarios that result in greater losses. We price each transaction based on our view of the merits and structure of the transaction.

Team Approach

Each transaction typically is assigned to a deal team comprised of at least an underwriter and an actuary to evaluate underwriting, structuring and pricing. Prior to committing capital to any transaction, the deal team creates a deal analysis memorandum that highlights the key components of the proposed transaction and presents the proposed transaction to a senior group of staff, including underwriting, actuarial, risk management and finance. This group is provided an opportunity to critically evaluate the proposed transaction. Additionally, our Chief Executive Officer or Chief Underwriting Officer must agree that the transaction meets our underwriting guidelines before we submit a firm proposal. Our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Underwriting Officer maintain the exclusive ultimate authority to bind contracts.

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Act as Lead Underwriter

Typically, one reinsurer acts as the lead underwriter in negotiating principal policy terms and pricing of reinsurance contracts. We aim to act as that lead underwriter for the majority of the aggregate premiums that we underwrite. We believe that lead underwriting is an important factor in achieving long-term success, as lead underwriters typically have greater influence in negotiating pricing, terms and conditions. In addition, we believe that reinsurers that lead policies are generally solicited for a broader range of business and have greater access to attractive opportunities.

Alignment of Company and Client’s Interests

We seek to ensure each contract we underwrite aligns our interests with our client’s interests. Specifically, depending upon the opportunity we may seek to:

● pay our clients a commission based upon a predetermined percentage of the profit we realize on the business, which we refer to as a profit commission; 

● provide that the client pays a predetermined amount of all losses before our reinsurance policy incurs a loss payment, which we refer to as self-insured retentions; 

● provide that the client pays a predetermined proportion of all losses above a predetermined amount, which we refer to as co-participation; and/or 

● charge the client a premium for reinstatement of reinsurance coverage to the full amount, which we refer to as reinstatement premium, if coverage has been reduced as a result of a reinsurance loss payment.

We believe that through profit commissions, self-insured retentions, co-participation, reinstatement premiums or other terms within the contract, our clients are provided with an incentive to manage our interests. We believe that aligning our interests with our clients' interests promotes accurate reporting of information, timely settling and management of claims and limits the potential for disputes.

Integrated Underwriting Operations

We implement a ‘‘cradle to grave’’ service philosophy where the same deal team underwrites and services each reinsurance contract. We believe this method enables us to best understand the risks and likelihood of loss for any particular contract and to provide superior client service.

Detailed Contract Diligence

We are highly selective in the contracts we choose to underwrite and spend a significant amount of time with our clients and brokers to understand the risks and appropriately structure the contracts. We usually obtain significant amounts of data from our clients to conduct a thorough actuarial modeling analysis. As part of our pricing and underwriting process, we assess, among other factors:

● the client’s and industry's historical loss data; 

● the expected duration for claims to fully develop; 

● the client’s pricing and underwriting strategies; 

● the geographic areas in which the client is doing business and its market share; 

● the reputation and financial strength of the client; 

● the reputation and expertise of the broker; 

● the likelihood of establishing a long-term relationship with the client and the broker; and 

● reports provided by independent industry specialists.

Underwriting Authorities

We use actuarial models that we produce and apply our underwriting guidelines to analyze each reinsurance opportunity before we commit capital. The Underwriting Committee of our Board of Directors, which we refer to as the Underwriting Committee, sets parameters for zonal and aggregate property catastrophic caps and limits for maximum loss potential under any individual contract. The Underwriting Committee must approve any exceptions to the established limits. Our approach to risk

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control imposes an absolute loss limit on our natural catastrophic exposures rather than an estimate of probable maximum losses, and we have also established zonal and aggregate limits. We manage all non-catastrophic exposures and other risks by analyzing our maximum loss potential on a contract-by-contract basis. The maximum underwriting authorities, as set by our Underwriting Committee, may be amended from time to time, including as and when our capital base changes.

Retrocessional Coverage

We may from time to time purchase retrocessional coverage for one or more of the following reasons: to manage our overall exposure, to reduce our net liability on individual risks, to obtain additional underwriting capacity and to balance our underwriting portfolio. Additionally, retrocession can be used as a mechanism to share the risks and rewards of business written and, therefore, can be used as a tool to align our interests with those of our counterparties.

The amount of retrocessional coverage that we purchase varies based on numerous factors, some of which include the inherent riskiness of the portfolio of business we write and the level of our capital base. Given our opportunistic approach to underwriting, which may change the composition and inherent riskiness of our underwriting portfolio on an annual basis, it is not possible to predict the level of retrocessional coverage that we will purchase in any given year. To date, our retrocessional coverage has been primarily used as a tool to align our interests with those of our counterparties.

We intend to only purchase uncollateralized retrocessional coverage from a reinsurer with a minimum financial strength rating of "A- (Excellent)" from A.M. Best Company, Inc. ("A.M. Best") or an equivalent rating from a recognized rating service. For non-rated reinsurers, we monitor and obtain collateral in the form of cash, funds withheld, letters of credit or other collateral in the form of guarantees. As of December 31, 2014, the aggregate amount due from reinsurers from retrocessional coverages represents 4.4% (2013: 5.1%) of our gross outstanding loss reserves. For further details please see Note 8 to the consolidated financial statements. We regularly evaluate the financial condition of our reinsurers to assess their ability to honor their obligations. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, no provision for uncollectible losses recoverable was considered necessary.

Capital Allocation

We allocate capital to each contract that we bind. Our capital allocation methodology uses the probability and magnitude of potential for economic loss. We allocate capital for the period from each contract’s inception until the risk is resolved. We have developed a proprietary return on equity capital allocation model to evaluate and price each reinsurance contract that we underwrite. We use different return on equity thresholds depending on the type and risk characteristics of the business we underwrite. 

Claims Management

We implement a ‘‘cradle to grave’’ service philosophy where the same deal team underwrites and services each reinsurance contract.

Our claims management process begins upon receipt of claims submissions from our clients, which the underwriter reviews for authorization prior to entry and settlement. Additionally, our in-house claims manager is responsible for overseeing the review of claims and providing approval for complex or large claim settlements. We believe this ensures that we pay claims consistently with the terms and conditions of each contract. Depending on the size of the claim payment, additional approvals for payment must be obtained from our executive officers.

Where necessary, we conduct or contract for on-site claims audits at cedents and third party claims handlers, particularly for large accounts and for those whose performance differs from our expectations. Through these audits, we evaluate and monitor ceding companies’ claims-handling practices, including the organization of their claims departments, their fact-finding and investigation techniques, their loss notifications, the adequacy of their reserves, their negotiation and settlement practices and their adherence to claims-handling guidelines.

We recognize that fair interpretation of our reinsurance agreements with our clients and timely payment of covered claims are valuable services to our clients.

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Reserves

Our reserving philosophy is to reserve to our best estimates of the actual results of the risks underwritten. Our actuaries provide reserving estimates on a quarterly basis calculated to meet our estimated future obligations. We reserve on a transaction by transaction basis. We engage independent external actuaries who review and provide an opinion on these estimates at least once a year. Due to the use of different assumptions, accounting treatment and loss experience, the amount we establish as reserves with respect to individual risks, transactions or classes of business may be greater or less than those established by clients or ceding companies. Reserves may also include unearned premiums, premium deposits, profit sharing earned but not yet paid, claims reported but not yet paid, claims incurred but not reported and claims in the process of settlement.

Reserves do not represent an exact calculation of liability. Rather, reserves represent our best estimate of the expected cost of the ultimate settlement and administration of the claim. Although the methods for establishing reserves are well-tested, some of the major assumptions about anticipated loss emergence patterns are subject to unanticipated fluctuation. We base these estimates on our assessment of facts and circumstances then known, as well as estimates of future trends in claim severity and frequency, judicial theories of liability and other factors, including the actions of third parties, which are beyond our control.

Collateral Arrangements and Letter of Credit Facilities

We are licensed and admitted as an insurer only in the Cayman Islands and the European Economic Area. Many jurisdictions such as the United States do not permit clients to take credit for reinsurance on their statutory financial statements if such reinsurance is obtained from unlicensed or non-admitted insurers without appropriate collateral. As a result, we anticipate that all of our U.S. clients and a portion of our non-U.S. clients will require us to provide collateral for the contracts we bind with them. We expect this collateral to take the form of funds withheld, trust arrangements or letters of credit. As of December 31, 2014, we had letter of credit facilities with an aggregate capacity of $760.0 million (2013: $760.0 million). As of December 31, 2014, we had issued letters of credit totaling $273.7 million (2013: $379.1 million) to clients. The failure to maintain, replace or increase our letter of credit facilities on commercially acceptable terms may significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy. See ‘‘Item 1A. Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Our Business — Our failure to maintain sufficient letter of credit facilities or to increase our letter of credit capacity on commercially acceptable terms as we grow could significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy.’’

Competition

The reinsurance industry is highly competitive. We compete with major reinsurers, most of which are well established, have significant operating histories and strong financial strength ratings, and have developed long-standing client relationships.

Our competitors include ACE Limited, Everest Re, General Re Corporation, Hannover Re Group, Munich Reinsurance Company, PartnerRe Ltd., Swiss Reinsurance Company, Third Point Reinsurance Ltd. and Transatlantic Reinsurance Company, as well as smaller companies and other niche reinsurers. Although we seek to provide coverage where capacity and alternatives are limited, we directly compete with these larger companies due to the breadth of their coverage across the property and casualty market in substantially all lines of business.

While most of our competitors have had a longer operating history than us, we believe that our approach to underwriting allows us to be successful in underwriting transactions against more established competitors.

Ratings

Currently, our reinsurance subsidiaries, Greenlight Re and GRIL are both rated "A (Excellent)" with a stable outlook by A.M. Best. The “A (Excellent)” rating from A.M. Best is the third highest of 15 ratings. We believe that a strong rating is an important factor in the marketing of reinsurance products to clients and brokers. These ratings reflect the rating agency’s opinion of our reinsurance subsidiaries' financial strength, operating performance and ability to meet obligations. It is not an evaluation directed toward the protection of investors or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold our Class A ordinary shares.

The failure to maintain a strong rating may significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy. See “Item 1A. Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Our Business — A downgrade or withdrawal of either of our A.M. Best ratings would significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy successfully.”

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Regulations

Cayman Islands Insurance Regulation

The legislative framework for the carrying on of insurance and reinsurance business in and from within the Cayman Islands is comprised of The Insurance Law, 2010 and underlying regulations thereto (the "Law") which was brought into force in the Cayman Islands effective as of November 1, 2012.

Greenlight Re holds a Class D insurer license issued in accordance with the terms of the Law and is subject to regulation by CIMA.

As the holder of a Class D insurer license, Greenlight Re is permitted to carry on reinsurance business from the Cayman Islands, but, except with the prior written approval of CIMA, may not carry on any insurance or reinsurance business where the underlying risk originates and resides in the Cayman Islands.

Greenlight Re is required to comply with the following principal requirements under the Law: 

●	to maintain capital and a margin of solvency in accordance with the capital and solvency requirements prescribed by the Law;
●	to carry on its business in accordance with the terms of the license application submitted to CIMA and to seek the prior approval of CIMA for any proposed change thereto;
●	to maintain adequate arrangements for the management of risks and a system of governance as approved by CIMA;
●	to maintain a minimum of at least two directors and to seek the prior approval of CIMA in respect of the appointment of directors and officers and to provide CIMA with information in connection therewith and notification of any changes thereto;
●	to have a place of business in the Cayman Islands and to maintain such resources, including staff and facilities, books and records as CIMA considers appropriate having regard for the nature and scale of the business of Greenlight Re;
●	to submit to CIMA an annual return in the prescribed form together with:
	1. financial statements prepared in accordance with any internationally recognized accounting standards, audited by an independent auditor approved by CIMA;
	2. an actuarial valuation of Greenlight Re's assets and liabilities, certified by an actuary approved by CIMA;
	3. certification of solvency prepared by a person approved by CIMA in accordance with the prescribed requirements;
	4. confirmation that the information contained in Greenlight Re's license application, as modified by any subsequent changes, remains correct; and
	5. such other information as may be prescribed by CIMA; and
●	to pay an annual license fee.

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It is the duty of CIMA: 

● to maintain a general review of insurance practices in the Cayman Islands;

● to examine the affairs or business of any licensee or other person carrying on, or who has carried on, insurance business in order to ensure that the Law has been complied with and that the licensee is in a sound financial position and is carrying on its business in a fit and proper manner;

● to examine and report on the annual returns delivered to CIMA in terms of the Law; and

● to examine and make recommendations with respect to, among other things, proposals for the revocation of licenses and cases of suspected insolvency of licensed entities.

Where CIMA believes that a licensee is committing, or is about to commit or pursue, an act that is an unsafe or unsound business practice, CIMA may direct the licensee to cease or refrain from committing the act or pursuing the offending course of conduct. Failure to comply with such a CIMA direction may be punishable on summary conviction by a fine of up to 100,000 Cayman Islands dollars (which is approximately US$120,000) or to imprisonment for a term of ten years or to both, and on conviction on indictment to a fine of 500,000 Cayman Islands dollars (which is approximately US$600,000) or to imprisonment for a term of five years or to both and to an additional 10,000 Cayman Islands dollars (which is approximately US$12,000) for every day after conviction that the breach continues.

Whenever CIMA believes that a licensee is or may become unable to meet its obligations as they fall due, is carrying on business in a manner likely to be detrimental to the public interest or to the interest of its creditors or policyholders, has contravened the terms of the Law or has otherwise behaved in such a manner so as to cause CIMA to call into question the licensee’s fitness, CIMA may take one of a number of steps, including requiring the licensee to take steps to rectify the matter, suspending the license of the licensee, revoking the license, imposing conditions upon the license and amending or revoking any such condition, requiring the substitution of any director, manager or officer of the licensee, at the expense of the licensee, appointing a person to advise the licensee on the proper conduct of its affairs and to report to CIMA thereon, at the expense of the licensee, appointing a person to assume control of the licensee’s affairs or otherwise requiring such action to be taken by the licensee as CIMA considers necessary. To date, we have not been subject to any such actions from CIMA. 

Other Regulations in the Cayman Islands

As Cayman Islands exempted companies, Greenlight Capital Re and Greenlight Re may not carry on business or trade locally in the Cayman Islands except in furtherance of their business outside the Cayman Islands, and are prohibited from soliciting the public of the Cayman Islands to subscribe for any of their securities or debt. We are further required to file a return with the Registrar of Companies in January of each year and to pay an annual registration fee at that time.

The Cayman Islands has no exchange controls restricting dealings in currencies or securities.

Ireland Insurance Regulations

Our Irish subsidiary, GRIL, is authorized as a non-life reinsurance undertaking in accordance with the provisions of the European Communities (Reinsurance) Regulations 2006 (the “Irish Regulations”). GRIL is required to comply at all times with the Irish Regulations and with any existing and future conditions imposed on it by CBI.  In addition, GRIL is required to maintain statutory reserves, particularly in respect of underwriting liabilities and a solvency margin as provided for in the Irish Insurance Acts 1909 to 2011, regulations promulgated thereunder, regulations relating to insurance business or reinsurance business promulgated under the European Communities Act 1972, the Irish Central Bank Acts 1942 to 2014 as amended, regulations promulgated thereunder and directions and guidelines and codes of conduct issued by CBI (the "Insurance Acts and Regulations"). Assets constituting statutory reserves must comply with rules including admissibility and diversification rules. Statutory reserves must be actuarially certified annually. Effective January 1, 2016, GRIL will be required to comply with a new European regulatory regime under EU Directive 2009/138/EC (known as "Solvency II"). Solvency II is expected to be adopted into Irish law by March 31, 2015, and will replace the existing solvency requirements of the CBI and will require insurers and reinsurers in Europe to meet risk-based solvency requirements.

Overview of Investments

Our investment portfolio is managed by DME Advisors, a value-oriented investment advisor that analyzes companies' available financial data, business strategies and prospects in an effort to identify undervalued and overvalued securities. DME

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Advisors is controlled by David Einhorn, the Chairman of our Board of Directors and the president of Greenlight Capital, Inc. Effective January 1, 2014 we entered into a second amended and restated agreement (the “venture agreement”), wherein the Company, Greenlight Re, GRIL, and DME have agreed to create a joint venture for the purposes of managing certain jointly held assets. The venture agreement, which replaces the previous agreement dated August 31, 2010, expires on December 31, 2016 and will renew automatically for successive three-year periods unless at least 90 days prior to the end of the then current term, DME notifies the other participants of its desire to terminate the venture agreement or any other participant notifies DME of its desire to withdraw from the venture agreement. Simultaneously with the venture agreement, we entered into an investment advisory agreement (the "advisory agreement") with DME Advisors to provide discretionary advisory services relating to the assets and liabilities of the venture under the venture agreement. The advisory agreement term period mirrors that of the venture agreement.

Pursuant to the venture agreement and the advisory agreement, DME Advisors has the exclusive right to manage substantially all of our investable assets, subject to the investment guidelines adopted by the respective Boards of Directors of Greenlight Re and GRIL, for so long as the venture agreement is in effect. DME Advisors receives a monthly management fee based on an annual rate of 1.5% of the capital account balance of each participant. In addition, DME receives a performance allocation based on the positive performance change in such participant’s capital account equal to 20% of net profits calculated per annum, subject to a loss carry forward provision.

The loss carry forward provision allows DME to earn a reduced performance allocation of 10% on profits in any year subsequent to the year in which a participant's capital account (other than DME) incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an additional amount equal to 150% of the loss is earned. DME is not entitled to a performance allocation in a year in which the investment portfolio incurs a loss.

DME Advisors is required to follow our investment guidelines and act in a manner that it considers fair and equitable in allocating investment opportunities to us, but the advisory agreement does not otherwise impose any specific obligations or requirements concerning the allocation of time, effort or investment opportunities to us or any restrictions on the nature or timing of investments for our account, or other accounts that DME Advisors or its affiliates may manage. In addition, DME Advisors can outsource to sub-advisors without our consent or approval. In the event that DME Advisors and any of its affiliates attempt to simultaneously invest in the same opportunity, the opportunity will be allocated pro-rata as reasonably determined by DME Advisors and its affiliates. Affiliates of DME Advisors presently serve as general partner or investment advisor of Greenlight Capital, L.P., Greenlight Capital Qualified, L.P., Greenlight Capital Offshore, Ltd., Greenlight Capital Offshore Qualified, Ltd., Greenlight Capital Offshore Partners, Greenlight Capital (Gold), L.P., Greenlight Capital Offshore (Gold), Ltd., Greenlight Capital Offshore Master (Gold), Ltd., Greenlight Masters, L.P., Greenlight Masters Qualified, L.P., Greenlight Masters Offshore, Ltd., Greenlight Masters Offshore I, Ltd., Greenlight Masters Offshore Partners and Greenlight Masters Partners, which we collectively refer to as the Greenlight Funds. 

We have agreed to use commercially reasonable efforts to cause all of our current and future subsidiaries to enter into substantially similar venture agreements, provided that any such agreement shall be terminable on the same date that the venture agreement is terminable.

We have agreed to release DME and DME Advisors and their affiliates from, and to indemnify and hold them harmless against, any liability arising out of the venture agreement and the advisory agreement, subject to certain exceptions. Furthermore, DME and DME Advisors and their affiliates have agreed to indemnify us against any liability incurred in connection with certain actions. 

Greenlight Re or GRIL may also withdraw as a participant under the venture agreement prior to the expiration of its term at any time only ‘‘for cause,’’ which the venture agreement defines as:

● a material violation of applicable law relating to DME's or DME Advisors’ advisory business;

● DME's or DME Advisors' gross negligence, willful misconduct or reckless disregard of any of DME's obligations under the venture agreement or DME Advisors' obligations under the advisory agreement;

● a material breach by DME or DME Advisors of Greenlight Re’s or GRIL’s investment guidelines that is not cured within a 15-day period; or

● a material breach by DME or DME Advisors of its obligations to return and deliver assets as we may request.

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In addition, GRIL may withdraw as a participant under the venture agreement prior to the expiration of its term due to unsatisfactory long term performance of DME or DME Advisors, as determined solely by the Board of Directors of GRIL on each anniversary date of the venture agreement.

Investment Strategy

DME Advisors implements a value-oriented investment strategy by taking long positions in perceived undervalued securities and short positions in perceived overvalued securities. DME Advisors aims to achieve high absolute rates of return while minimizing the risk of capital loss. DME Advisors attempts to determine the risk/return characteristics of potential investments by analyzing factors such as the risk that expected cash flows will not be obtained, the volatility of the cash flows, the leverage of the underlying business and the security's liquidity, among others.

Our Board of Directors conducts reviews of our investment portfolio activities and oversees our investment guidelines to meet our investment objectives. We believe our investment approach, while less predictable than traditional fixed-income portfolios, complements our reinsurance business and will achieve higher rates of return over the long term than reinsurance companies that invest predominantly in fixed-income securities. Our investment guidelines are designed to maintain adequate liquidity to fund our reinsurance operations and to protect against unexpected events.

DME Advisors, which is contractually obligated to adhere to our investment guidelines, makes investment decisions on our behalf, which may include buying publicly listed equity securities and corporate debt, selling securities short and investing in private placements, futures, currencies, commodities, credit default swaps, interest rate swaps, sovereign debt, derivatives and other instruments. As of December 31, 2014, DME Advisors was in compliance with our investment guidelines.

Investment Guidelines

The investment guidelines adopted by the respective Boards of Directors of Greenlight Re and GRIL, which may be amended or modified from time to time, take into account restrictions imposed on us by regulators, our liability mix, requirements to maintain an appropriate claims paying rating by ratings agencies and requirements of lenders.

As of the date hereof, the investment guidelines for Greenlight Re currently state:

● Composition of Investments: At least 80% of the assets in the investment portfolio will be held in debt or equity securities (including swaps) of publicly-traded companies (or their subsidiaries) and governments of the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development, (the "OECD"), high income countries, cash, cash equivalents and gold. No more than 10% of the assets in the investment portfolio will be held in private equity securities.

● Concentration of Investments: Other than cash, cash equivalents and United States government obligations and gold, no single investment in the investment portfolio will constitute more than 20% of the portfolio.

● Liquidity: Assets will be invested in such fashion that Greenlight Re has a reasonable expectation that it can meet any of its liabilities as they become due. Greenlight Re will review with the investment advisor the liquidity of the portfolio on a periodic basis.

● Monitoring: Greenlight Re will require the investment advisor to re-evaluate each position in the investment portfolio and to monitor changes in intrinsic value and trading value and provide monthly reports on the investment portfolio to Greenlight Re as Greenlight Re may reasonably determine.

● Leverage: The investment portfolio may not employ greater than 15% indebtedness for borrowed money, including net margin balances, for extended time periods. The investment advisor may employ, in the normal course of business, up to 30% indebtedness for periods of less than 30 days.

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The investment guidelines for GRIL are identical to Greenlight Re's except for concentration of investments and leverage, which for GRIL are as follows:

● Concentration of Investments: Other than cash, cash equivalents and United States government obligations, (1) no single investment in the investment portfolio will constitute more than 10% of the portfolio, (2) the 10 largest investments shall not constitute greater than 50% of the total investment portfolio, and (3) the investment portfolio shall at all times be comprised of a minimum of 50 debt or equity securities of publicly traded companies (or their subsidiaries).

● Leverage: The investment portfolio may not employ greater than 5% indebtedness for borrowed money, including net margin balances, for extended time periods. The investment advisor may use, in the normal course of business, an aggregate of up to 20% net margin leverage for periods of less than 30 days.

Investment Results

Composition

The following table represents the fair value of the total long positions in our investment portfolio as reported in the consolidated financial statements: 

	December 31
	2014				2013
	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	49,212	3.2	%	$	4,312	0.3	%
Equities – listed	1,246,427		82.4		1,256,577		83.8
Exchange traded funds	19,748		1.3		25,579		1.7
Commodities	96,872		6.4		60,888		4.1
Private and unlisted equity securities	18,719		1.2		46,323		3.1
	1,430,978		94.5	%	1,393,679		93.0	%
Funds and cash held with brokers and swap counterparties	79,806		5.3		20,184		1.3
Financial contracts, net	2,579		0.2		85,191		5.7
Total long investments	$	1,513,363	100.0	%	$	1,499,054	100.0	%

The following table represents the fair value of our total short positions as reported in the consolidated financial statements: 

	December 31
	2014				2013
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	823,390	75.5	%	$	909,475	81.8	%
Exchange traded funds	10,838		1.0	%	7,648		0.7
Corporate debt – U.S.	6,064		0.6		8,368		0.8
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	250,439		22.9		186,199		16.7
Total short investments	$	1,090,731	100.0	%	$	1,111,690	100.0	%

    DME Advisors also reports the composition of our managed portfolio on a notional exposure basis, which it believes is the appropriate manner in which to assess the exposure and profile of investments and is the way in which it manages the portfolio. This exposure analysis does not include cash (U.S. dollar and foreign currencies), gold and other commodities, credit default swaps, sovereign debt, foreign currency derivatives, interest rate options and other macro positions. In addition, under this methodology, the exposure for total return swaps is reported at full notional amount. The notional amount of a derivative contract is the underlying value upon which payment obligations are computed. For an equity total return swap, for example, the notional amount is the number of shares underlying the swap multiplied by the market price of those shares. Options are reported at their delta adjusted basis. The delta of an option is the sensitivity of the option price to the underlying stock (or commodity) price. The delta adjusted basis is the number of shares underlying the option multiplied by the delta and the underlying stock (or commodity) price.

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The following table represents the composition of our investment portfolio based on the percentage of assets in our investment account managed by DME Advisors:

	December 31
	2014				2013
	Long %		Short %		Long %		Short %
Debt instruments	1.0	%	(2.8	)%	0.3	%	(0.6	)%
Equities & related derivatives	102.1		(64.1	)	120.2		(69.2	)
Private and unlisted equity securities	2.7		—		3.2		—
Total	105.8	%	(66.9	)%	123.7	%	(69.8	)%

As of December 31, 2014, our exposure to gold on a delta adjusted basis was 6.8% (2013: 4.4%).

The following table represents the composition of our investment portfolio, by industry sector, based on the percentage of assets in our investment account managed by DME Advisors as of December 31, 2014: 

Sector	Long %		Short %		Net %
Basic Materials	4.0	%	(7.3	)%	(3.3	)%
Consumer Cyclical	10.0		(8.6	)	1.4
Consumer Non-Cyclical	—		(1.8	)	(1.8	)
Energy	7.2		(2.2	)	5.0
Financial	22.3		(10.3	)	12.0
Healthcare	2.1		(13.3	)	(11.2	)
Industrial	11.4		(3.2	)	8.2
Technology	48.8		(20.1	)	28.7
Utilities	—		(0.1	)	(0.1	)
Total	105.8	%	(66.9	)%	38.9	%

The following table represents the composition of our investment portfolio, by the market capitalization of the underlying security, based on the percentage of assets in our investment account managed by DME Advisors as of December 31, 2014: 

Capitalization	Long %		Short %		Net %
Large Cap Equity (≥$5 billion)	74.0	%	(45.6	)%	28.4	%
Mid Cap Equity (≥$1 billion and <$5 billion)	24.6		(19.9	)	4.7
Small Cap Equity (<$1 billion)	3.5		(1.0	)	2.5
Debt Instruments	1.0		(0.4	)	0.6
Other Investments	2.7		—		2.7
Total	105.8	%	(66.9	)%	38.9	%

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Investment Returns

A summary of our consolidated net investment income is as follows:

	Year ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Realized gains	$	353,264		$	141,976		$	60,762
Change in unrealized gains	(172,402		)	154,791			67,569
Investment related foreign exchange gains (losses)	(1,684		)	19,305			3,682
Interest and dividend income	31,422			22,265			21,131
Interest, dividend and other expenses	(38,892		)	(47,665		)	(38,545		)
Investment advisor compensation	(49,133		)	(72,532		)	(35,658		)
Net investment income	$	122,575		$	218,140		$	78,941

Our investment return is based on the total assets in our investment account, which includes the majority of our equity capital and collected premiums. Investment returns, net of all fees and expenses, by quarter and for the last five years are as follows: ⁽¹⁾ 

Quarter	2014		2013		2012		2011		2010
1st	(0.7	)%	5.8	%	6.5	%	(3.4	)%	(1.9	)%
2nd	8.1		2.0		(3.3	)	(1.9	)	2.6
3rd	(3.7	)	4.0		8.8		0.1		3.6
4th	5.3		6.6		(4.4	)	7.6		6.5
Full Year	8.7	%	19.6	%	7.1	%	2.1	%	11.0	%

    ⁽¹⁾    Investment returns are calculated monthly and compounded to calculate the quarterly and annual returns. Actual investment income may vary depending on cash flows into and out of the investment account. Past performance is not necessarily indicative of future results.

DME Advisors and its affiliates manage and expect to manage other client accounts besides ours, some of which have, or may have, objectives similar to ours. Because of the similarity or potential similarity of our investment portfolio to these others, and because, as a matter of ordinary course, DME Advisors and its affiliates provide their clients, including us, with results of their respective investment portfolios on the last day of each month, those other clients indirectly may have material non-public information regarding our investment portfolio. To address this issue, and to comply with Regulation FD, we present, prior to the start of trading on the first business day of each month, our largest disclosed long positions, a summary of our consolidated net investment returns, information on our long and short exposures and from time to time certain other material information relating to our investment portfolio, on our website, www.greenlightre.ky. DME Advisors may choose not to disclose certain positions to its clients in order to protect its investment strategy. Therefore, we present on our website the largest positions held by us that are disclosed by DME Advisors or its affiliates to their other clients.

Internal Risk Management

Our risk manager is responsible for the construct and review of our internal risk management function. We review our investment portfolio together with our reinsurance operations on a periodic basis to ensure that we have sufficient capital to withstand losses on either or both of our investment and reinsurance portfolios under stressed scenarios. With the assistance of DME Advisors, we periodically analyze both our assets and liabilities including the numerous components of risk in our portfolio, such as concentration risk and liquidity risk.

Information Technology

Our information technology infrastructure is currently housed in our corporate offices in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands. We have implemented backup procedures to ensure that data is backed up on a daily basis and can be restored in an appropriate time frame as needed.

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We have a disaster recovery plan with respect to our information technology infrastructure that includes data and systems replication between our Cayman Islands office and Dublin office and other off-site locations. We believe we can access our core systems with insignificant outages and restore operation of our secondary systems in the event that our primary systems are unavailable due to a disaster or otherwise.

Employees

As of December 31, 2014, we had 31 full-time employees, 26 of whom were based in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands and 5 were based in Dublin, Ireland. We believe that our employee relations are good. None of our employees are subject to collective bargaining agreements, and we are not aware of any current efforts to implement such agreements.

Additional Information

Our website address is www.greenlightre.ky and we make available, free of charge, on or through our website, links to our annual reports on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q including XBRL instance documents, current reports on Form 8-K and other documents we file with or furnish to the SEC, as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. In order to comply with Regulation FD, our investment returns are posted on a monthly basis. Additionally, our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics is available on our website. 

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

Any of these factors could result in a significant or material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. Additional risk factors not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also impair our business or results of operations.

Risks Relating to Our Business

Our results of operations will likely fluctuate from period to period and may not be indicative of our long-term prospects.

The performance of our reinsurance operations and our investment portfolio will likely fluctuate from period to period. Fluctuations will result from a variety of factors, including: 

● reinsurance contract pricing;

● our assessment of the quality of available reinsurance opportunities;

● the volume and mix of reinsurance products we underwrite;

● loss experience on our reinsurance liabilities;

● the performance of our investment portfolio; and

● our ability to assess and integrate our risk management strategy properly.

In particular, we seek attractive opportunities to underwrite products and make investments to achieve favorable returns on equity over the long term. Our investment strategy to invest primarily in long and short positions in publicly-traded equity and debt instruments is subject to market volatility and is likely to be more volatile than traditional fixed-income portfolios that are comprised primarily of investment grade bonds. In addition, our differentiated strategy and focus on long-term growth in book value will result in fluctuations in total premiums written from period to period as we concentrate on underwriting contracts that we believe will generate better long-term, rather than short-term, results. Accordingly, our short-term results of operations may not be indicative of our long-term prospects. 

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Established competitors with greater resources may make it difficult for us to effectively market our products or offer our products at a profit.

The reinsurance industry is highly competitive. We compete with major reinsurers, many of which have substantially greater financial, marketing and management resources than we do. Competition in the types of business that we underwrite is based on many factors, including: 

● premium charges;

● ability to obtain terms and conditions appropriate with the risk being assumed and in accordance with our underwriting guidelines;

● the general reputation and perceived financial strength of the reinsurer;

● relationships with reinsurance brokers;

● ratings assigned by independent rating agencies;

● speed of claims payment and reputation; and

● the experience and reputation of the members of our underwriting team in the particular lines of reinsurance we seek to underwrite.

Additionally, although the members of our underwriting team have general experience across many property and casualty lines, they may not have the requisite experience or expertise to compete for all transactions that fall within our strategy of offering customized frequency and severity contracts at times and in markets where capacity and alternatives may be limited.

Our competitors include ACE Limited, Everest Re, General Re Corporation, Hannover Re Group, Munich Reinsurance Company, PartnerRe Ltd., Swiss Reinsurance Company, Third Point Reinsurance Ltd. and Transatlantic Reinsurance Company as well as smaller companies and other niche reinsurers. Although we seek to provide coverage where capacity and alternatives are limited, we directly compete with these larger companies due to the breadth of their coverage across the property and casualty market in substantially all lines of business.

Further, our ability to compete may be harmed if insurance industry participants continue to consolidate. Consolidated entities may try to use their enhanced market power to negotiate price reductions for our products and services. If competitive pressures reduce our prices, we would expect to write less business. If and when the insurance industry further consolidates, competition for customers may become more intense, and the importance of acquiring and properly servicing each customer may become greater. We could incur greater expenses relating to customer acquisition and retention, further reducing our operating margins. In addition, insurance companies that merge may be able to spread their risks across a consolidated, larger capital base so that they require less reinsurance. The number of companies offering retrocessional reinsurance may decline. Reinsurance intermediaries could also consolidate, potentially adversely impacting our ability to access business and distribute our products. We could also experience more robust competition from larger, better capitalized competitors. Any of the foregoing could significantly, and negatively, affect our business or our results of operations.

We cannot assure you that we will be able to compete successfully in the reinsurance market. Our failure to compete effectively could significantly and negatively affect our financial condition and results of operations and may increase the likelihood that we may be deemed to be a passive foreign investment company or an investment company. See ‘‘- Risks Relating to Insurance and Other Regulations — We are subject to the risk of possibly becoming an investment company under U.S. federal securities law.”

If our losses and loss adjustment expenses greatly exceed our loss reserves, our financial condition may be significantly and negatively affected.

Our results of operations and financial condition depend upon our ability to assess accurately the potential losses and loss adjustment expenses associated with the risks we reinsure. Reserves are estimates at a given time of claims an insurer ultimately expects to pay, based upon facts and circumstances then known, predictions of future events, estimates of future trends in claim severity and other variable factors. The inherent uncertainties of estimating loss reserves generally are greater for reinsurance companies as compared to primary insurers, primarily due to:

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● the lapse of time from the occurrence of an event to the reporting of the claim and the ultimate resolution or settlement of the claim;

● the diversity of development patterns among different types of reinsurance treaties; and

● the necessary reliance on the client for information regarding claims.

On the majority of premiums we underwrite, our estimation of reserves may be less reliable than the reserve estimations of a reinsurer with a greater volume of business and an established loss history. Actual losses and loss adjustment expenses paid may deviate substantially from the estimates of our loss reserves contained in our financial statements and could negatively affect our results of operations. If we determine our loss reserves to be inadequate, we will increase our loss reserves with a corresponding reduction in our net income and capital in the period in which we identify the deficiency, and such a reduction would also negatively affect our results of operations. If our losses and loss adjustment expenses greatly exceed our loss reserves, our financial condition may be significantly and negatively affected. For a summary of the effects of reserve re-estimation on prior year reserves and net income, see "Part II. Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Critical Accounting Policies, Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves".

The effect of emerging claim and coverage issues on our business is uncertain.

As industry practices and legal, judicial and regulatory conditions change, unexpected issues related to claims and coverage may emerge. Various provisions of our contracts, such as limitations or exclusions from coverage or choice of forum, may be difficult to enforce in the manner we intend, due to, among other things, disputes relating to coverage and choice of legal forum. These issues may adversely affect our business by either extending coverage beyond the period that we intended or by increasing the number or size of claims. In some instances, these changes may not manifest themselves until many years after we have issued insurance or reinsurance contracts that are affected by these changes. As a result, we may not be able to ascertain the full extent of our liabilities under our insurance or reinsurance contracts for many years following the issuance of our contracts. The effects of unforeseen development or substantial government intervention could adversely impact our ability to adhere to our goals. 

A downgrade or withdrawal of either of our A.M. Best ratings would significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy successfully.

Companies, insurers and reinsurance brokers use ratings from independent rating agencies as an important means of assessing the financial strength and quality of reinsurers. A.M. Best has currently assigned a financial strength rating of ‘‘A (Excellent)’’ for each of Greenlight Re and GRIL. A (Excellent) is the third highest of 15 ratings that A.M. Best issues. These ratings reflect the rating agency’s opinion of our reinsurance subsidiaries' financial strength, operating performance and ability to meet obligations. It is not an evaluation directed toward the protection of investors or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold our Class A ordinary shares. A.M. Best periodically reviews our ratings and may revise one or more of our ratings downward or revoke them at its sole discretion based primarily on its analysis of our balance sheet strength, operating performance and business profile. Factors that may affect such an analysis include:

● if we change our business practices from our organizational business plan in a manner that no longer supports our A.M. Best ratings;

● if unfavorable financial or market trends impact us;

● if our actual losses significantly exceed our loss reserves;

● if we are unable to retain our senior management and other key personnel; or

● if our investment portfolio incurs significant losses.

If A.M. Best downgrades or withdraws either of our ratings, we could be severely limited or prevented from writing any new reinsurance contracts, which would significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy.

Some of our reinsurance contracts provide the client with the right to terminate the agreement if our A.M. Best ratings are downgraded below certain rating thresholds. We expect that similar provisions will also be included in some contracts in the

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future. See "- A downgrade in our ratings below specified levels or a significant decrease in our capital or surplus could enable certain clients to terminate reinsurance agreements or to require additional collateral".

The property and casualty reinsurance market may be affected by cyclical trends.

We write reinsurance in the property and casualty markets. The property and casualty reinsurance industry is cyclical. Primary insurers’ underwriting results, prevailing general economic and market conditions, liability retention decisions of companies and primary insurers and reinsurance premium rates influence the demand for property and casualty reinsurance. Prevailing prices and available surplus to support assumed business influence reinsurance supply. Supply may fluctuate in response to changes in return on capital realized in the reinsurance industry, the frequency and severity of losses and prevailing general economic and market conditions.

Continued increases in the supply of reinsurance may have consequences for the reinsurance industry generally and for us, including lower premium rates, increased expenses for customer acquisition and retention, less favorable policy terms and conditions and/or lower premium volume.

Unpredictable developments, including courts granting increasingly larger awards for certain damages, natural disasters (such as catastrophic hurricanes, windstorms, tornadoes, earthquakes, wildfires and floods), fluctuations in interest rates, changes in the investment environment that affect market prices of investments and inflationary pressures, affect the industry’s profitability. The effects of cyclicality could significantly and negatively affect our financial condition and results of operations.

The global economic downturns and any significant weakness in the U.S. economy could harm our business, our liquidity and financial condition and our stock price.

Weak economic conditions may adversely affect (among other aspects of our business) the demand for and claims made under our products, the ability of customers, counterparties and others to establish or maintain their relationships with us, our ability to access and efficiently use internal and external capital resources and our investment performance. Volatility in the U.S. and other securities markets may adversely affect our investment portfolio and our stock price.

A downgrade in our ratings below specified levels or a significant decrease in our capital or surplus could enable certain clients to terminate reinsurance agreements or to require additional collateral.

Certain of our assumed reinsurance contracts contain provisions that permit our clients to cancel the contract or require additional collateral in the event of a downgrade in our ratings below specified levels or a reduction of our capital or surplus below specified levels over the course of the agreement. Whether a client would exercise such cancellation rights would likely depend, among other things, on the reason the provision is triggered, the prevailing market conditions, the degree of unexpired coverage and the pricing and availability of replacement reinsurance coverage.

If any such provisions were to become exercisable, we cannot predict whether or how many of our clients would actually exercise such rights or the extent to which they would have a significant and negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations or future prospects but they could have a significant adverse effect on the operations of our Company.

If we lose or are unable to retain our senior management and other key personnel and are unable to attract qualified personnel, our ability to implement our business strategy could be delayed or hindered, which, in turn, could significantly and negatively affect our business.

Our future success depends to a significant extent on the efforts of our senior management and other key personnel to implement our business strategy. We believe there are only a limited number of available, qualified executives with substantial experience in our industry. We could face challenges attracting and retaining personnel in the Cayman Islands and/or in Dublin, Ireland. Accordingly, the loss of the services of one or more of the members of our senior management or other key personnel, or our inability to hire and retain other key personnel, could prevent us from continuing to implement our business strategy and, consequently, significantly and negatively affect our business.

We do not currently maintain key man life insurance with respect to any of our senior management, including our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Underwriting Officer or Chief Actuary. If any member of senior management dies or becomes incapacitated, or leaves the Company to pursue employment opportunities elsewhere, we would be solely responsible for locating an adequate replacement for such senior management and for bearing any related cost. To the extent that we are unable to locate an adequate replacement or are unable to do so within a reasonable period of time, our business may be significantly and negatively affected.

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Our ability to implement our business strategy could be adversely affected by Cayman Islands employment restrictions.

Under Cayman Islands law, persons who are not Caymanian, do not possess Caymanian status, or are not otherwise entitled to reside and work in the Cayman Islands pursuant to provisions of the Immigration Law (2014 Revision) of the Cayman Islands, which we refer to as the Immigration Law, may not engage in any gainful occupation in the Cayman Islands without an appropriate governmental work permit. Such a work permit may be granted or extended on a continuous basis for a maximum period of nine years (after having been legally and ordinarily resident in the Cayman Islands for a period of eight years a person may apply for permanent residence in accordance with the provisions of the Immigration Law) upon showing that, after proper public advertisement, no Caymanian or person of Caymanian status, or other person legally and ordinarily resident in the Cayman Islands who meets the minimum standards for the advertised position is available. The failure of these work permits to be granted or extended could prevent us from continuing to implement our business strategy.

Operational risks, including human or systems failures, are inherent in our business.

Operational risks and losses can result from, among other things, fraud, errors, failure to document transactions properly or to obtain proper internal authorization, failure to comply with regulatory requirements, information technology failures or external events.

We believe that our modeling, underwriting and information technology and application systems are critical to our business. We utilize modeling tools to facilitate our pricing, reserving, and risk management tools to manage risks in our reinsurance portfolio. These models help us to control risk accumulation, inform management and other stakeholders of capital requirements and to improve the risk/return profile or minimize the amount of capital required to cover the risks in each reinsurance contract. However, given the inherent uncertainty of modeling techniques and the application of such techniques, these models and databases may not accurately address the emergence of a variety of matters which might be deemed to impact certain of our coverages. Accordingly, these models may understate the exposures we are assuming and our financial results may be adversely impacted, perhaps significantly.

Moreover, our information technology and application systems have been an important part of our underwriting process and our ability to compete successfully. We have also licensed certain systems and data from third parties. We cannot be certain that we will have access to these, or comparable, service providers, or that our information technology or application systems will continue to operate as intended. Like all companies, our information technology and application systems may be vulnerable to data breaches,interruptions or failures due to events that may be beyond our control, including, but not limited to, natural disasters, theft, terrorist attacks, malicious cyber-attacks, computer viruses, hackers and general technology failures. A major defect or failure in our internal controls or information technology and application systems could result in management distraction, result in a violation of applicable privacy or other laws, harm our reputation, cause a loss of customers or give rise to monetary fines or penalties or otherwise increase expenses. We believe appropriate controls and mitigation procedures are in place to prevent significant risk of data breaches, interruptions or failures in, information technology and application systems, but internal controls provide only a reasonable, not absolute, assurance as to the absence of errors or irregularities and any ineffectiveness of such controls and procedures could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Our failure to maintain sufficient letter of credit facilities or to increase our letter of credit capacity on commercially acceptable terms as we grow could significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy.

We are not licensed or admitted as a reinsurer in any jurisdiction other than the Cayman Islands and the European Economic Area. Certain jurisdictions, including the United States, do not permit insurance companies to take credit for reinsurance obtained from unlicensed or non-admitted insurers on their statutory financial statements unless appropriate security measures are implemented. Consequently, certain clients will require us to obtain a letter of credit or provide other collateral through funds withheld or trust arrangements. When we obtain a letter of credit facility, we are customarily required to provide collateral to the letter of credit provider in order to secure our obligations under the facility. Our ability to provide collateral, and the costs at which we provide collateral, are primarily dependent on the composition of our investment portfolio.

Typically, letters of credit are collateralized with fixed-income securities. Banks may be willing to accept our investment portfolio as collateral, but on terms that may be less favorable to us than reinsurance companies that invest solely or predominantly in fixed-income securities. The inability to renew, maintain or obtain letters of credit collateralized by our investment portfolio may significantly limit the amount of reinsurance we can write or require us to modify our investment strategy.  

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Our banks have accepted, with certain restrictions, our investment portfolio as collateral. In the event of a decline in the market value of our investment portfolio that results in a collateral shortfall, as defined in each letter of credit facility, we have the right, at our option, to reduce the outstanding obligations under the applicable letter of credit facility, to deposit additional collateral or to change the collateral composition in order to cure the shortfall. If the shortfall is not cured within the prescribed time period, an event of default will immediately occur. We will be prohibited from issuing additional letters of credit until any shortfall is cured.

Our access to funds under our existing credit facilities is dependent on the ability of the banks that are parties to the facilities to meet their funding commitments. Those banks may not be able to meet their funding commitments if they experience shortages of capital and liquidity or if they experience excessive volumes of borrowing requests within a short period of time, and we might be forced to replace credit sources in a difficult market.

There has also been recent consolidation in the financial industry, which could lead to increased reliance on and exposure to particular institutions. If we cannot obtain adequate capital or sources of credit on favorable terms, or at all, our business, operating results and financial condition could be adversely affected. It is possible that, in the future, rating agencies may reduce our existing ratings. If one or more of our ratings were downgraded, we could incur higher borrowing costs and our ability to access the capital markets could be impacted. Our inability to obtain adequate capital could have a significant and negative effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We may need additional letter of credit capacity as we grow, and if we are unable to renew, maintain or increase any of our letter of credit facilities or are unable to do so on commercially acceptable terms we may need to liquidate all or a portion of our investment portfolio and invest in a fixed-income portfolio or other forms of investment acceptable to our clients and banks as collateral, which could significantly and negatively affect our ability to implement our business strategy.

Our failure to comply with restrictive covenants contained in our current or future credit facilities could trigger prepayment obligations, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Each of our credit facilities requires us and/or certain of our subsidiaries to comply with certain covenants, including restrictions on our ability to place a lien or charge on pledged assets, issue debt and in certain circumstances on the payment of dividends. Our failure to comply with these or other covenants could result in an event of default under one or more credit facilities or any credit facility we may enter into in the future, which, if not cured or waived, could result in us being required to repay the amounts outstanding under these facilities prior to maturity. As a result, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be significantly and negatively affected.

The inability to obtain business provided from brokers could adversely affect our business strategy and results of operations.

Since we began underwriting operations in April 2006, substantially all of our business has been placed through brokered transactions, which involve a limited number of reinsurance brokers which exposes us to concentration risk. In 2014, we had three brokers (2013: two brokers) who each accounted for more than 10% of our gross written premiums, and in aggregate they accounted for approximately 81.5% (2013: 74.9%) of our gross premiums written. Because broker-produced business is concentrated with a small number of brokers, we are exposed to concentration risk. To lose or fail to expand all or a substantial portion of the brokered business provided through brokers, many of whom may not be familiar with our Cayman Islands jurisdiction, could significantly and negatively affect our business and results of operations.

We may need additional capital in the future in order to operate our business, and such capital may not be available to us or may not be available to us on favorable terms.

We may need to raise additional capital in the future through public or private equity or debt offerings or otherwise in order to: 

● fund liquidity needs caused by underwriting or investment losses;

● replace capital lost in the event of significant reinsurance losses or adverse reserve developments or significant investment losses;

● satisfy letters of credit or guarantee bond requirements that may be imposed by our clients or by regulators;

● meet applicable statutory jurisdiction requirements;

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● meet rating agency capital requirements; or

● respond to competitive pressures. 

Additional capital may not be available on terms favorable to us, or at all. Further, any additional capital raised through the sale of equity could dilute existing ownership interest in our company and may cause the market price of our Class A ordinary shares to decline. Additional capital raised through the issuance of debt may result in creditors having rights, preferences and privileges senior or otherwise superior to those of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our property and property catastrophe reinsurance operations may make us vulnerable to losses from catastrophes and may cause our results of operations to vary significantly from period to period.

Certain of our reinsurance operations expose us to claims arising out of unpredictable catastrophic events, such as hurricanes, hailstorms, tornadoes, windstorms, severe winter weather, earthquakes, floods, fires, explosions, volcanic eruptions and other natural or man-made disasters. The incidence and severity of catastrophes are inherently unpredictable but the loss experience of property catastrophe reinsurers has been generally characterized as low frequency and high severity. Claims from catastrophic events could reduce our earnings and cause substantial volatility in our results of operations for any fiscal quarter or year and adversely affect our financial condition. Corresponding reductions in our surplus levels could impact our ability to write new reinsurance policies.

Catastrophic losses are a function of the insured exposure in the affected area and the severity of the event. Because accounting regulations do not permit reinsurers to reserve for catastrophic events until they occur, claims from catastrophic events could cause substantial volatility in our financial results for any fiscal quarter or year and could significantly and negatively affect our financial condition and results of operations.

We depend on our clients' evaluations of the risks associated with their insurance underwriting, which may subject us to reinsurance losses.

In some of our proportional reinsurance business, in which we assume an agreed percentage of each underlying insurance contract being reinsured, or quota share contracts, we do not expect to separately evaluate each of the original individual risks assumed under these reinsurance contracts. Therefore, we will be largely dependent on the original underwriting decisions made by ceding companies. We will be subject to the risk that the clients may not have adequately evaluated the insured risks and that the premiums ceded may not adequately compensate us for the risks we assume. We also do not expect to separately evaluate each of the individual claims made on the underlying insurance contracts under quota share contracts. Therefore, we will be dependent on the original claims decisions made by our clients.

We could face unanticipated losses from political instability which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We could be exposed to unexpected losses on our reinsurance contracts resulting from political instability and other politically driven events globally. These risks are inherently unpredictable and recent events may indicate an increased frequency and severity of losses. It is difficult to predict the timing of these events or to estimate the amount of loss that any given occurrence will generate. To the extent that losses from these risks occur, our financial condition and results of operations could be significantly and negatively affected.

Changing climate conditions may adversely affect our financial condition, profitability or cash flows.

   Climate change, to the extent it produces extreme changes in temperatures and changes in weather patterns, could impact the frequency or severity of weather events and wildfires. Further, it could impact the affordability and availability of homeowners insurance, which could have an impact on pricing. Changes in weather patterns could also affect the frequency and severity of other natural catastrophe events to which we may be exposed.

We may be subject to the credit risk of our brokers, cedents and agents.

In accordance with industry practice, we frequently pay amounts owed on claims under our policies to reinsurance brokers, and these brokers, in turn, remit these amounts to the ceding companies that have reinsured a portion of their liabilities with us. In some jurisdictions, if a broker fails to make such a payment, we might remain liable to the client for the deficiency notwithstanding the broker’s obligation to make such payment. Conversely, in certain jurisdictions, when the client pays

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premiums for policies to reinsurance brokers for payment to us, these premiums are considered to have been paid and the client will no longer be liable to us for these premiums, whether or not we have actually received them. Consequently, we assume a degree of credit risk associated with brokers around the world.

In addition, we are also exposed to the credit risk of our cedents and agents, who, pursuant to their contracts with us, may be required to pay us profit commission, additional premiums, reinstatement premiums, and adjustments to ceding commissions over a period of time, which in some cases may extend beyond the initial period of risk coverage. Insolvency, liquidity problems, distressed financial condition or the general effects of an economic recession may increase the risk that our cedents or agents may not pay a part of or the full amount of their obligations to us. To the extent our cedents or agents become unable to pay us, we would be required to recognize a downward adjustment to our premiums receivable or reinsurance recoverables, as applicable, in our financial statements. While we generally seek to mitigate this risk through, among other things, collateral agreements, funds withheld, corporate guarantees and right of offset of receivables against any losses payable, an increased inability of customers to fulfill their obligations to us could have an adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our reinsurance balances receivable at December 31, 2014 totaled $151.2 million, which included premiums, losses and ceding commissions receivable, a majority of which are not collateralized. We cannot assure you that such receivables will be collected or that valuation allowances or write downs for uncollectible recoverable amounts will not be required in future periods.

We may be unable to purchase reinsurance for the liabilities we reinsure, and if we successfully purchase such reinsurance, we may be unable to collect, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We purchase reinsurance for certain liabilities we reinsure, which we refer to as retrocessional coverage, in order to mitigate the effect of a potential concentration of losses upon our financial condition. The insolvency or inability or refusal of a retrocessionaire to make payments under the terms of its agreement with us could have an adverse effect on us because we remain liable to our client. From time to time, market conditions have limited, and in some cases have prevented, reinsurers from obtaining the types and amounts of retrocessional coverage that they consider necessary for their business needs. Accordingly, we may not be able to obtain our desired amounts of retrocessional coverage or negotiate terms that we deem appropriate or acceptable or obtain retrocessional coverage from entities with satisfactory creditworthiness. Our failure to establish adequate retrocessional arrangements or the failure of our retrocessional arrangements to protect us from overly concentrated risk exposure could significantly and negatively affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The failure of any risk management and loss limitation methods we employ,as well as an unexpected accumulation of attritional losses, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We seek to limit our loss exposure in a variety of ways, including by writing many of our reinsurance contracts on an excess of loss basis, adhering to maximum limitations on policies written in defined geographical zones, limiting program size for each client, establishing per risk and per occurrence limitations for each event, employing coverage restrictions and following prudent underwriting guidelines for each program written. In the case of proportional treaties, we generally seek per occurrence limitations or loss ratio caps to limit the impact of losses from any one event. We also seek to limit our loss exposure through geographic diversification. Notwithstanding these loss limitation techniques, one or more future catastrophic or other events could result in claims that substantially exceed our expectations in ways limiting the applicability of these techniques, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.  

Currency fluctuations could result in exchange rate losses and negatively impact our business.

Our functional currency is the U.S. dollar. However, we expect that we will write a portion of our business and receive premiums and pay claims in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. We may incur foreign currency exchange gains or losses as we ultimately receive premiums and settle claims in foreign currencies. In addition, DME Advisors may invest a portion of our portfolio in securities or cash denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. Consequently, we may experience exchange rate losses to the extent our foreign currency exposure is not hedged or is not sufficiently hedged, which could significantly and negatively affect our business. If we do seek to hedge our foreign currency exposure through the use of forward foreign currency exchange contracts or currency swaps, we will be subject to the risk that our counterparties to the arrangements fail to perform.

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There are differences under Cayman Islands corporate law and Delaware corporate law with respect to interested party transactions which may benefit certain of our shareholders at the expense of other shareholders.

Under Cayman Islands corporate law, a director may vote on a contract or transaction where the director has an interest as a shareholder, director, officer or employee provided such interest is disclosed. None of our contracts will be deemed to be void because any director is an interested party in such transaction and interested parties will not be held liable for monies owed to the Company.

Under Delaware law, interested party transactions are voidable.

Risks Relating to Insurance and Other Regulations

Any suspension or revocation of our reinsurance license would materially impact our ability to do business and implement our business strategy.

We are presently licensed as a reinsurer only in the Cayman Islands and the European Economic Area. The suspension or revocation of our licenses to do business as a reinsurance company in either of these jurisdictions for any reason would mean that we would not be able to enter into any new reinsurance contracts in that jurisdiction until the suspension ended or we became licensed in another jurisdiction. Any such suspension or revocation of our license would negatively impact our reputation in the reinsurance marketplace and could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

CIMA may take a number of actions, including suspending or revoking a reinsurance license whenever CIMA believes that a licensee is or may become unable to meet its obligations, is carrying on business in a manner likely to be detrimental to the public interest or to the interest of its creditors or policyholders, has contravened the terms of the Law or has otherwise behaved in such a manner so as to cause CIMA to call into question the licensee's fitness.

Further CIMA may revoke our license if:

● we cease to carry on reinsurance business;

● the direction and management of our reinsurance business has not been conducted in a fit and proper manner;

● a person holding a position as a director, manager or officer is not a fit and proper person to hold the respective position; or

● we become bankrupt or go into liquidation or we are wound up or otherwise dissolved.

Similarly, if CIMA suspended or revoked our license, we could lose our exemption under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Investment Company Act") (See "— We are subject to the risk of possibly becoming an investment company under U.S. federal securities law.")

Our reinsurance subsidiaries are subject to minimum capital and surplus requirements, and our failure to meet these requirements could subject us to regulatory action.

The Insurance (Capital and Solvency) (Classes B, C, and D Insurers) Regulations, 2012 (the “Capital and Solvency Regulations”) impose on Greenlight Re a minimum capital requirement of US$50 million, a prescribed capital requirement of US$443.5 million and a requirement to maintain solvency equal to or in excess of the total prescribed capital requirement (the "Capital Requirements"). Greenlight Re has, as of December 31, 2014, been in compliance with the Capital Requirements.

GRIL, our Irish subsidiary, is required to maintain statutory reserves, particularly in respect of underwriting liabilities, and a solvency margin of US$13.6 million as of December 31, 2014 as provided for in the Irish Insurance Acts 1909 to 2011, regulations promulgated thereunder, regulations relating to insurance business promulgated under the European Communities Act 1972, the Irish Central Bank Acts 1942 to 2014 as amended, regulations promulgated thereunder and directions and guidelines and codes of conduct, issued by CBI (the Insurance Acts and Regulations). Assets constituting statutory reserves must comply with rules including admissibility and diversification rules. Statutory reserves must be actuarially certified annually.

Any failure to meet applicable requirements or minimum statutory capital requirements could subject us to further examination or action by regulators, including restrictions on dividend payments, limitations on our writing of additional business or engaging in financial or other activities, enhanced supervision, financial or other penalties or liquidation. Further,

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any changes in existing risk based capital requirements or minimum statutory capital requirements may require us to increase our statutory capital levels, which we might be unable to do.

We are a holding company that depends on the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends.

We are a holding company and do not have any significant operations or assets other than our ownership of the shares of our subsidiaries. Dividends and other permitted distributions from our subsidiaries are our primary source of funds to meet ongoing cash requirements, including future debt service payments, if any, and other expenses, and to pay dividends to our shareholders if we choose to do so. Some of our subsidiaries are subject to significant regulatory restrictions limiting their ability to declare and pay dividends.  The inability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends in an amount sufficient to enable us to meet our cash requirements at the holding company level could have an adverse effect on our operations and our ability to pay dividends to our shareholders if we choose to do so and/or meet our debt service obligations, if any.

To the extent any of our subsidiaries located in jurisdictions other than the Cayman Islands consider declaring dividends, such subsidiaries are required to comply with restrictions set forth under applicable law and regulations in such other jurisdictions. These restrictions could adversely impact the Company.

We are subject to the risk of possibly becoming an investment company under U.S. federal securities law.

In the United States, the Investment Company Act regulates certain companies that invest in or trade securities. We rely on an exemption under the Investment Company Act for an entity organized and regulated as a foreign insurance company which is engaged primarily and predominantly in the reinsurance of risks on insurance agreements. The law in this area is subjective and there is a lack of guidance as to the meaning of ‘‘primarily and predominantly’’ under the relevant exemption to the Investment Company Act. For example, there is no standard for the amount of premiums that need to be written relative to the level of an entity’s capital in order to qualify for the exemption. If this exemption were deemed inapplicable, we would have to register under the Investment Company Act as an investment company. Registered investment companies are subject to extensive, restrictive and potentially adverse regulation relating to, among other things, operating methods, management, capital structure, leverage, dividends and transactions with affiliates. Registered investment companies are not permitted to operate their business in the manner in which we operate our business, nor are registered investment companies permitted to have many of the relationships that we have with our affiliated companies. Accordingly, we likely would not be permitted to engage DME Advisors as our investment advisor, unless we obtained board and shareholder approvals under the Investment Company Act. If DME Advisors were not our investment advisor, DME Advisors would liquidate our investment portfolio and we would seek to identify and retain another investment advisor with a value-oriented investment philosophy. If we could not identify or retain such an advisor, we would be required to make substantial modifications to our investment strategy. Any such changes to our investment strategy could significantly and negatively impact our investment results, financial condition and our ability to implement our business strategy.

If at any time it were established that we had been operating as an investment company in violation of the registration requirements of the Investment Company Act, there would be a risk, among other material adverse consequences, that we could become subject to monetary penalties or injunctive relief, or both, or that we would be unable to enforce contracts with third parties or that third parties could seek to obtain rescission of transactions with us undertaken during the period in which it was established that we were an unregistered investment company.

To the extent that the laws and regulations change in the future so that contracts we write are deemed not to be reinsurance contracts, we will be at greater risk of not qualifying for the Investment Company Act exception. Additionally, it is possible that our classification as an investment company would result in the suspension or revocation of our reinsurance license.

Insurance regulations to which we are, or may become, subject, and potential changes thereto, could have a significant and negative effect on our business.

We currently are admitted to do business in the Cayman Islands and the European Economic Area.  Our operations in each of these jurisdictions are subject to varying degrees of regulation and supervision. The laws and regulations of the jurisdictions in which our subsidiaries are domiciled require that, among other things, these subsidiaries maintain minimum levels of statutory capital, surplus and liquidity, meet solvency standards, submit to periodic examinations of their financial condition and restrict payments of dividends and reductions of capital. Statutes, regulations and policies that our subsidiaries are subject to may also restrict the ability of these subsidiaries to write insurance and reinsurance policies, make certain investments and distribute funds.

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More specifically with respect to our Irish subsidiary, European legislation known as “Solvency II”, (Directive 2009/138/EC) which will govern the prudential regulation of insurers and reinsurers, will require insurers and reinsurers in Europe to meet risk-based solvency requirements. It will also impose group solvency and governance requirements on groups with insurers and/or reinsurers operating in the European Economic Area. Solvency II is expected to be transposed into national law by March 31, 2015 and will be applicable from January 1, 2016.

   Although we do not presently expect that we will be admitted to do business in any other jurisdiction other than the Cayman Islands and the European Economic Area, we cannot assure you that insurance regulators in the United States or elsewhere will not review our activities and claim that we are subject to such jurisdiction’s licensing requirements. In addition, we are subject to indirect regulatory requirements imposed by jurisdictions that may limit our ability to provide reinsurance. For example, our ability to write reinsurance may be subject, in certain cases, to arrangements satisfactory to applicable regulatory bodies, and proposed legislation and regulations may have the effect of imposing additional requirements upon, or restricting the market for, non-U.S. reinsurers such as Greenlight Re and GRIL, with whom domestic companies may place business. We do not know of any such proposed legislation pending at this time.

We may not be able to comply fully with, or obtain desired exemptions from, revised statutes, regulations and policies that currently, or may in the future, govern the conduct of our business. Failure to comply with, or to obtain desired authorizations and/or exemptions under, any applicable laws could result in restrictions on our ability to do business or undertake activities that are regulated in one or more of the jurisdictions in which we operate and could subject us to fines and other sanctions. In addition, changes in the laws or regulations to which our subsidiaries are subject or may become subject, or in the interpretations thereof by enforcement or regulatory agencies, could have a material adverse effect on our business. 

Risks Relating to Our Investment Strategy and Our Investment Advisor

We have limited control as to how our investment portfolio is allocated and its performance depends on the ability of DME Advisors to select and manage appropriate investments.

DME Advisors acts as our exclusive investment advisor for our investment portfolio and recommends appropriate investment opportunities. Although DME Advisors is contractually obligated to follow our investment guidelines, we cannot assure shareholders as to how assets will be allocated to different investment opportunities, including long and short positions and derivatives trading, which could increase the level of risk to which our investment portfolio will be exposed. In addition, DME Advisors can outsource to sub-advisors without our consent or approval.

The performance of our investment portfolio depends to a great extent on the ability of DME Advisors to select and manage appropriate investments. Our advisory agreement with DME Advisors terminates on December 31, 2016, unless extended, and we have limited ability to terminate the advisory agreement earlier. We cannot assure you that DME Advisors will be successful in meeting our investment objectives or that the advisory agreement with DME Advisors will be renewed. The failure of DME Advisors to perform adequately could significantly and negatively affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We depend upon DME Advisors to implement our investment strategy.

We depend upon DME Advisors to implement our investment strategy. Accordingly, the diminution or loss of the services of DME Advisors could significantly affect our business. DME Advisors, in turn, is dependent on the talents, efforts and leadership of DME Advisors’ principals. The diminution or loss of the services of DME Advisors’ principals, or diminution or loss of their reputation and integrity or any negative market or industry perception arising from that diminution or loss, could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, the loss of DME Advisors' key personnel, or DME Advisors' inability to hire and retain other key personnel, over which we have no control, could delay or prevent DME Advisors from fully implementing our investment strategy on our behalf, and consequently, could significantly and negatively affect our business.

Our advisory agreement with DME Advisors does not allow us to terminate the agreement in the event that DME Advisors loses any or all of its principals or key personnel. The advisory agreement expires on the date on which the venture agreement expires or terminates for any reason. The venture agreement requires that we utilize the advisory services of DME Advisors or its affiliates exclusively until December 31, 2016, subject to limited termination provisions. See “— The venture agreement has limited termination provisions.”

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Our investment performance may suffer as a result of adverse capital market developments or other factors that impact our liquidity, which could in turn adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

We may derive a significant portion of our income from our investment portfolio. As a result, our operating results depend in part on the performance of our investment portfolio. We strive to structure our investments in a manner that recognizes our liquidity needs for future liabilities. We cannot assure you that DME Advisors will successfully structure our investments in relation to our anticipated liabilities. Failure to do so could force us to liquidate investments at a significant loss or at prices that are not optimal, which could significantly and adversely affect our financial results.

The risks associated with DME Advisors’ value-oriented investment strategy may be substantially greater than the risks associated with traditional fixed-income investment strategies. In addition, making long equity investments in an up or rising market may increase the risk of not generating profits on these investments and we may incur losses if the market declines. Similarly, making short equity investments in a down or falling market may increase the risk of not generating profits on these investments and we may incur losses if the market rises. The market price of the Class A ordinary shares may be volatile and the risk of loss may be greater when compared with other reinsurance companies. The success of our investment strategy may also be affected by general economic conditions. Unexpected market volatility and illiquidity associated with our investments could significantly and negatively affect our investment portfolio results. 

Potential conflicts of interest with DME Advisors may exist that could adversely affect us.

None of DME Advisors or its principals, including David Einhorn, Chairman of our Board of Directors and the President of Greenlight Capital, Inc., are obligated to devote any specific amount of time to the affairs of our Company. Affiliates of DME Advisors, including Greenlight Capital, Inc., manage and expect to continue to manage other client accounts, some of which have objectives similar to ours, including collective investment vehicles managed by DME Advisors' affiliates and in which DME Advisors or its affiliates may have an equity interest. Pursuant to our advisory agreement with DME Advisors, DME Advisors has the exclusive right to manage our investment portfolio and is required to follow our investment guidelines and act in a manner that is fair and equitable in allocating investment opportunities to us, but the agreement does not otherwise impose any specific obligations or requirements concerning allocation of time, effort or investment opportunities to us or any restriction on the nature or timing of investments for our account or other accounts that DME Advisors or its affiliates may manage. If we compete for any investment opportunity with another entity that DME Advisors or its affiliates manage, DME Advisors is not required to afford us any exclusivity or priority. DME Advisors' interest and the interests of its affiliates, including Greenlight Capital, Inc., may at times conflict, possibly to DME Advisors' detriment, which may potentially adversely affect our investment opportunities and returns.

Although Mr. Einhorn, Chairman of our Board of Directors, recused himself from the vote by the Board of Directors of Greenlight Re approving and adopting Greenlight Re's investment guidelines, he is not, under Cayman Islands law, legally restricted from participating in making decisions with respect to Greenlight Re's investment guidelines. Accordingly, his involvement as a member of the Boards of Directors of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. and Greenlight Re may lead to a conflict of interest.

DME Advisors and its affiliates may also manage accounts whose advisory fee schedules, investment objectives and policies differ from ours, which may cause DME Advisors and its affiliates to effect trading in one account that may have an adverse effect on another account, including ours. We are not entitled to inspect the trading records of DME Advisors, or its principals, that are not related to our Company.

Our investment portfolio may be concentrated in a few large positions which could result in large losses.

Our investment guidelines provide that DME Advisors may commit up to 20% of Greenlight Re’s assets under management (10% for GRIL) to any one investment. In addition, GRIL's investment guidelines require that the 10 largest investments shall not constitute more than 50% of the total investment portfolio and GRIL's investment portfolio shall at all times be comprised of a minimum of 50 debt or equity securities of publicly traded companies. Accordingly, from time to time we may hold a few, relatively large security positions in relation to our capital. As of December 31, 2014, we were invested in approximately 102 equity and debt securities and the largest five long and short positions comprised an aggregate of 35% and 15%, respectively, of our investment portfolio. Since our investment portfolio may not be widely diversified, it may be subject to more rapid changes in value than would be the case if the investment portfolio were required to maintain a wide diversification among companies, securities and types of securities.

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We are exposed to credit risk primarily from the possibility that counterparties may default on their obligations to us.

We are exposed to credit risk primarily from the possibility that counterparties may default on their obligations to us. The amount of the maximum exposure to credit risk is indicated by the carrying value of our financial assets. In addition, we hold the securities of our investment portfolio with several prime brokers and have credit risk from the possibility that one or more of them may default on their obligations to us. Other than our investment in derivative contracts and corporate debt, if any, and the fact that our investments are held by prime brokers and custodians on our behalf, we have no other significant concentrations of credit risk.

Issuers or borrowers whose securities or debt we hold, customers, reinsurers, clearing agents, exchanges, clearing houses and other financial intermediaries and guarantors may default on their obligations to us due to bankruptcy, insolvency, lack of liquidity, adverse economic conditions, operational failure, fraud or other reasons. Such defaults could have a significant and negative effect on our results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. Additionally, the underlying assets supporting our financial contracts may deteriorate causing these securities to incur losses.

DME Advisors may trade on margin and use other forms of financial leverage, which could potentially adversely affect our revenues.

Our investment guidelines provide DME Advisors with the ability to trade on margin and use other forms of financial leverage. Fluctuations in the market value of our investment portfolio could have a disproportionately large effect in relation to our capital. Any event which may adversely affect the value of positions we hold could significantly and negatively affect the net asset value of our investment portfolio and thus our results of operations.

DME Advisors may effectuate short sales that subject us to unlimited loss potential.

DME Advisors may enter into transactions in which it sells a security it does not own, which we refer to as a short sale, in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the security. Short sales for our account theoretically will involve unlimited loss potential since the market price of securities sold short may continuously increase. Under adverse market conditions, DME Advisors might have difficulty purchasing securities to meet short sale delivery obligations and may have to cover short sales at suboptimal prices.

DME Advisors may transact in derivative instruments, which may increase the risk of our investment portfolio.

Derivative instruments, or derivatives, include futures, options, swaps, structured securities and other instruments and contracts that derive their value from one or more underlying securities, financial benchmarks, currencies, commodities or indices. There are a number of risks associated with derivatives trading. Because many derivatives are leveraged, and thus provide significantly more market exposure than the money paid or deposited when the transaction is entered into, a relatively small adverse market movement may result in the loss of a substantial portion of or the entire investment, and may potentially expose us to a loss exceeding the original amount invested. Derivatives may also expose us to liquidity and counterparty risk. There may not be a liquid market within which to close or dispose of outstanding derivatives contracts. In the event of the counterparty’s default, we will generally only rank as an unsecured creditor and risk the loss of all or a portion of the amounts we are contractually entitled to receive.

The compensation arrangements of DME and DME Advisors may create an incentive to effect transactions that are risky or speculative.

Pursuant to the venture agreement and the advisory agreement, we are obligated to pay the following:  

● a 1.5% annual management fee to DME Advisors, regardless of the performance of our investment account, payable monthly based on the capital account balance of each participant; and

● a performance allocation to DME based on the positive performance change in such participant's capital account equal to 20% of net profits calculated per annum, subject to a loss carry forward provision.

The loss carry forward provision allows DME to earn reduced performance allocation of 10% of profits in any year subsequent to the year in which our investment account managed by DME Advisors incurs a loss, until all losses are recouped and an additional amount equal to 150% of the loss is earned.

While the performance compensation arrangement provides that losses will be carried forward as an offset against net profits in subsequent periods, DME and DME Advisors generally will not otherwise be penalized for realized losses or

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decreases in the value of our portfolio. These performance compensation arrangements may create an incentive for DME Advisors to engage in transactions that focus on the potential for short-term gains rather than long-term growth or that are particularly risky or speculative.

DME Advisors' representatives' service on boards and committees may place trading restrictions on our investments and may subject us to indemnification liability.

    DME Advisors may from time to time place its or its affiliates’ representatives on creditors’ committees and/or boards of certain companies in which we have invested. While such representation may enable DME Advisors to enhance the sale value of our investments, it may also place trading restrictions on our investments and may subject us to indemnification liability. The advisory agreement provides for the indemnification of DME Advisors or any other person designated by DME Advisors for claims arising from such board representation.  

As of December 31, 2014, representatives of DME Advisors (including Mr. Einhorn) sat on the board of Green Brick Partners Inc., whose securities are publicly traded and were included in our portfolio as of December 31, 2014.

The ability to use ‘‘soft dollars’’ may provide DME Advisors with an incentive to select certain brokers that may take into account benefits to be received by DME Advisors.

DME Advisors is entitled to use so-called ‘‘soft dollars’’ generated by commissions paid in connection with transactions for our investment portfolio to pay for certain of DME Advisors' operating and overhead costs, including the payment of all or a portion of its costs and expenses of operation. ‘‘Soft dollars’’ are a means of paying brokerage firms for their services through commission revenue, rather than through direct payments. DME Advisors' right to use soft dollars may give DME Advisors an incentive to select brokers or dealers for our transactions, or to negotiate commission rates or other execution terms, in a manner that takes into account the soft dollar benefits received by DME Advisors rather than giving exclusive consideration to the interests of our investment portfolio and, accordingly, may create a conflict.

The venture agreement has limited termination provisions.

The venture agreement has limited termination provisions which restrict our ability to manage our investment portfolio outside of DME Advisors. Because the venture agreement contains exclusivity and limited termination provisions, we are unable to use investment managers other than DME Advisors for so long as the agreement is in effect. The current venture agreement term ends on December 31, 2016 and will automatically renew for successive three-year terms unless at least 90 days prior to the end of the then current term, DME notifies us of its desire to terminate the venture agreement, or Greenlight Re or GRIL notifies DME of their desire to withdraw from the venture agreement. Greenlight Re or GRIL may also withdraw as participants under the venture agreement prior to the expiration of the venture agreement's term at any time only ‘‘for cause’’, which is defined as: 

● a material violation of applicable law relating to DME's or DME Advisors' advisory business;

● DME's or DME Advisors' gross negligence, willful misconduct or reckless disregard of DME's obligations under the venture agreement or DME Advisors' obligations under the advisory agreement;

● a material breach by DME or DME Advisors of Greenlight Re’s or GRIL’s investment guidelines that is not cured within a 15-day period; or

● a material breach by DME or DME Advisors of its obligations to return and deliver assets as we may request.

In addition, GRIL may withdraw as a participant under the venture agreement prior to the expiration of its term due to unsatisfactory long term performance of DME or DME Advisors, as determined solely by the Board of Directors of GRIL on each anniversary date of the venture agreement. 

Greenlight Re may not withdraw or terminate the venture agreement on the basis of performance. If Greenlight Re becomes dissatisfied with the results of the investment performance of DME or DME Advisors, we will be unable to hire new investment managers until the venture agreement expires by its terms or is terminated for cause. 

Certain of our investments may have limited liquidity and lack valuation data, which could create a conflict of interest.

Our investment guidelines provide DME Advisors with the flexibility to invest in certain securities with limited liquidity or no public market. This lack of liquidity may adversely affect the ability of DME Advisors to execute trade orders at desired prices and may impact our ability to fulfill our payment obligations. To the extent that DME Advisors invests in securities or instruments for which market quotations are not readily available, under the terms of the advisory agreement the valuation of such securities and instruments for purposes of compensation to DME Advisors will be determined by DME Advisors, whose

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determination, subject to audit verification, will be conclusive and binding in the absence of bad faith or manifest error. Because the advisory agreement gives DME Advisors the power to determine the value of securities with no readily discernible market value, and because the calculation of DME Advisors' fee is based on the value of the investment account, a conflict may exist or arise.

Increased regulation or scrutiny of alternative investment advisors may affect DME Advisors’ ability to manage our investment portfolio or affect our business reputation.

The regulatory environment for investment managers is evolving, and changes in the regulation of managers may adversely affect the ability of DME Advisors to obtain the leverage it might otherwise obtain or to pursue its trading strategies. In addition, the securities and futures markets are subject to comprehensive statutes, regulations and margin requirements. The SEC, other regulators and self-regulatory organizations and exchanges are authorized to take extraordinary actions in the event of market emergencies. The regulation of derivatives transactions and funds that engage in such transactions is an evolving area of law and is subject to modification by government and judicial action. Any future regulatory change could have a significant negative impact on our financial condition and results of operations.

Short sale transactions have been subject to increased regulatory scrutiny, including the imposition of restrictions on short selling certain securities and reporting requirements. Our ability to execute a short selling strategy may be materially and adversely impacted by temporary and/or new permanent rules, interpretations, prohibitions, and restrictions adopted in response to these adverse market events.  Temporary restrictions and/or prohibitions on short selling activity may be imposed by regulatory authorities with little or no advance notice and may impact prior and future trading activities of our investment portfolio. Additionally, the SEC, its non-U.S. counterparts, other governmental authorities and/or self-regulatory organizations may at any time promulgate permanent rules or interpretations consistent with such temporary restrictions or that impose additional or different permanent or temporary limitations or prohibitions. The SEC might impose different limitations and/or prohibitions on short selling from those imposed by various non-U.S. regulatory authorities. These different regulations, rules or interpretations might have different effective periods.

Regulatory authorities may, from time-to-time, impose restrictions that adversely affect our ability to borrow certain securities in connection with short sale transactions. In addition, traditional lenders of securities might be less likely to lend securities under certain market conditions. As a result, we may not be able to effectively pursue a short selling strategy due to a limited supply of securities available for borrowing. We may also incur additional costs in connection with short sale transactions, including in the event that DME Advisors is required to enter into a borrowing arrangement in advance of any short sales. Moreover, the ability to continue to borrow a security is not guaranteed and we are subject to strict delivery requirements. The inability to deliver securities within the required time frame may subject us to mandatory close out by the executing broker-dealer. A mandatory close out may subject us to unintended costs and losses. Certain action or inaction by third parties, such as executing broker-dealers or clearing broker-dealers, may materially impact our ability to effect short sale transactions.

We may invest in securities based outside the United States which may be riskier than securities of United States issuers.

Under our investment guidelines, DME Advisors may invest in securities of issuers organized or based outside the United States. These investments may be subject to a variety of risks and other special considerations not affecting securities of U.S. issuers. Particularly within the Euro-zone, there is increasing market concern as to the potential default of government issuers. Should governments default on their obligations, there could be a negative impact on both the Company’s direct holdings as well as non-government issues held within the country of default. Many foreign securities markets are not as developed or efficient as those in the United States. Securities of some foreign issuers are less liquid and more volatile than securities of comparable U.S. issuers. Similarly, volume and liquidity in many foreign securities markets are less than in the United States and, at times, price volatility can be greater than in the United States. Non-U.S. issuers may be subject to less stringent financial reporting and informational disclosure standards, regulatory oversight, practices and requirements than those applicable to U.S. issuers. 

Risks Relating to our Class A Ordinary Shares

A shareholder may be required to sell its Class A ordinary shares.

Our Third Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association, or Articles, provide that we have the option, but not the obligation, to require a shareholder to sell its Class A ordinary shares for their fair market value to us, to other shareholders or to third parties if our Board of Directors determines that ownership of our Class A ordinary shares by such shareholder may result in adverse tax, regulatory or legal consequences to us, any of our subsidiaries or any of our shareholders and that such sale is necessary to avoid or cure such adverse consequences.

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Provisions of our Articles, the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands and our corporate structure may each impede a takeover, which could adversely affect the value of our Class A ordinary shares.

Our Articles contain certain provisions that could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us, even if doing so would be beneficial to our shareholders. Our Articles provide that a director may only be removed for ‘‘cause” as defined in the Articles, upon the affirmative vote of not less than 50% of the votes cast at a meeting at which more than 50% ofour issued and outstanding Class A ordinary shares are represented. Further, under our Articles, a director may only be removed without cause upon the affirmative vote of not less than 80% of the votes cast at a meeting at which more than 50% ofour issued and outstanding Class A ordinary shares are represented.

Our Articles permit our Board of Directors to issue preferred shares from time to time, with such rights and preferences as they consider appropriate. Our Board of Directors may authorize the issuance of preferred shares with terms and conditions and under circumstances that could have an effect of discouraging a takeover or other transaction, deny shareholders the receipt of a premium on their Class A ordinary shares in the event of a tender or other offer for Class A ordinary shares and have a depressive effect on the market price of the Class A ordinary shares.

As compared to mergers under corporate law in the United States, it may be more difficult to consummate a merger of two or more companies in the Cayman Islands or the merger of one or more Cayman Islands companies with one or more overseas companies, even if such transaction would be beneficial to our shareholders. Cayman Islands law has statutory provisions that provide for the reconstruction and amalgamation of companies, which are commonly referred to, in the Cayman Islands, as "schemes of arrangement". The Companies Law (as amended) of the Cayman Islands (the "Companies Law") provides for the merger or consolidation of two or more companies that are Cayman Islands entities or the merger of one or more Cayman Islands companies with one or more overseas companies, where the surviving entity is either a Cayman Islands company or an overseas company.  Prior to the adoption of certain amendments to the Companies Law, the "scheme of arrangement" was the only vehicle available to consolidate companies and Cayman Islands law did not provide for mergers as that term is understood under corporate law in the United States. Although the current merger provisions have made it faster and easier for companies to merge or consolidate than the "schemes of arrangement" statutory provision, these provisions do not replace the "schemes of arrangement" provision which continues to apply. The procedural and legal requirements necessary to consummate these transactions under the merger provisions of the Companies Law or the "schemes of arrangement" provision may be more rigorous and take longer to complete than the procedures typically required to consummate a merger in the United States.

Under Cayman Islands law and practice, a "scheme of arrangement" must be approved at a shareholders' meeting by each class of shareholders, in each case, by a majority of the number of holders of each class of an entity's shares that are present and voting, either in person or by proxy, at such a meeting, which holders must also represent 75% in value of such class issued that are present and voting, either in person or by proxy, at such meeting, excluding the shares owned by the parties to the scheme of arrangement. A merger requires approval by special resolution of the shareholders of each company (which normally requires, as a minimum, a two thirds majority of shareholders voting together as one class) and such other authorization, if any, as may be specified in such constituent company's articles of association.

Although a merger under the Companies Law does not require court approval, the convening of these meetings and the terms of an amalgamation under the "schemes of arrangement" provision must be sanctioned by the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands. Although there is no requirement to seek the consent of the creditors of the parties involved in the scheme of arrangement, the Grand Court typically seeks to ensure that the creditors have consented to the transfer of their liabilities to the surviving entity or that the scheme of arrangement does not otherwise materially adversely affect the creditors' interests. Furthermore, the Grand Court will only approve a scheme of arrangement if it is satisfied that:

● the statutory provisions as to majority vote have been complied with;

● the shareholders have been fairly represented at the meeting in question;

● the scheme of arrangement is such as a businessman would reasonably approve; and

● the scheme of arrangement is not one that would more properly be sanctioned under some other provision of the Companies Law.

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In addition, David Einhorn, Chairman of our Board of Directors, owns all of the outstanding Class B ordinary shares. As a result, we will not be able to enter into a scheme of arrangement without the approval of Mr. Einhorn as the holder of our Class B ordinary shares.

Holders of Class A ordinary shares may have difficulty obtaining or enforcing a judgment against us, and they may face difficulties in protecting their interests because we are incorporated under Cayman Islands law.

Because we are a Cayman Islands company, there is uncertainty as to whether the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands would recognize or enforce judgments of United States courts obtained against us predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state thereof, or be competent to hear original actions brought in the Cayman Islands against us predicated upon the securities laws of the United States or any state thereof.

We are incorporated as an exempted company limited by shares under the Companies Law. A significant amount of our assets are located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for persons purchasing Class A ordinary shares to effect service of process within the United States upon us or to enforce judgments against us or judgments obtained in U.S. courts predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state of the United States.

Although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, the courts of the Cayman Islands will, based on the principle that a judgment by a competent foreign court will impose upon the judgment debtor an obligation to pay the sum for which judgment has been given, recognize and enforce a foreign judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction if such judgment is final, for a liquidated sum, not in respect of taxes or a fine or penalty if not inconsistent with a Cayman Islands judgment in respect of the same matters, and was not obtained in a manner, and is not of a kind, the enforcement of which is contrary to the public policy of the Cayman Islands. There is doubt, however, as to whether the courts of the Cayman Islands will, in an original action in the Cayman Islands, recognize or enforce judgments of U.S. courts predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the securities laws of the United States or any state of the United States on the grounds that such provisions are penal in nature.

A Cayman Islands court may stay proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere.

Unlike many jurisdictions in the United States, Cayman Islands law does not specifically provide for shareholder appraisal rights on a merger or consolidation of an entity. This may make it more difficult for shareholders to assess the value of any consideration they may receive in a merger or consolidation or to require that the offeror give a shareholder additional consideration if he believes the consideration offered is insufficient.

Shareholders of Cayman Islands exempted companies such as ours have no general rights under Cayman Islands law to inspect corporate records and accounts. Our directors have discretion under our Articles to determine whether or not, and under what conditions, the corporate records may be inspected by shareholders, but are not obligated to make them available to shareholders. This fact may make it more difficult for shareholders to obtain the information needed to establish any facts necessary for a shareholder motion or to solicit proxies from other shareholders in connection with a proxy contest.

Subject to limited exceptions, under Cayman Islands law, a minority shareholder may not bring a derivative action against our Board of Directors.

Provisions of our Articles may reallocate the voting power of our Class A ordinary shares and subject holders of Class A ordinary shares to SEC compliance.

In certain circumstances, the total voting power of our Class A ordinary shares held by any one person will be reduced to less than 9.9% of the total issued and outstanding ordinary shares, and the total voting power of the Class B ordinary shares will be reduced to 9.5% of the total voting power of the total issued and outstanding ordinary shares. In the event a holder of our Class A ordinary shares acquires shares representing 9.9% or more of the total voting power of our total ordinary shares or the Class B ordinary shares represent more than 9.5% of the total voting power of our total outstanding shares, there will be an effective reallocation of the voting power of the Class A ordinary shares or Class B ordinary shares which may cause a shareholder to acquire 5% or more of the voting power of the total ordinary shares.

Such a shareholder may become subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of Sections 13(d) and (g) of the Exchange Act. Such a reallocation also may result in an obligation to amend previous filings made under Section 13(d) or (g) of the Exchange Act. Under our Articles, we have no obligation to notify shareholders of any adjustments to their voting power. Shareholders should consult their own legal counsel regarding the possible reporting requirements under Section 13 of the Exchange Act.

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As of December 31, 2014, David Einhorn owned 16.7% of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares, which given that each Class B share is entitled to ten votes, causes him to exceed the 9.5% limitation imposed on the total voting power of the Class B ordinary shares. Thus, the voting power held by the Class B ordinary shares that is in excess of the 9.5% limitation will be reallocated pro-rata to holders of Class A ordinary shares according to their percentage interest in the Company. However, no shareholder will be allocated voting rights that would cause it to have 9.9% or more of the total voting power of our ordinary shares. The allocation of the voting power of the Class B ordinary shares to a holder of Class A ordinary shares will depend upon the total voting power of the Class B ordinary shares outstanding, as well as the percentage of Class A ordinary shares held by a shareholder and the other holders of Class A ordinary shares. Accordingly, we cannot estimate with precision what multiple of a vote per share a holder of Class A ordinary shares will be allocated as a result of the anticipated reallocation of voting power of the Class B ordinary shares. 

Risks Relating to Taxation

We may become subject to taxation in the Cayman Islands, which would negatively affect our results.

Under current Cayman Islands law, we are not obligated to pay any taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. The Governor-in-Cabinet of Cayman Islands has granted us an exemption from the imposition of any such tax on us until February 1, 2025. We cannot be assured that after such date we would not be subject to any such tax. If we were to become subject to taxation in the Cayman Islands, our financial condition and results of operations could be significantly and negatively affected.

Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re and/or GRIL may be subject to United States federal income taxation.

Greenlight Capital Re and Greenlight Re are incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands, and GRIL is incorporated under the laws of Ireland. These entities intend to operate in a manner that will not cause us to be treated as engaging in a trade or business within the United States and will not cause us to be subject to current United States federal income taxation on Greenlight Capital Re's, Greenlight Re's and/or GRIL’s net income. However, because there are no definitive standards provided by the Internal Revenue Code, regulations or court decisions as to the specific activities that constitute being engaged in the conduct of a trade or business within the United States, and as any such determination is essentially factual in nature, we cannot assure you that the United States Internal Revenue Service (the ‘‘IRS”), will not successfully assert that Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re and/or GRIL are engaged in a trade or business within the United States.  If the IRS were to successfully assert that Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re, and/or GRIL have been engaged in a trade or business within the United States in any taxable year, various adverse tax consequences could result, including the following: Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re and/or GRIL may become subject to current United States federal income taxation on its net income from sources within the United States; Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re and/or GRIL may be subject to United States federal income tax on a portion of its net investment income, regardless of its source; Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re, and/or GRIL may not be entitled to deduct certain expenses that would otherwise be deductible from the income subject to United States taxation; and Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re and/or GRIL may be subject to United States branch profits tax on profits deemed to have been distributed out of the United States.  

United States persons who own Class A ordinary shares may be subject to United States federal income taxation on our undistributed earnings and may recognize ordinary income upon disposition of Class A ordinary shares.

Passive Foreign Investment Company. Significant potential adverse United States federal income tax consequences, including certain reporting requirements, generally apply to any United States person who owns shares in a passive foreign investment company, or a PFIC. We believe that each of Greenlight Capital Re and Greenlight Re was a PFIC in 2006, 2005 and 2004. We do not believe, although we cannot assure you, that none of Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re or GRIL has been a PFIC from 2007 onwards. We cannot provide assurance that none of Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re or GRIL will be a PFIC in any future taxable year.

In general, any of Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re or GRIL would be a PFIC for a taxable year if either (i) 75% or more of its income constitutes ‘‘passive income’’ or (ii) 50% or more of its assets produce ‘‘passive income’’, or are held for the production of passive income. Passive income generally includes interest, dividends and other investment income but does not include income derived in the active conduct of an insurance business by a corporation predominantly engaged in an insurance business. This exception for insurance companies is intended to ensure that a bona fide insurance entity’s income is not treated as passive income, except to the extent such income is attributable to financial reserves in excess of the reasonable needs of the insurance business. We believe that we are currently operating and intend to continue operating our business with financial reserves at a level that should not cause us to be deemed PFICs, although we cannot assure you the IRS will not successfully

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challenge this conclusion. If we are unable to underwrite sufficient amount of risks, any of Greenlight Capital Re, Greenlight Re or GRIL may become a PFIC.

In addition, sufficient risk must be transferred under an insurance entity’s contracts with its insureds in order to qualify for the insurance exception. Whether our insurance contracts possess adequate risk transfer for purposes of determining whether income under our contracts is insurance income, and whether we are predominantly engaged in an insurance business, are subjective in nature and there is very little authority on these issues. We cannot assure you that the IRS will not successfully challenge our interpretation of the scope of the active insurance company exception and our qualification for the exception. Further, the IRS may issue regulatory or other guidance that causes us to fail to qualify for the active insurance company exception on a prospective or retroactive basis. Therefore, we cannot assure you that we will satisfy the exception for insurance companies and will not be treated as PFICs currently or in the future.

Controlled Foreign Corporation. United States persons who, directly or indirectly or through attribution rules, own 10% or more of the total combined voting power of our shares, which we refer to as United States 10% shareholders, may be subject to the controlled foreign corporation, or CFC, rules. Under the CFC rules, each United States 10% shareholder must annually include his pro-rata share of the CFC’s ‘‘subpart F income’’, even if no distributions are made. In general, a foreign insurance company will be treated as a CFC only if United States 10% shareholders collectively own more than 25% of the total combined voting power or total value of the entity’s shares for an uninterrupted period of 30 days or more during any year. We believe that the dispersion of our Class A ordinary shares among holders and the restrictions placed on transfer, issuance or repurchase of our Class A ordinary shares (including the ownership limitations described below), will generally prevent shareholders who acquire Class A ordinary shares from being United States 10% shareholders. In addition, because our Articles prevent any person from holding 9.9% or more of the total combined voting power of our shares (whether held directly, indirectly or constructively), unless such provision is waived by the unanimous consent of our Board of Directors, we believe no persons holding Class A ordinary shares should be viewed as United States 10% shareholders of a CFC for purposes of the CFC rules. We cannot assure you, however, that these rules will not apply to you. If you are a United States person, we strongly urge you to consult your own tax advisor concerning the CFC rules.

Related Person Insurance Income. If: 

● our gross income attributable to insurance or reinsurance policies where the direct or indirect insureds are our direct or indirect United States shareholders or persons related to such United States shareholders equals or exceeds 20% of our gross insurance income in any taxable year; and

● direct or indirect insureds and persons related to such insureds owned directly or indirectly 20% or more of the voting power or value of our stock,

a United States person who owns Class A ordinary shares directly or indirectly on the last day of the taxable year would most likely be required to include their pro-rata share of our related person insurance income for the taxable year in their income. This amount would be determined as if such related person insurance income were distributed proportionally to United States persons at that date. We do not expect that we will knowingly enter into reinsurance agreements in which, in the aggregate, the direct or indirect insureds are, or are related to, owners of 20% or more of the Class A ordinary shares. We do not believe that the 20% gross insurance income threshold will be met. However, we cannot assure you that this is or will continue to be the case. Consequently, we cannot assure you that a person who is a direct or indirect United States shareholder will not be required to include amounts in its income in respect of related person insurance income in any taxable year.

    If a United States shareholder is treated as disposing of shares in a foreign insurance corporation that has related person insurance income and in which United States persons own 25% or more of the voting power or value of the entity’s shares, any gain from the disposition will generally be treated as a dividend to the extent of the United States shareholder’s portion of the corporation’s undistributed earnings and profits that were accumulated during the period that the United States shareholder owned the shares. In addition, the shareholder will be required to comply with certain reporting requirements, regardless of the amount of shares owned by the direct or indirect United States shareholder. Although not free from doubt, we believe these rules should not apply to dispositions of Class A ordinary shares because Greenlight Capital Re is not directly engaged in the insurance business and because proposed United States Treasury regulations applicable to this situation appear to apply only in the case of shares of corporations that are directly engaged in the insurance business. We cannot assure you, however, that the IRS will interpret the proposed regulations in this manner or that the proposed regulations will not be promulgated in final form in a manner that would cause these rules to apply to dispositions of Class A ordinary shares.  

United States tax-exempt organizations who own Class A ordinary shares may recognize unrelated business taxable income.

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If you are a United States tax-exempt organization you may recognize unrelated business taxable income if a portion of our subpart F insurance income is allocated to you. In general, subpart F insurance income will be allocated to you if we are a CFC as discussed above and you are a United States 10% shareholder or there is related person insurance income and certain exceptions do not apply. Although we do not believe that any United States persons will be allocated subpart F insurance income, we cannot assure you that this will be the case. If you are a United States tax-exempt organization, we advise you to consult your own tax advisor regarding the risk of recognizing unrelated business taxable income.

Change in United States tax laws may be retroactive and could subject us, and/or United States persons who own Class A ordinary shares to United States income taxation on our undistributed earnings.

The tax laws and interpretations regarding whether an entity is engaged in a United States trade or business, is a CFC, has related party insurance income or is a PFIC are subject to change, possibly on a retroactive basis. There are currently no regulations regarding the application of the passive foreign investment company rules to an insurance company and the regulations regarding related party insurance income are still in proposed form. New regulations or pronouncements interpreting or clarifying such rules may be forthcoming from the IRS. We are not able to predict if, when or in what form such guidance will be provided and whether such guidance will have a retroactive effect.

If investments held by GRIL are determined not to be integral to the insurance and reinsurance business carried on by GRIL, additional Irish tax could be imposed and our business and financial results could be materially adversely affected.

Based on administrative practice, taxable income derived from investments made by GRIL is generally taxed in Ireland at the rate of 12.5% on the grounds that such investments either form part of the permanent capital required by regulatory authorities, or are otherwise integral to the insurance and reinsurance business carried on by GRIL.  GRIL intends to operate in such a manner so that the level of investments held by GRIL does not exceed the amount that is integral to the insurance and reinsurance businesses carried on by GRIL.  If, however, investment income earned by GRIL exceeds these thresholds or if the administrative practice of the Irish Revenue Commissioners changes, Irish corporation tax could apply to such investment income at a higher rate (currently 25%) instead of the general 12.5% rate, and our results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

The impact of the initiative of the OECD to eliminate harmful tax practices is uncertain and could adversely affect our tax status in the Cayman Islands.

The OECD has published reports and launched a global dialogue among member and non-member countries on measures to limit harmful tax competition. These measures are largely directed at counteracting the effects of tax havens and preferential tax regimes in countries around the world. While the Cayman Islands is currently on the list of jurisdictions that have substantially implemented the internationally agreed tax standard, we are not able to predict if additional requirements will be imposed and if so whether changes arising from such additional requirements will subject us to additional taxes. 

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

We currently occupy our office space in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands under operating lease agreements which will expire on June 30, 2018 unless we renew the leases for an additional five year term. In addition, during 2011, GRIL entered into an operating lease agreement for office space in Dublin, Ireland which expires in 2031 but provides us an option to terminate the lease in 2016 or 2021 without any penalty. We believe that for the foreseeable future the office spaces in the Cayman Islands and Ireland will be sufficient for conducting our operations. 

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

From time to time, in the normal course of business, we may be involved in formal and informal dispute resolution procedures, which may include arbitration or litigation, the outcomes of which determine our rights and obligations under our reinsurance contracts and other contractual agreements. In some disputes, we may seek to enforce our rights under an agreement or to collect funds owing to us. In other matters, we may resist attempts by others to collect funds or enforce alleged rights. While the final outcome of legal disputes cannot be predicted with certainty, we do not believe that any of our existing contractual disputes, when finally resolved, will have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or operating results.

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ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information

Our Class A ordinary shares began publicly trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on May 24, 2007 under the symbol ‘‘GLRE’’. The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the high and low reported sale price per share of our Class A ordinary shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market. 

	2014				2013
	High		Low		High		Low
First Quarter	$	34.24	$	29.97	$	25.05	$	22.62
Second Quarter	$	34.70	$	30.83	$	25.42	$	23.40
Third Quarter	$	35.18	$	31.55	$	28.84	$	24.64
Fourth Quarter	$	33.87	$	30.18	$	34.42	$	27.38

Holders

As of January 31, 2015, the number of holders of record of our Class A ordinary shares was approximately 45, not including beneficial owners of shares registered in nominee or street name who represent approximately 97.1% of the Class A ordinary shares issued and outstanding.

Dividends

Since inception, we have not paid any cash dividends on our Class A ordinary shares or Class B ordinary shares, or collectively, our ordinary shares.

Holders of ordinary shares are entitled to receive dividends when, as and if declared by the Board of Directors in accordance with the provisions of our Articles and the Companies Law. In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of the Company, the holders of ordinary shares are entitled to share equally and ratably in our assets, if any remain after the payment of all of our debts and liabilities and the liquidation preference of any outstanding preferred shares.

We currently do not intend to declare and pay dividends on our ordinary shares in the foreseeable future. However, if we decide to pay dividends, we cannot assure you that sufficient cash will be available to pay such dividends. In addition, a letter of credit facility prohibits us from paying dividends during an event of default as defined in the letter of credit agreement. Our future dividend policy will also depend on the requirements of any future financing agreements to which we may be a party and other factors considered relevant by our Board of Directors, such as our results of operations and cash flows, our financial position and capital requirements, general business conditions, rating agency guidelines, legal, tax, regulatory and any contractual restrictions on the payment of dividends. Further, any future declaration and payment of dividends is discretionary and our Board of Directors may at any time modify or revoke our dividend policy on our ordinary shares. Finally, our ability to pay dividends also depends on the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends to us. Although Greenlight Capital Re is not subject to any significant legal prohibitions on the payment of dividends, Greenlight Re and GRIL are subject to regulatory constraints that affect their ability to pay dividends and include minimum net worth requirements. As of December 31, 2014, Greenlight Re and GRIL both exceeded the minimum statutory capital requirements. Any dividends we pay will be declared and paid in U.S. dollars.

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Performance Graph

Presented below is a line graph comparing the yearly percentage change in the cumulative total shareholder return on our Class A ordinary shares from May 24, 2007 (the date on which our Class A ordinary shares were first listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market) through December 31, 2014 against the total return index for the Russell 2000 Index, or RUT, and the S&P 500 Property & Casualty Insurance Index, or S&P Insurance Index, for the same period. The performance graph assumes $100 invested on May 24, 2007 in the ordinary shares of Greenlight Capital Re, the RUT and the S&P Insurance Index. The performance graph also assumes that all dividends are reinvested.

The performance reflected in the graph above is not necessarily indicative of future performance.

This graph is not "soliciting material," is not deemed filed with the SEC and is not to be incorporated by reference in any filing by us under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, whether made before or after the date hereof and irrespective of any general incorporation language in any such filing.

Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers

On August 5, 2008, our Board of Directors adopted a share repurchase plan authorizing the Company to repurchase Class A ordinary shares. From time to time, the repurchase plan has been modified at the election of our Board of Directors. On April 30, 2014, our Board of Directors amended the share repurchase plan to extend the duration of the repurchase plan to June 30, 2015 and reinstated the authorization for the Company to purchase up to 2.0 million Class A ordinary shares or securities convertible into Class A ordinary shares in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions. As of December 31, 2014, the Company was authorized to purchase up to 2.0 million Class A ordinary shares or securities convertible into Class A ordinary shares in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions. The Company is not required to make any repurchase of Class A ordinary shares and the repurchase plan may be modified, suspended or terminated at any time without prior notice. No Class A ordinary shares were repurchased by the Company during the year ended December 31, 2014.

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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

The following table sets forth our selected historical consolidated statement of income data for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010, as well as our selected historical consolidated balance sheet data as of December 31, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011 and 2010, which are derived from our audited consolidated financial statements. The audited consolidated financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP") and have been audited by BDO USA, LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm.

These historic results are not necessarily indicative of results for any future period. You should read the following selected financial data in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto contained in "Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data" and "Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" included in this filing and all other information appearing elsewhere or incorporated into this filing by reference.

	Year ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012			2011			2010
	($ in thousands, except per share and share amounts)
Selected Consolidated Statement of Income Data
Gross premiums written	$	324,023		$	535,702		$	427,844		$	397,659		$	414,850
Net premiums earned	354,240			547,899			466,714			379,775			287,701
Net investment income	122,575			218,140			78,941			23,118			104,006
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	234,986			338,493			366,601			241,690			177,018
Acquisition costs, net	107,665			171,872			142,721			138,751			102,645
General and administrative expenses	21,926			21,718			17,539			13,892			16,187
Net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598		$	6,769		$	90,642
Earnings Per Share Data(1)
Basic	$	2.94		$	6.13		$	0.40		$	0.19		$	2.49
Diluted	2.89			6.01			0.39			0.18			2.44
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	37,242,687			36,838,128			36,702,128			36,548,466			36,420,719
Diluted	37,874,387			37,585,167			37,361,338			37,286,454			37,224,173
Selected Ratios (based on U.S. GAAP Consolidated Statement of Income data)
Loss ratio (2)	66.3		%	61.8		%	78.5		%	63.6		%	61.5		%
Acquisition cost ratio (3)	30.4		%	31.4		%	30.6		%	36.5		%	35.7		%
Internal expense ratio (4)	6.0		%	3.2		%	2.8		%	2.8		%	4.5		%
Corporate expense ratio (5)	0.2		%	0.7		%	1.0		%	0.9		%	1.1		%
Combined ratio (6)	102.9		%	97.1		%	112.9		%	103.8		%	102.8		%

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	December 31
	2014		2013		2012		2011		2010
	($ in thousands, except per share and share amounts)
Selected Consolidated Balance Sheet Data
Total investments	$	1,430,978	$	1,393,679	$	1,177,928	$	1,030,146	$	1,034,554
Cash and cash equivalents	12,030		3,722		21,890		42,284		45,540
Restricted cash and cash equivalents	1,296,914		1,334,074		1,206,837		957,462		977,293
Total assets	2,995,292		3,095,276		2,722,753		2,343,488		2,338,002
Securities sold, not yet purchased, at fair value	1,090,731		1,111,690		908,368		683,816		725,990
Due to prime brokers	211,070		314,702		326,488		260,359		273,071
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves ^	264,243		329,894		356,470		241,279		186,467
Unearned premium reserves	128,736		173,057		188,185		225,735		234,983
Total liabilities	1,801,251		2,008,972		1,862,343		1,497,790		1,498,841
Total equity	1,194,041		1,086,304		860,410		845,698		839,161
Adjusted book value* (7)	1,165,151		1,051,595		821,708		803,103		793,403
Diluted adjusted book value* (8)	1,184,779		1,067,623		840,683		821,318		809,993
Ordinary shares outstanding
Basic	37,384,543		37,046,814		36,702,128		36,538,149		36,455,784
Diluted (9)	38,516,460		38,257,545		38,193,418		38,007,149		37,874,784
Per Share Data
Basic adjusted book value per share* (10)	$	31.17	$	28.39	$	22.39	$	21.98	$	21.76
Fully diluted adjusted book value per share* (11)	30.76		27.91		22.01		21.61		21.39

Certain prior year balances have been reclassified to conform to the current year presentation. The reclassifications resulted in no changes to net income or retained earnings for any of the years presented above.

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(1)	Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing net income by the weighted average number of common shares and participating securities outstanding for the period. Diluted earnings per share is calculated by taking into account the effects of exercising all dilutive stock options. In the event of a net loss, any stock options outstanding are excluded from the calculation of diluted loss per share. Unvested stock awards which contain non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents, whether paid or unpaid (referred to as "participating securities") are included in the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per share calculations. In the event of a net loss, the participating securities are excluded from both basic and diluted loss per share.
(2)	The loss ratio is calculated by dividing net loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred by net premiums earned.
(3)	The acquisition cost ratio is calculated by dividing net acquisition costs by net premiums earned.
(4)	The internal expense ratio is the ratio of general and administrative expenses, excluding any corporate expenses, to net premiums earned.
(5)	The corporate expense ratio is the ratio of corporate expenses to net premiums earned. Corporate expenses include expenses relating to Greenlight Capital Re being a publicly listed entity and certain non-core operating expenses as well as non-investment related foreign exchange gains or losses.
(6)	The combined ratio is the sum of the loss ratio, acquisition cost ratio, the internal expense ratio and corporate expense ratio.
(7)	Adjusted book value equals total equity minus non-controlling interest in joint venture.
(8)	Diluted adjusted book value is the adjusted book value plus the proceeds from the exercise of in-the-money options issued and outstanding at year end.
(9)	Diluted number of shares outstanding is the sum of basic shares outstanding and the in-the-money options and restricted stock units issued and outstanding at year end.
(10)	Basic adjusted book value per share is calculated by dividing adjusted book value by the number of shares and share equivalents issued and outstanding at year end.
(11)	Fully diluted adjusted book value per share is calculated by dividing the diluted adjusted book value by the diluted number of shares outstanding at year end.
*	Adjusted book value, diluted adjusted book value, basic adjusted book value per share, and fully diluted adjusted book value per share are non-GAAP measures. For a reconciliation of the non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP measures, refer to "Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Results of Operations".
^	For detailed discussion of change in loss and loss adjustment expenses, refer to "Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations — Financial Condition" and Note 7 to the consolidated financial statements.

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

References to "we," "us," "our," "our company,"  or "the Company" refer to Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. ("GLRE") and its wholly-owned subsidiaries, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd, ("Greenlight Re"), Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd. ("GRIL") and Verdant Holding Company, Ltd. ("Verdant"), unless the context dictates otherwise. References to our "Ordinary Shares" refers collectively to our Class A Ordinary Shares and Class B Ordinary Shares.

The following is a discussion and analysis of our results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 and financial condition as of December 31, 2014 and 2013. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes, which appear elsewhere in this filing.

General

We are a Cayman Islands headquartered global specialty property and casualty reinsurer with a reinsurance and investment strategy that we believe differentiates us from most of our competitors. Our goal is to build long-term shareholder value by selectively offering customized reinsurance solutions, in markets where capacity and alternatives are limited, which we believe will yield favorable long-term returns on equity.

We aim to complement our underwriting results with a non-traditional investment approach in order to achieve higher rates of return over the long term than reinsurance companies that employ more traditional, fixed-income investment strategies. We manage our investment portfolio according to a value-oriented philosophy, in which we take long positions in perceived undervalued securities and short positions in perceived overvalued securities.

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Because we employ an opportunistic underwriting philosophy, period-to-period comparisons of our underwriting results may not be meaningful. In addition, our historical investment results may not necessarily be indicative of future performance. Due to the nature of our reinsurance and investment strategies, our operating results will likely fluctuate from period to period.

Outlook and Trends

We believe the reinsurance industry in general has been, and for the foreseeable future will remain, over-capitalized. An influx of new capital, particularly for peak zone catastrophe risk, from alternative capital market participants such as hedge funds, pension funds and other fixed income bond managers has contributed to the over-capitalization. Additionally, we believe that the slowdown in global economic activity continues to weaken the overall demand for property and casualty insurance and, accordingly, reinsurance. However, the over-capitalization of the market is not uniform across all insurers and reinsurers and there are many insurers and reinsurers, including those that are deemed with lower financial security profiles, that have and will continue to suffer disproportionately. We believe the value proposition of our reinsurance offering and our differentiated underwriting strategy, together with our “A (Excellent)” rating by A.M.Best, positions us well to compete for new business.

One component of our underwriting strategy is to identify and partner with companies that have suffered dislocation. Accordingly, as the market suffers, we believe we may have increased underwriting opportunities, which we will pursue if we believe pricing is economically rational. Conversely, if the reinsurance market continues to soften, we anticipate that we will seek to maintain or even reduce premium writings rather than accept mispriced risk in order to conserve our capital for a more opportune environment. We believe that significant price increases could occur if financial and credit markets experience adverse shocks that result in the loss of capital of insurers and reinsurers, or if there are major catastrophic events, especially in North America. The persistent low interest rate environment has reduced the earnings of many insurance and reinsurance companies with traditional fixed income investment strategies and we believe that the continuation of low interest rates, coupled with the reduction of prior years' reserve redundancies, could cause the industry to adopt overall higher pricing.

As of December 31, 2014, our reinsurance portfolio was principally concentrated in four areas: Florida homeowners; U.S. employer health stop loss; catastrophe retrocession and non-standard private passenger automobile. While each of these areas is competitive, we believe we are supporting programs with good risk adjusted returns. We believe that, in general, the Florida homeowners, U.S. employer health stop loss and non-standard private passenger automobile sectors are stable and priced at profitable levels. However, we have observed significant flexible capital from non-traditional sources being deployed mainly in peak zone catastrophe excess of loss business, which has put downward pressure on rates. We renewed certain of our existing catastrophe retrocession relationships at January 1, 2015 and also wrote some new catastrophe retrocession deals with new partners. We have repositioned our catastrophe retrocession book of business from predominantly excess of loss contracts to quota share contracts. We have found there to be less available capacity from alternative capital providers for quota share contracts in this area and as such terms and pricing are more favorable. Additionally, we have recently secured new contracts with larger, syndicated reinsurance placements for general casualty and professional liability business which have a longer duration of claim payments than the business we have written in the past.

While the competitive market conditions have made finding new business that meets our return hurdles challenging, we believe that we have a strong pipeline of attractive opportunities with counterparties that seek highly customized structures, terms and conditions, which aligns well with our underwriting strategy. Further, we intend to continue to monitor market conditions and pursue multiple opportunities to best position ourselves to participate in future under-served or capacity-constrained markets as they arise and intend to offer products that we believe will generate favorable returns on equity over the long term. Accordingly, our underlying results and product line concentrations in any given period may vary, perhaps significantly, and are not necessarily indicative of our future results of operations.

The reinsurance industry has recently experienced several announcements of mergers and acquisitions ("M&A") between large reinsurance companies. We believe there is likely to be further consolidation in the industry. However, this consolidation will not likely result in a significant reduction in total capital within the industry, but simply a concentration of capital in fewer, larger participants. Due to the reduction in the number of competitors in the industry, we believe pricing may partially stabilize. We also believe that while some business may be further restricted to only the largest reinsurance companies in the industry, this consolidation may create an opportunity for us as more capacity may be made available to other reinsurers.

Our investment portfolio had a net long exposure of 38.9% as of December 31, 2014. Our goal for 2015 continues to be to protect capital in an uncertain environment and to find investment opportunities on both our long and short portfolios that we believe will generate positive returns. Equity market valuations are stretched while monetary policy remains very accommodative globally. Given the current investment environment, we anticipate, for the foreseeable future, to continue holding a combination of a significant position in gold, macro positions in the form of options on foreign exchange rates, short positions in sovereign debt and sovereign credit default swaps.

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Segments

We manage our business on the basis of one operating segment, property and casualty reinsurance, in accordance with the qualitative and quantitative criteria established by U.S. GAAP. Within the property and casualty reinsurance segment, we analyze our underwriting operations using two categories:

●    frequency business; and 

●    severity business.

Frequency business is generally characterized as contracts containing a potentially large number of small losses emanating from multiple events. Clients generally buy this protection to increase their own underwriting capacity and typically select a reinsurer based upon the reinsurer’s financial strength, service and expertise. We expect the results of frequency business to be less volatile than those of severity business from period to period due to greater predictability. We also expect that over time the profit margins and return on equity of our frequency business will be lower than those of our severity business.

Severity business is generally characterized as contracts with the potential for significant losses emanating from one event or multiple events. Clients generally buy this protection to remove volatility from their balance sheets, and accordingly, we expect the results of severity business to be volatile from period to period. However, over the long term, we also expect that our severity business will generate higher profit margins and return on equity than those of our frequency business.

Revenues

We derive our revenues from two principal sources: 

● premiums from reinsurance on property and casualty business assumed; and

● income from investments.

Premiums from reinsurance on property and casualty business assumed are directly related to the number, type and pricing of contracts we write. For financial reporting purposes, we earn premiums over the contract period in proportion to the period of risk covered.

Income from our investments is primarily comprised of interest income, dividends, net realized gains and losses, and changes in unrealized gains and losses on investment securities. We also derive interest income from money market funds and notes receivable.

 In addition, we may from time to time derive other income from gains on deposit accounted contracts, fees generated from advisory services provided by Verdant and fees relating to overrides, profit commissions and early termination of contracts.

Expenses

Our expenses consist primarily of the following: 

● underwriting losses and loss adjustment expenses;

● acquisition costs;

● investment-related expenses; and

● general and administrative expenses.

Loss and loss adjustment expenses are a function of the amount and type of reinsurance contracts we write and of the loss experience of the underlying coverage. As described below, loss and loss adjustment expenses include an actuarial analysis of the estimated losses, including losses incurred during the period and changes in estimates from prior periods. Depending on the nature of the contract, loss and loss adjustment expenses may be paid over a period of years.

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Acquisition costs primarily consist of brokerage fees, ceding commissions, premium taxes, profit commissions, letters of credit fees, federal excise tax, and other direct expenses we incur that are directly related to underwriting reinsurance contracts. We amortize deferred acquisition costs over the related contract term.

Investment-related expenses primarily consist of interest expense on borrowings, dividend expense on short sales, management fees and performance compensation that we pay to our investment advisor. We net these expenses against investment income in our consolidated financial statements.

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of salaries and benefits and related costs, including costs associated with our incentive compensation plan, bonuses and stock compensation expenses. General and administrative expenses also include professional fees, travel and entertainment, information technology, rent and other general operating expenses.

For stock option expenses, we calculate compensation cost using the Black-Scholes option pricing model and expense stock options over their vesting period, which is typically three years. For restricted stock awards and restricted stock units, we calculate compensation cost using the grant date fair value of each award and expense the stock awards over their vesting period, which is typically three years.

Critical Accounting Policies

Our consolidated financial statements contain certain amounts that are inherently subjective in nature and have required management to make assumptions and best estimates to determine reported values. If certain factors, including those described in "Part I. Item IA. — Risk Factors", cause actual events or results to differ materially from our underlying assumptions or estimates, there could be a material adverse effect on our results of operations, financial condition or liquidity. We believe that the following accounting policies affect the more significant estimates used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements. The descriptions below are summarized and have been simplified for clarity. A more detailed description of our significant accounting policies as well as recently issued accounting standards is included in Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements. 

Premium Revenues and Risk Transfer. Our property and casualty reinsurance premiums are recorded as premiums written based upon contract terms and information received from ceding companies and their brokers. For excess of loss reinsurance contracts, premiums are typically stated as a percentage of the subject premiums written by the client, subject to a minimum and deposit premium. The minimum and deposit premium is typically based on an estimate of subject premiums expected to be written by the client during the contract term. The minimum and deposit premium is reported initially as premiums written and adjusted, if necessary, in subsequent periods once the actual subject premium is known. For catastrophe contracts that contractually require the payment of a reinstatement premium equal to or greater than the original premium upon the occurrence of a full limit loss, the reinstatement premiums are earned over the original contract period. Reinstatement premiums that are contractually calculated on a pro-rata basis of the original premiums are earned over the remaining coverage period.

For each quota share or proportional property and casualty reinsurance contract we underwrite, our client estimates gross premiums written at inception of the contract. We generally account for such premiums using our best estimates and then adjust our estimates based on actual reports provided by our client and based on our expectations of industry developments. As the contract progresses, we monitor actual premiums received in conjunction with correspondence from the client in order to refine our estimate. Variances from initial gross premiums written estimates can be greater for quota share contracts than for excess of loss contracts. All premiums on quota share contracts are earned over the risk coverage period. Unearned premiums consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance provided.

At the inception of each of our reinsurance contracts, we receive premium estimates from the client, which, together with historical and industry data, are used to estimate what we believe will be the ultimate premium payable pursuant to each contract. We receive actual premiums written by each client as the client reports the actual results of the underlying insurance writings to us on a monthly or quarterly basis (depending on the terms of the contract). We book the actual premiums written when we receive them from our client. Each reporting period we estimate the amount of premiums that are written for stub periods that have not yet been reported to us by the client. For example, for December year-end we may have to estimate December premiums ceded under certain contracts since the client may not be required to report the actual results to us until after we have finalized our audited financial statements. Typically, premium estimates are only used for unreported stub periods, which accounts for a small percentage of our reported premiums written. We believe that estimating premiums written for these stub periods is standard reinsurance industry practice.

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We are able to confirm the accuracy and completeness of premiums reported by our clients by either reviewing the client’s statutory filings and/or performing an audit of the client, as per the terms of the contract. Discrepancies between premiums being ceded and reported under a contract are, in our experience, rare. To date, we have not had any material discrepancy in premiums being reported by a client that required a dispute resolution process. 

We account for reinsurance contracts in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Assessing whether or not a reinsurance contract meets the conditions for risk transfer requires judgment. The determination of risk transfer is critical to reporting premiums written and is based, in part, on the use of actuarial and pricing models and assumptions. If we determine that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient risk, or if a contract provides retroactive reinsurance coverage, we use deposit accounting. Any losses on such contracts are charged to earnings immediately and recorded in the consolidated statements of income as other expense. Any gains relating to such contracts are deferred and amortized over the estimated remaining settlement period. All such deferred gains are included in reinsurance balances payable in the consolidated balance sheets. Amortized gains are recorded in the consolidated statements of income as other income.

Investments. Our investments in debt and equity securities that are classified as “trading securities” are carried at fair value in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The fair values of the listed equities are derived based on the last reported price on the balance sheet date as reported by a recognized exchange. The fair values of listed equities that have restrictions on sale or transfer which expire within one year, are determined by adjusting the observed market price of the equity using a liquidity discount based on observable market inputs. The fair values of debt instruments are generally derived based on the average of multiple market maker or broker quotes which are considered to be binding. Where quotes are not available, debt instruments are valued using cash flow models using assumptions and estimates that may be subjective and non-observable.

The fair values of our investments in commodities are based on the commodity’s last reported price on the balance sheet date as reported by a recognized commodities exchange. Our investments in private and unlisted equity securities and limited partnerships are all carried at fair value, based on broker or market maker quotes, or based on management’s assumptions developed from available information, using the services of our investment advisor including the most recent net asset values obtained from the managers of those underlying investments. Investments in private equity funds are valued based on unadjusted net asset values reported by the funds’ managers.

For securities classified as “trading securities” and “other investments”, any realized and unrealized gains or losses are determined on the basis of specific identification method (by reference to cost or amortized cost, as appropriate) and included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

Financial contracts which include total return swaps, credit default swaps, options, futures and other derivative instruments are recorded at their fair value with any unrealized gains and losses included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income. Fair values on total return swaps are based on the underlying security’s fair value which is obtained from closing prices on a recognized exchange (for equity or commodity swaps), or from market makers or broker quotes. Fair values for credit default swaps trading in an active market are based on market maker or broker quotes taking into account credit spreads on identical contracts. Our exchange traded option contracts are recorded at fair value based on quoted prices in active markets. For over the counter (“OTC”) options and exchange traded options where a quoted price in an active market is not available, we obtain multiple market maker quotes to determine the fair values. Fair values for other derivative instruments are determined based on multiple broker or market maker quotes taking into account the liquidity and the availability of an active market for the derivative.

Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves. Our loss and loss adjustment expense reserves are comprised of: 

● case reserves resulting from claims notified to us by our clients;

● incurred but not reported (“IBNR”) losses; and

● estimated loss adjustment expenses.

Case reserves are provided by our clients, and IBNR losses are estimated each reporting period based on a contract by contract review of all data available to us for each individual contract. Each of our reinsurance contracts is unique and the methods and estimates we use vary depending on the facts and circumstances of each contract. The resulting total loss reserves, including IBNR loss reserves, are the sum of each loss reserve estimated on a contract by contract basis.

We establish reserves for contracts based on estimates of the ultimate cost of all losses including IBNR. These estimated ultimate reserves are based on our own actuarial estimates derived from reports received from ceding companies, industry data and historical experience. These estimates are periodically reviewed by the Company on a contract by contract basis and adjusted when necessary. Since reserves are estimates, the setting of appropriate reserves is an inherently uncertain process. Our

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estimates are based upon actuarial and statistical projections and on our assessment of currently available data, predictions of future developments and estimates of future trends and other factors. The final settlement of losses may vary, perhaps materially, from the reserves initially established and periodically adjusted. All adjustments to the estimates are recorded in the period in which they are determined. Under U.S. GAAP, we are not permitted to establish loss reserves, which include case reserves and IBNR loss reserves, until the occurrence of an event which may give rise to a claim. As a result, only loss reserves applicable to losses incurred up to the reporting date are established, with no allowance for the establishment of loss reserves to account for expected future loss events.

For natural peril exposed business, we generally establish loss reserves based on loss payments and case reserves reported by our clients when, and if, received. We then add our estimates for IBNR losses to the case reserves. To establish our IBNR loss estimates, in addition to the loss information and estimates communicated by ceding companies, we use industry information, knowledge of the business written and management’s judgment.

For most of the contracts we write, our risk exposure is limited by defined limits of liability. Once the loss limit for a contract has been reached, we have no further exposure to additional losses from that contract. However, certain contracts, particularly quota share contracts that relate to first dollar exposure, may not contain aggregate limits.

For all non-natural peril business, we initially reserve every individual contract to the expected loss and loss expense ratio that we calculated when we originally priced the business. In our pricing analysis, we typically utilize a significant amount of information both from the individual client and from industry data. Where practical, we compare historic reserving data that we receive from our client, if any, to publicly available financial statements of the client in an effort to identify, confirm and monitor the accuracy and completeness of the data. We require each of our clients to provide loss information for each reporting period, which, depending on the contract, could be monthly or quarterly. The loss information required depends on the terms and conditions of each contract and may include many years of history. Depending on the type of business underwritten, we are entitled to receive client and industry information on historical paid losses, incurred losses, number of open claims, number of closed claims, number of total claims, listings of individual large losses, earned premiums, policy count, policy limits underwritten, exposure information and rate change information. We may also receive information by class or subclass of business. If the reserving data is not available from a client, we rely on industry data, as well as the judgment and experience of our underwriters and actuaries.

We rely more on client and industry data than our own data to identify unusual trends requiring changes in reserve estimates. Each reinsurance contract is different and the degree to which we rely on client data versus our own data varies greatly from contract to contract. The extent to which we rely on client data for reserve setting purposes depends upon the availability of historical loss data from the client and our judgment as to how reliable we believe the client’s historic loss performance is compared to its current book of business. We may from time to time supplement client data with industry and competitor information where we deem appropriate. Where available, we also receive relevant actuarial reports from the client. We supplement this information with subjective information on each client, which may include management experience, competitor information, meetings with the client and supplementary industry research and data. 

Generally, we obtain regular updates of premium and loss related information for the current period and historical periods, which we utilize to update our initial expected loss and loss expense ratio. There may be a time lag from when claims are reported to our client and when our client reports the claims to us. This time lag may impact our loss reserve estimates from period to period. Client reports, whether due monthly or quarterly, have set reporting dates of when they are due to us (for example, fifteen days after month end). As such, the time lag in the client’s reporting depends upon the terms of the specific contract. The timing of the reporting requirements is designed so that we receive premium and loss information as soon as practicable once the client has closed its books. Accordingly, there should be a short lag in such reporting. Additionally, most of our contracts that have the potential for large single event losses have provisions that such loss notification needs to be received immediately upon the occurrence of an event. Once we receive this updated information, we use a variety of standard actuarial methods in our analysis each quarter. Such methods may include: 

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● Paid Loss Development Method. We estimate ultimate losses by calculating past paid loss development factors and applying them to exposure periods with further expected paid loss development. The paid loss development method assumes that losses are paid in a consistent pattern. It provides an objective test of reported loss projections because paid losses contain no reserve estimates. For many coverages, claim payments are made very slowly and it may take years for claims to be fully reported and settled.

● Reported Loss Development Method. We estimate ultimate losses by calculating past reported loss development factors and applying them to exposure periods with further expected reported loss development. Since reported losses include payments and case reserves, changes in both of these amounts are incorporated in this method. This approach provides a larger volume of data to estimate ultimate losses than paid loss methods. Thus, reported loss patterns may be less varied than paid loss patterns, especially for coverage that have historically been paid out over a long period of time but for which claims are reported relatively early and case loss reserve estimates have been established.

● Expected Loss Ratio Method. We estimate ultimate losses under the expected loss ratio method, by multiplying earned premiums by an expected loss ratio. We select the expected loss ratio using industry data, historical company data and our professional judgment. We use this method for lines of business and contracts where there are no historical losses or where past loss experience is not credible.

● Bornhuetter-Ferguson Paid Loss Method. We estimate ultimate losses by modifying expected loss ratios to the extent paid losses experienced to date differ from what would have been expected to have been paid based upon the selected paid loss development pattern. This method avoids some of the distortions that could result from a large development factor being applied to a small base of paid losses to calculate ultimate losses. We generally use this method for lines of business and contracts where there are limited historical paid losses.

● Bornhuetter-Ferguson Reported Loss Method. We estimate ultimate losses by modifying expected loss ratios to the extent reported losses experienced to date differ from what would have been expected to have been reported based upon the selected reported loss development pattern. This method avoids some of the distortions that could result from a large development factor being applied to a small base of reported losses to calculate ultimate losses. We generally use this method for lines of business and contracts where there are limited historical reported losses.

In addition, we supplement our analysis with other reserving methodologies that we deem to be relevant to specific contracts.

For each contract, we utilize each reserving methodology that our actuaries deem appropriate in order to calculate a best estimate, or point estimate, of reserves. We use various actuarial methods to provide data point estimates to aid us in our estimation of reasonable and adequate loss reserves. In setting our reserves, we do not select a range of estimates that may be subject to adjustment. We analyze reserves on a contract by contract basis and do not reserve based on aggregated product lines. Whether we use one methodology, a combination of methodologies or all methodologies depends upon the contract and the judgment of the actuaries responsible for the contract. We do not have a set weighting of the various methods we use. Certain of the methods we consider are more appropriate depending on the type and structure of the contract, how mature is the contract, and the duration of the expected paid losses on the contract. For example, the data estimation for contracts that are relatively new and therefore have little paid loss development is more appropriately considered using the Bornhuetter-Ferguson Reported Loss Method than a paid loss development method. 

Our aggregate reserves are the sum of the point estimate of all contracts. We perform a quarterly loss reserve analysis on each contract regardless of the line of business. This analysis may incorporate some or all of the information described above, using some or all of the methodologies described above. We generally calculate IBNR loss reserves for each contract by estimating the ultimate incurred losses at any point in time and subtracting cumulative paid claims and case reserves, which incorporate specific exposures, loss payment and reporting patterns and other relevant factors. Each quarter, our reserving committee, which is comprised of our Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Actuarial Officer, Assistant Controller and Reserving Actuary, meets to assess the adequacy of our loss reserves based on the reserve analysis and recommendations prepared by the Company’s actuaries. The reserving committee discusses each contract individually and approves or revises the stated reserves.

Additionally, we contract with a third-party actuarial firm to perform a quarterly reserve review and to annually opine on the reasonableness and adequacy of our loss reserves. We provide our external actuary with our pricing models, reserving analysis and any other data they may request. Additionally, the actuarial firm may inquire as to the various assumptions and estimates that we may use in our reserving analysis. The external actuarial firm independently creates its own reserving models based on industry loss information, augmented by specific client loss information that we may be asked to provide as well as its own independent assumptions and estimates. Based on various reserving methodologies that the actuarial firm considers appropriate, it creates a reserve estimate for each contract in our portfolio and provides us with an aggregate recommended loss reserve, including IBNR. If there are material differences between our booked reserves and the actuarial firm’s recommended reserves, we review the differences and make any necessary adjustments to the booked reserves. To date there have been no material differences resulting from the external actuary's reviews.

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Because of the uncertainties that surround our estimates of loss and loss adjustment expense reserves, we cannot be certain that ultimate loss and loss adjustment expense payments will not exceed our estimates, or be less than our estimates. If our estimated reserves are deficient, we would be required to increase loss reserves in the period in which such deficiencies are identified, which would cause a charge to our earnings and a reduction of our capital. Similarly, if our estimated reserves are excessive, we would decrease loss reserves in such period in which the excess is identified. By way of illustration, since we started underwriting operations in 2006, the reserve re-estimation process has resulted in the following effect on the prior year reserves and the corresponding inverse effect on net income (excluding any adjustments for additional premiums, reinstatement premiums, profit commissions or ceding commissions) during each of the years ended December 31:

Calendar Year		Effect on prior year reserves		Effect on net income
		($ in thousands)
2014	$	18,229 increase	$	18,229 decrease
2013		6,120 decrease		6,120 increase
2012		56,898 increase		56,898 decrease
2011		26,015 increase		26,015 decrease
2010		8,678 increase		8,678 decrease
2009		7,597 decrease		7,597 increase
2008		11,988 decrease		11,988 increase

Given the uncertainties involved in estimating ultimate reserves and since we reserve to a point estimate on an individual contract basis, our estimated reserves may be deficient or excessive. Historical development of estimated reserves is not an accurate reflection of future loss development. Additionally, external factors can influence prior year loss development. For example, changes in specific tort law which may cause ultimate loss awards to increase or decrease could have a material effect on our loss reserve development. We are unable to predict with accuracy the magnitude or direction that such external factors may have on our estimated loss reserves.

Acquisition Costs. We capitalize brokerage fees, ceding commissions, premium taxes and other direct expenses that relate directly to and vary with the writing of reinsurance contracts. Acquisition costs are deferred subject to ultimate recoverability and amortized over the related period of risk covered. Acquisition costs also include profit commissions. Certain contracts include provisions for profit commissions to be paid to the ceding insurer based upon the ultimate experience of the contracts. The methodology for calculating profit commissions is specific to the individual contracts and varies from contract to contract. Typically profit commissions are calculated and accrued based on the expected ultimate loss experience for such contracts and recorded when the expected loss experience indicates that a profit commission is probable under the contract terms. Profit commission reserves, if any, are included in reinsurance balances payable on the consolidated balance sheets.

Bonus Accruals. Under the Company's bonus program, each employee’s target bonus consists of two components: a discretionary component based on a qualitative assessment of each employee’s performance and a quantitative component based on the return on deployed equity (‘‘RODE”) for each underwriting year relating to reinsurance operations. The qualitative portion of an employee’s annual bonus is accrued at each employee's target amount, which may differ significantly from the actual amount awarded. The quantitative portion of each employee’s annual bonus is accrued based on the expected RODE for each underwriting year and adjusted for changes in the expected RODE and actual investment return each quarter until all losses are settled and the underwriting year is declared closed. The quantitative bonus is calculated and paid in annual installments between two to five years from the end of the fiscal year in which the business was underwritten. Any subsequent changes to the quantitative bonus are incorporated into the following open underwriting year. The Compensation Committee of our Board of Directors approves all quantitative bonuses prior to being paid. The expected RODE calculation utilizes proprietary models which require significant estimation and judgment. Actual RODE may vary significantly from the expected RODE and any adjustments to the quantitative bonus estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period in which they are determined. 

Share-Based Payments. We have established a stock incentive plan for directors, employees and consultants. U.S. GAAP requires us to recognize share-based compensation transactions using the fair value at the grant date of the award. We calculate the compensation for restricted stock awards and restricted stock units based on the price of the Company’s common shares at the grant date and recognize the expense over the vesting period. Share purchase options are expensed over the vesting period on a graded vesting basis. Determining the fair value of share option awards at the grant date requires significant estimation and judgment. We use an option-pricing model (Black-Scholes pricing model) to assist in the calculation of fair value. Effective from August 2014, the estimate of expected volatility was based on the daily historical trading data of our Class A ordinary shares from the date that these shares commenced trading (May 24, 2007) to the grant date.

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Prior to 2014, our shares had not been publicly traded for a sufficient length of time to reasonably estimate the expected volatility. Therefore, for share purchase options granted prior to 2014, we determined the expected volatility based primarily on the historical volatility of a peer group of companies in the reinsurance industry while also considering our own historical volatility in determining the expected volatility. We typically considered factors such as an entity's industry, stage of life cycle, size and financial leverage when selecting the peer group. Additionally, we used the full life of the option, ten years, as the estimated term of the option, and we have assumed that dividends will not be paid.

If actual results differ significantly from these estimates and assumptions, particularly in relation to our estimation of volatility which requires significant judgment, share-based compensation expense, primarily with respect to future share-based awards, could be materially impacted.

Results of Operations

Years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012

For the year ended December 31, 2014, we reported net income of $109.6 million, compared to net income of $225.7 million reported for the year ended December 31, 2013. Our investment portfolio reported net income of $122.6 million, or a return of 8.7%, for the year ended December 31, 2014, compared to net investment income of $218.1 million, or a return of 19.6%, for the same period in 2013. The underwriting income before general and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2014 was $11.6 million, compared to underwriting income of $37.5 million reported for the year ended December 31, 2013. The decrease in underwriting income was driven by adverse loss development on prior year contracts and to a lesser extent by lower volume of premiums earned during 2014 compared to 2013. By comparison, the 2013 underwriting income included a reversal of $12.4 million of loss reserves (net of reinstatement premiums) relating to super-storm Sandy due to revised loss estimates recorded during 2013. For the year ended December 31, 2014, our overall composite ratio was 96.7% compared to 93.2% for the year ended December 31, 2013. General and administrative expenses increased slightly for the year ended December 31, 2014 to $21.9 million from $21.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2013, primarily as a result of higher quantitative bonuses accrued relating to the 2012, 2013 and 2014 underwriting years which was partially offset by a gain on foreign exchange.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, we reported net income of $225.7 million, compared to net income of $14.6 million reported for the year ended December 31, 2012. Our investment portfolio reported net income of $218.1 million, or a return of 19.6%, for the year ended December 31, 2013, compared to net investment income of $78.9 million, or a return of 7.1%, for the same period in 2012. The underwriting income before general and administrative expenses for the year ended December 31, 2013 was $37.5 million, compared to underwriting loss of $42.6 million reported for the year ended December 31, 2012. The 2013 underwriting income included a reversal of $12.4 million of loss reserves (net of reinstatement premiums) relating to super-storm Sandy due to revised loss estimates recorded during 2013. Based on updated information received from the insurer during the first quarter of 2013, the insurer reported that claims relating to super-storm Sandy were no longer expected to breach into the coverage layer provided by our contract, and, therefore loss reserves were reversed. For the year ended December 31, 2013, our overall composite ratio was 93.2% compared to 109.1% for the year ended December 31, 2012. General and administrative expenses increased for the year ended December 31, 2013 to $21.7 million from $17.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2012, primarily as a result of higher personnel costs due to additional staff hired during 2013, as well as an increase in employee bonuses accrued due to favorable underwriting results.

Our primary financial goal is to increase the long-term value in fully diluted adjusted book value per share. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the fully diluted adjusted book value per share increased by $2.85 per share, or 10.2%, to $30.76 per share from $27.91 per share at December 31, 2013. For the year ended December 31, 2013, the fully diluted adjusted book value per share increased by $5.90 per share, or 26.8%, to $27.91 per share from $22.01 per share at December 31, 2012.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the basic adjusted book value per share increased by $2.78 per share, or 9.8%, to $31.17 per share from $28.39 per share at December 31, 2013. During the year ended December 31, 2013, basic adjusted book value per share increased by $6.00 per share, or 26.8%, to $28.39 per share from $22.39 per share at December 31, 2012.

Basic adjusted book value per share is a non-GAAP measure as it excludes the non-controlling interest in a joint venture from total equity. In addition, fully diluted adjusted book value per share is also a non-GAAP measure and represents basic adjusted book value per share combined with the impact from dilution of all in-the-money stock options and RSUs issued and outstanding as of any period end. We believe that long-term growth in fully diluted adjusted book value per share is the most relevant measure of our financial performance. In addition, fully diluted adjusted book value per share may be of benefit to our investors, shareholders and other interested parties to form a basis of comparison with other companies within the property and casualty reinsurance industry.

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The following table presents a reconciliation of the non-GAAP basic adjusted and fully diluted adjusted book value per share to the most comparable GAAP measure.

	December 31, 2014			December 31, 2013			December 31, 2012
	($ in thousands, except per share and share amounts)
Basic adjusted and fully diluted adjusted book value per share numerator:
Total equity (U.S. GAAP)	$	1,194,041		$	1,086,304		$	860,410
Less: Non-controlling interest in joint venture	(28,890		)	(34,709		)	(38,702		)
Basic adjusted book value per share numerator	1,165,151			1,051,595			821,708
Add: Proceeds from in-the-money stock options issued and outstanding	19,628			16,028			18,975
Fully diluted adjusted book value per share numerator	$	1,184,779		$	1,067,623		$	840,683
Basic adjusted and fully diluted adjusted book value per share denominator:
Ordinary shares issued and outstanding for basic adjusted book value per share denominator	37,384,543			37,046,814			36,702,128
Add: In-the-money stock options and RSUs issued and outstanding	1,131,917			1,210,731			1,491,290
Fully diluted adjusted book value per share denominator	38,516,460			38,257,545			38,193,418
Basic adjusted book value per share	$	31.17		$	28.39		$	22.39
Fully diluted adjusted book value per share	$	30.76		$	27.91		$	22.01

Gross Premiums Written

Details of gross premiums written are provided in the following table: 

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Frequency	$	295,861	91.3	%	$	512,096	95.6	%	$	405,480	94.8	%
Severity	28,162		8.7		23,606		4.4		22,364		5.2
Total	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702	100.0	%	$	427,844	100.0	%

As a result of our opportunistic underwriting philosophy, our reported quarterly premiums written may be volatile. Additionally, the composition of premiums written between frequency and severity business may vary from period to period depending on the specific market opportunities that we pursue.

Year ended December 31, 2014

During 2014, our gross premiums written decreased by $211.7 million, or 39.5%, primarily due to a private passenger motor contract that we terminated at the end of 2013 and due to some of our personal property contracts renewed during 2014 at a smaller share ceded to us. However, during the second half of 2014, we entered into several new relationships which offset some of the decrease in gross premiums written during 2014.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the frequency gross premiums written decreased by $216.2 million, or 42.2%, primarily relating to the motor line (physical damage and liability) and personal property line. The motor line gross premiums written decreased by $137.0 million relating to a private passenger motor contract that we terminated at the end of 2013 on a run-off basis. Additionally, our remaining private passenger motor contracts reported a decrease of $24.3 million in gross premiums written during 2014, compared to the same period in 2013, due to competitive pricing pressure on the underlying premiums written by the insurers. The personal property line frequency gross premiums written decreased by $78.3 million, primarily relating to a decrease in our share of the Florida homeowners' contracts which renewed during 2014, with the cedents

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choosing to retain a larger share on the renewed contracts compared to the expiring contracts. The decrease in frequency gross premiums written was partially offset by a number of new contracts entered into relating to the general liability, specialty health and workers' compensation lines of business.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the increase in severity gross premiums written of $4.6 million, or 19.3%, compared to the same period in 2013 was primarily due to new and renewed severity contracts written during 2014, including excess of loss and multi-line property and casualty retrocession contracts.

Year ended December 31, 2013

During 2013, we increased our gross premiums written by $107.9 million, or 25.2%, as we continued to grow our key areas of focus, principally, private passenger automobile insurance and Florida homeowners' insurance.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the frequency gross premiums written increased by $106.6 million, or 26.3%, primarily as a result of growth in our motor liability and personal property contracts, which increased by $75.5 million, or 42.4%, and $57.9 million, or 73.9%, respectively. The motor liability line includes both commercial motor contracts as well as private passenger automobile contracts (also referred to as non-standard automobile). The increase in motor liability line was primarily driven by an increase of $77.9 million in private passenger automobile premiums written due to an increase in the volume of underlying business written by our clients. The increase in motor liability premiums was partially offset by a decrease of $2.4 million in commercial motor premiums written as we canceled all of our remaining commercial motor related contracts during 2013.

The increase of $57.9 million in the frequency gross premiums written in our personal property line was entirely related to the Florida homeowners' contracts. During 2013, we added a new relationship to our existing portfolio of Florida homeowners' business which accounted for nearly half of the increase, while the remainder of the increase resulted from higher volume of written premiums assumed from our existing relationships.     

Additionally, for the year ended December 31, 2013, our professional, financial and specialty health lines of business generated increases in frequency gross premiums written of $11.6 million, $5.5 million and $3.2 million, respectively. The increase in professional line premiums written was related to solicitors' professional indemnity contracts, which renewed in 2013 at a higher premium volume than the expiring contracts. The increase in financial lines was a result of growth in the surety business on existing contracts, while the increase in specialty health lines was due to increases in the volume of the underlying U.S. employer health stop loss premiums on existing contracts.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the increases in frequency gross premiums written were offset by decreases in our workers' compensation and general liability lines, which decreased by $21.2 million and $23.6 million, respectively, primarily relating to the commutation of a multi-line contract and the termination of another multi-line contract, both of which included coverages for workers' compensation and general liability.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the increase in severity gross premiums written of $1.2 million, or 5.6%, compared to the same period in 2012 was primarily due to new severity contracts written during 2013. This increase was partially offset by the reversal of reinstatement premiums written of $3.5 million in conjunction with the reversal of loss reserves relating to super-storm Sandy during the first quarter of 2013. Reinstatement premiums and additional premiums based on contractual terms are recognized as written premiums at the time losses are recorded, and, if required, adjusted in the period in which changes in loss estimates are recorded.

Premiums Ceded

For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, retrocessional premiums ceded were $13.5 million, $2.8 million and $(24.3) million, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2014, our ceded premiums increased by $10.7 million partially relating to a retrocession contract purchased during 2014 in order to reduce our net exposure to natural peril catastrophe events, and partially relating to higher premiums on the inward contracts which are proportionally retroceded to entities affiliated with the ceding insurers.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the ceded premiums increased by $27.1 million primarily as a result of negative ceded premiums reported in 2012 due to retrocessional premiums returned upon the termination of certain contracts in 2012.

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Net Premiums Written

Details of net premiums written are provided in the following table: 

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Frequency	$	286,121	92.1	%	$	509,316	95.6	%	$	429,755	95.1	%
Severity	24,409		7.9		23,606		4.4		22,364		4.9
Total	$	310,530	100.0	%	$	532,922	100.0	%	$	452,119	100.0	%

The movement in net premiums written is the net result of the increases or decreases in gross premiums written and premiums ceded as explained in the preceding paragraphs.

Net Premiums Earned

Net premiums earned reflect the pro-rata inclusion into income of net premiums written over the risk period of the reinsurance contracts. Details of net premiums earned are provided in the following table: 

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Frequency	$	330,617	93.3	%	$	529,779	96.7	%	$	444,455	95.2	%
Severity	23,623		6.7		18,120		3.3		22,259		4.8
Total	$	354,240	100.0	%	$	547,899	100.0	%	$	466,714	100.0	%

Premiums relating to quota share contracts and excess of loss contracts are earned over the contract period in proportion to the period of protection. Similarly, incoming unearned premiums are earned in proportion to the remaining period of protection.

Year ended December 31,2014

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the frequency net premiums earned decreased by $199.2 million, or 37.6%, compared to the same period in 2013. The decrease was primarily attributed to a private passenger motor contract terminated at the end of 2013 which accounted for $159.5 million of the decrease. Additionally, the volume of premiums earned on other private passenger motor contracts decreased by $13.9 million compared to the same period in 2013. This decrease was due to a reduction in earned premiums reported during 2014 resulting from competitive pricing pressure on the underlying premiums written by the insurers. The personal line premiums earned decreased by $40.1 million during 2014 compared to the same period in 2013 primarily due to the explanation provided above under Gross Premiums Written. Other decreases in net premiums earned related to the workers' compensation line and the general liability line which decreased by $11.1 million and $2.4 million, respectively, primarily as a result of certain multi-line contracts terminated during 2013. The decreases in frequency net premiums earned were partially offset by net premiums earned on new contracts and increases in the volume of underlying business in other lines including $10.3 million relating to professional liability contracts and $3.0 million relating to employer health stop-loss contracts.

Premiums written relating to severity contracts are earned over the contract period in proportion to the period of protection. For the year ended December 31, 2014, severity net premiums earned increased $5.5 million, or 30.4%, compared to the same period in 2013. The increase is partially a function of the reversal of reinstatement premiums reflected in the comparative period and partially due to the new and renewed severity contracts entered into during 2014. The increases were partially offset by decreases due to catastrophe contracts expired but not renewed during 2014 due to inadequate pricing.

Year ended December 31, 2013

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the frequency net premiums earned increased by $85.3 million, or 19.2%, compared to the same period in 2012 primarily as a result of our motor liability, motor physical damage and personal property contracts, which increased net premiums earned by $89.9 million, $12.7 million and $16.6 million, respectively. The increase in

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motor liability line includes an increase of $101.7 million in private automobile premiums earned as a result of increased premium volume on the underlying business. The increase was partially offset by a decrease of $11.8 million in commercial motor premiums earned primarily due to a multi-line contract that was commuted during 2013. The increase in motor physical damage premiums earned was entirely related to the corresponding increase in the non-standard automobile contracts. The increase in personal property premiums earned related to Florida homeowners' insurance contracts for the same reasons discussed above for increase in premiums written.

The increases in frequency net premiums earned were offset by decreases in our general liability and workers' compensation premiums earned, which decreased by $27.0 million and $8.0 million, respectively, primarily because during 2013 we commuted a multi-line contract that included coverages for commercial motor, workers' compensation and general liability.

Premiums written relating to severity contracts are earned over the contract period in proportion to the period of protection. For the year ended December 31, 2013, severity net premiums earned decreased $4.1 million, or 18.6%, compared to the same period in 2012. The decrease was primarily due to the reversal of $2.9 million of reinstatement premiums earned in conjunction with the elimination of loss reserves relating to super-storm Sandy. During 2013, we entered into new severity contracts which contributed $11.5 million in earned premiums, which was partially offset by reductions in earned premiums from contracts that expired and were not renewed, and contracts renewed at lower premium amounts due to our participation being at lower risk exposure levels.

Losses Incurred

Losses incurred include losses paid and changes in loss reserves, including reserves for IBNR, net of actual and estimated loss recoverables. Details of net losses incurred are provided in the following table:

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013					2012
	($ in thousands)
Frequency	$	231,185	98.4	%	$	347,217		102.6	%	$	344,074	93.9	%
Severity	3,801		1.6		(8,724		)	(2.6	)	22,527		6.1
Total	$	234,986	100.0	%	$	338,493		100.0	%	$	366,601	100.0	%

We establish reserves for each contract based on estimates of the ultimate cost of all losses including losses incurred but not reported. These estimated ultimate reserves are based on reports received from ceding companies, industry data and historical experience as well as our own actuarial estimates. Quarterly, we review these estimates on a contract by contract basis and adjust as we deem appropriate to reflect our best estimates based on updated information and our internal actuarial estimates. We expect losses incurred on our severity business to be volatile depending on the number and magnitude of catastrophic events from year to year.

Year ended December 312014

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the net losses incurred on frequency contracts decreased by $116.0 million, or 33.4%. This decrease was primarily the net result of the 37.6% decrease in net premiums earned relating to a private passenger motor contract terminated at the end of 2013 and Florida homeowners' personal property contracts renewed at a lower assigned share. Additionally, the multi-line contracts terminated and commuted during 2013 also contributed to the decrease in incurred losses for the year ended December 31, 2014. The decreases were partially offset by an increase in losses incurred relating to adverse loss development on general liability, commercial motor, solicitors' professional liability and employers' medical stop-loss contracts (see Note 7 of the consolidated financial statements for details).

Net losses incurred as a percentage of net premiums earned (i.e. the loss ratio) fluctuates based on the mix of business, and the favorable or adverse development of our larger contracts. For the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, the overall loss ratios for our frequency business were 69.9% and 65.5%, respectively. The higher loss ratio for the year ended December 31, 2014 was due to adverse loss development relating to prior period general liability, commercial motor, solicitors' professional liability and employers' medical stop-loss. Additionally, the loss ratio on the motor line was also higher primarily due to current year private passenger motor contracts reporting higher expected loss ratios compared to the prior year contracts. The increase in the loss ratio for the year ended December 31, 2014 was partially offset by a lower loss ratio for the general liability line due to a decrease in the amount of adverse loss development during 2014 compared to the adverse loss development during 2013.

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For the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, the loss ratios for our severity business were 16.1% and (48.1)%, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2014 our severity business was not impacted by any major catastrophe events. The net losses incurred on severity contracts of $3.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2014, primarily related to attritional loss reserves on certain excess of loss contracts. The negative loss ratio of (48.1)% for the comparable year ended December 31, 2013, was due to the reversal of loss reserves relating to super-storm Sandy. Excluding the effect of that loss reserve reversal (and the corresponding reversal of reinstatement premiums), the severity loss ratio for the year ended December 31, 2013 was 29.9% which included a $4.0 million increase in loss reserves on a casualty clash contract.

Year ended December 31, 2013

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the net losses incurred on frequency contracts increased by $3.1 million, or 0.9%. This increase is the net result of the 19.2% increase in earned premiums, partially offset by the decrease in loss reserves primarily related to commercial motor contracts currently in run off. For the year ended December 31, 2013, the incurred losses relating to commercial motor contracts were negative $2.1 million compared to $53.2 million in 2012. During 2012, we had increased the loss reserves relating to these contracts based on loss data, which had indicated adverse loss development due to several large losses and overall higher settlement amounts expected on open claims. For the year ended December 31, 2013, the incurred losses on these contracts decreased as we reversed some of the loss reserves due to favorable loss development and due to commutation of a multi-line contract during 2013. The commuted multi-line contract also included coverage for general liability and workers' compensation which also contributed to the decrease in loss reserves.

Net losses incurred as a percentage of net premiums earned (i.e. loss ratio) fluctuate based on the mix of business, and the favorable or adverse development of our larger contracts. For the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, the overall loss ratios for our frequency business were 65.5% and 77.4%, respectively. The decrease in loss ratio was primarily due to the absence of any further adverse loss development on commercial motor liability contracts during 2013. The commercial motor liability contracts, in aggregate, reported favorable loss development during 2013. By comparison, the loss ratio had spiked in 2012 due to the increase in loss reserves booked during 2012 relating to the commercial motor liability contracts. The decrease in commercial motor liability loss ratios for the year ended December 31, 2013 were partially offset by adverse loss development relating to general liability contracts that are currently in run off.

For the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, the loss ratios for our severity business were (48.1)% and 101.2%, respectively. The net losses incurred on severity contracts of $(8.7) million for the year ended December 31, 2013, included $(15.0) million of loss reserves reversed during 2013 relating to super-storm Sandy. During 2012, the estimated loss from super-storm Sandy was reserved at the full limit of the excess of loss contract. However, during the first quarter of 2013, we received additional information from our client that indicated that the losses would not exceed the threshold of the layer of coverage provided under our contract. Excluding the effect of the super-storm Sandy related contract, the severity loss ratio for the year ended December 31, 2013 was 29.9% compared to 45.2% for the year ended December 31, 2012. The 2013 losses incurred on severity contracts included a $4.0 million increase in loss reserves on a casualty clash contract based on updated information from the client indicating higher estimated ground up losses which in turn would increase the losses in the layer covered by us. By comparison, the 2012 loss ratio included $9.0 million of loss reserves relating to the 2010 New Zealand earthquake. To a lesser extent, the severity loss ratio for the year ended December 31, 2013 included attritional loss reserves recorded on new severity contracts entered into during 2013.

Losses incurred can be further broken down into losses paid and changes in loss and loss adjustment expense reserves as follows:

	Year ended December 31
				2014									2013								2012
	Gross			Ceded			Net			Gross			Ceded			Net			Gross		Ceded			Net
	($ in thousands)
Losses paid (recovered)	$	303,272		$	(9,695	)	$	293,577		$	355,275		$	(7,386	)	$	347,889		$	264,630	$	(8,146	)	$	256,484
Change in loss and loss adjustment expense reserves	(63,897		)	5,306			(58,591		)	(27,019		)	17,623			(9,396		)	115,011		(4,894		)	110,117
Total	$	239,375		$	(4,389	)	$	234,986		$	328,256		$	10,237		$	338,493		$	379,641	$	(13,040	)	$	366,601

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For the year ended December 31, 2014, the change in ceded loss reserves of $5.3 million was primarily a result of a decrease in loss reserves recoverable driven by losses reported on retroceded contracts. For the year ended December 31, 2013, the change in ceded reserves of $17.6 million was primarily related to a commuted multi-line frequency contract and its related retroceded contract, which was also commuted simultaneously. For the year ended December 31, 2012, the increase in ceded reserves of $4.9 million was primarily related to the retrocession of multi-line frequency casualty contracts, which experienced adverse loss development during 2012.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, our net loss reserves on prior period contracts increased by $18.2 million, which primarily related to adverse loss development on general liability, commercial motor, solicitors' professional liability and employers' medical stop-loss businesses, partially offset by favorable loss development on private passenger automobile business. For the year ended December 31, 2013, our net loss reserves on prior period contracts decreased by $6.1 million, which primarily related to elimination of reserves relating to super-storm Sandy, favorable loss development on the private passenger automobile, commercial motor and personal property businesses, which was partially offset by adverse loss development on the general liability and casualty clash businesses. For the year ended December 31, 2012, our net loss reserves on prior period contracts increased by $56.9 million, which primarily related to the 2010 New Zealand earthquake losses and adverse loss development on the commercial motor, and personal property businesses. For further details on prior period loss developments please refer to Note 7 of the consolidated financial statements.

Acquisition Costs, Net

Acquisition costs represent the amortization of commission and brokerage expenses incurred on contracts written as well as profit commissions and other underwriting expenses which are expensed when incurred. Deferred acquisition costs are limited to the amount of commission and brokerage expenses that are expected to be recovered from future earned premiums and anticipated investment income. Details of acquisition costs are provided in the following table: 

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Frequency	$	103,008	95.7	%	$	168,109	97.8	%	$	139,598	97.8	%
Severity	4,657		4.3		3,763		2.2		3,123		2.2
Total	$	107,665	100.0	%	$	171,872	100.0	%	$	142,721	100.0	%

We expect that acquisition costs will be higher for frequency business than for severity business. Since acquisition costs directly relate to the premiums acquired, the volume of acquisition expenses generally vary in accordance with the amount of premiums earned. For the year ended December 31, 2014, our total acquisition costs decreased by 37.4% while our net earned premiums decreased by 35.3%. Since our acquisition costs decreased by a greater percentage than our earned premiums, it caused our reported total acquisition cost ratio to also decrease. Overall, our total acquisition cost ratios were 30.4%, 31.4%, and 30.6% for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Year ended December 312014

For the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, the acquisition cost ratios for frequency business were 31.2% and 31.7%, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2014, the slightly lower frequency acquisition cost ratio was related to a combination of decreases in specialty health, professional liability and workers' compensation lines, partially offset by increases in general liability and personal property lines. Acquisition cost ratio for the motor line remained unchanged due to the lower ceding commissions on the in-force private passenger contracts being entirely offset by an increase in sliding scale commission adjustments from the favorable loss development on prior period private passenger contracts.

For the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, the acquisition cost ratios for severity business were 19.7% and 20.8%, respectively. The acquisition cost ratio reported for the year ended 2013 was higher due to the impact of reinstatement premiums reversed during 2013 relating to super-storm Sandy with no corresponding reversal of commissions. Excluding the impact of this reversal, the 2013 acquisition cost ratio was 18.0%. The acquisition cost ratio on the new severity contracts written during 2014 was higher due to a change in mix of business. During the year ended 2014, we wrote several new severity quota share contracts which had higher ceding commissions than the catastrophe excess of loss contracts written during 2013.

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Year ended December 31, 2013

For the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, the acquisition cost ratios for frequency business were 31.7% and 31.4%, respectively. The slightly higher frequency acquisition cost ratio in 2013 was primarily related to higher commissions on private passenger automobile contracts that contain a sliding-scale commission structure which increases (or decreases) when the loss ratio decreases (or increases). Since we commuted a contract at a lower loss ratio, the commission was adjusted higher accordingly. To a lesser extent, the acquisition cost ratio for personal lines increased due to a new Florida homeowners' contract entered into during 2013, which is recorded at the higher end of the sliding scale commission rate due to a lower loss ratio estimate than our other personal lines contracts.

For the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, the severity acquisition cost ratios were 20.8% and 14.0%, respectively. For the year ended December 31, 2013, the higher severity acquisition cost ratio was partially related to the impact of the reinstatement premiums reversed during 2013 relating to super-storm Sandy with no corresponding reversal of commissions. Excluding the impact of this reversal, the 2013 acquisition cost ratio was 18.0%. Additionally, the higher acquisition cost ratio also related to higher commissions on new severity contracts written during 2013. Additionally, the 2012 acquisition cost ratio was lower as a result of the reinstatement premiums earned relating to super-storm Sandy.

General and Administrative Expenses

Our total general and administrative expenses for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, were $21.9 million, $21.7 million, and $17.5 million, respectively. General and administrative expenses for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 included $4.0 million, $3.8 million and $3.7 million, respectively, for the expensing of the fair value of stock options, RSUs and restricted stock granted to employees and directors.

Details of general and administrative expenses are provided in the following table:

	Year ended December 31
	2014		2013		2012
	($ in thousands)
Internal expenses	$	21,341	$	17,683	$	13,105
Corporate expenses	585		4,035		4,434
General and administrative expenses	$	21,926	$	21,718	$	17,539

Internal expenses include all general and administrative expenses except for corporate expenses. Corporate expenses include those expenses directly related to being a publicly listed entity and certain non-core operating expenses as well as non-investment related foreign exchange gains and losses.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the increase in internal expenses was primarily related to higher underwriting quantitative bonuses estimated relating to the 2012, 2013 and 2014 underwriting years, and to a lesser extent, related to information technology system upgrades and an increase in head-count from the comparative period in 2013.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the increase in internal expenses was primarily related to an increase of $3.9 million in personnel costs (including share based compensation) due to an increase in head-count from the comparative period in 2012 and higher accruals for underwriting related bonuses.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, corporate expenses included non-investment related foreign exchange gains of $2.6 million (2013: loss of $0.8 million, 2012: loss of $0.8 million).

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Net Investment Income

A summary of our net investment income is as follows:

	Year ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Realized gains	$	353,264		$	141,976		$	60,762
Change in unrealized gains	(172,402		)	154,791			67,569
Investment related foreign exchange gains (losses)	(1,684		)	19,305			3,682
Interest and dividend income	31,422			22,265			21,131
Interest, dividend and other expenses	(38,892		)	(47,665		)	(38,545		)
Investment advisor compensation	(49,133		)	(72,532		)	(35,658		)
Net investment income	$	122,575		$	218,140		$	78,941

Investment returns relating to our investment portfolio managed by DME Advisors are calculated monthly and compounded to calculate the quarterly and annual returns. The resulting actual investment income may vary depending on cash flows into or out of the investment account.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, investment income, net of all fees and expenses, resulted in a gain of 8.7% on our investment portfolio. This compares to a gain of 19.6% and a gain of 7.1% reported for the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, included in the above table under interest, dividend and other expenses, was an impairment charge of $6.0 million related to a note receivable that was subsequently sold in 2014 at a gain of $4.5 million. The gain was included in the above table under realized gains for the year ended December 31, 2014.

We expect our investment income, including realized and unrealized gains (or losses), to fluctuate from period to period. Fluctuations in realized and unrealized gains (or losses) are a function of both the market performance of the securities held in our investment portfolio, and the timing of additions to and dispositions of securities in our investment portfolio. Our investment advisor uses its discretion over when a gain (or loss) is realized on a particular investment. We believe that net investment income, which includes both realized and unrealized gains (or losses), is the best way to assess our investment performance, rather than analyzing the realized gains (or losses) and unrealized gains (or losses) separately.

For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the gross investment returns on our investment portfolio managed by DME Advisors (excluding investment advisor performance allocation) were 10.8%, 24.6% and 9.0%, respectively, and were comprised of the following:

	Year ended December 31
	2014		2013		2012
Long portfolio gains (losses)	17.8	%	41.2	%	21.6	%
Short portfolio gains (losses)	(4.2	)%	(17.0	)%	(6.3	)%
Macro gains (losses)	(1.1	)%	2.2	%	(4.6	)%
Other income and expenses	(1.7	)%	(1.8	)%	(1.7	)%
Gross investment return	10.8	%	24.6	%	9.0	%

For the year ended December 31, 2014, included in investment advisor compensation was $20.6 million (2013: $18.3 million, 2012: $16.9 million) relating to management fees paid to DME Advisors and $28.5 million (2013: $54.2 million, 2012: $18.8 million) relating to performance allocation to DME in accordance with the investment advisory agreement.

Our investment advisor, DME Advisors, and its affiliates manage and expect to manage other client accounts besides ours, some of which have investment objectives similar to ours. To comply with Regulation FD, our investment returns are posted on our website on a monthly basis. Additionally, our website (www.greenlightre.ky) provides the names of the largest disclosed long positions in our investment portfolio as of the last business day of the month of the relevant posting, as well as

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information on our long and short exposures. Although DME Advisors discloses all investment positions to us, it may choose not to disclose certain positions to its clients in order to protect its investment strategy. Therefore, we present on our website the largest long positions and exposure information as disclosed by DME Advisors or its affiliates to their other clients.  

Income Taxes

We are not obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. We have been granted an exemption by the Governor-In-Cabinet from any income taxes that may be imposed in the Cayman Islands for a period of 20 years, expiring on February 1, 2025.

GRIL is incorporated in Ireland and, therefore, is subject to the Irish corporation tax. GRIL is expected to be taxed at a rate of 12.5% on its taxable trading income, and 25% on its non-trading income, if any.

Verdant is incorporated in Delaware and, therefore, is subject to taxes in accordance with the U.S. federal rates and regulations prescribed by the Internal Revenue Service. Verdant’s taxable income is expected to be taxed at a rate of 35%.

As of December 31, 2014, a deferred tax asset of $0.03 million (2013: $0.05 million) resulting solely from the temporary differences in recognition of expenses for tax purposes was included in other assets on the consolidated balance sheets. As of December 31, 2014, an accrual for current taxes recoverable of $0.8 million (2013: payable of $0.3 million) was recorded on the consolidated balance sheets. Based on the timing of the reversal of the temporary differences and likelihood of generating sufficient taxable income to realize the future tax benefit, management believes it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset will be fully realized in the future and therefore no valuation allowance has been recorded. The Company has not taken any tax positions that management believes are subject to uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact to the Company, GRIL or Verdant.

Ratio Analysis

Due to the opportunistic and customized nature of our underwriting operations, we expect to report different loss and expense ratios in both our frequency and severity businesses from period to period.

The following table provides the ratios: 

	Year ended December 31
			2014						2013						2012
	Frequency		Severity		Total		Frequency		Severity		Total		Frequency		Severity		Total
Loss ratio	69.9	%	16.1	%	66.3	%	65.5	%	(48.1	)%	61.8	%	77.4	%	101.2	%	78.5	%
Acquisition cost ratio	31.2	%	19.7	%	30.4	%	31.7	%	20.8	%	31.4	%	31.4	%	14.0	%	30.6	%
Composite ratio	101.1	%	35.8	%	96.7	%	97.2	%	(27.3	)%	93.2	%	108.8	%	115.2	%	109.1	%
Internal expense ratio					6.0	%					3.2	%					2.8	%
Corporate expense ratio					0.2	%					0.7	%					1.0	%
Combined ratio					102.9	%					97.1	%					112.9	%

The loss ratio is calculated by dividing net loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred by net premiums earned. We expect that the loss ratio will be volatile for our severity business and may exceed that of our frequency business in certain periods. Given that we opportunistically underwrite a concentrated portfolio across several lines of business that have varying expected loss ratios, we can expect there to be significant annual variations in the loss ratios reported from our frequency business. In addition, the loss ratios for both frequency and severity business can vary depending on the mix of the lines of business written.

The acquisition cost ratio is calculated by dividing net acquisition costs by net premiums earned. This ratio demonstrates the higher acquisition costs incurred for our frequency business than for our severity business.

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The composite ratio is the ratio of underwriting losses incurred, loss adjustment expenses and acquisition costs, excluding general and administrative expenses, to net premiums earned. Similar to the loss ratio, we expect that this ratio will be more volatile for our severity business depending on loss activity in any particular period.

The internal expense ratio is the ratio of general and administrative expenses, excluding any corporate expenses, to net premiums earned.

The corporate expense ratio is the ratio of corporate expenses to net premiums earned. Corporate expenses include expenses relating to GLRE being a publicly listed entity and certain non-core operating expenses as well as non-investment related foreign exchange gains or losses.

The combined ratio is the sum of the composite ratio, the internal expense ratio and the corporate expense ratio. The combined ratio measures the total profitability of our underwriting operations and does not take net investment income or loss into account. Given the nature of our opportunistic underwriting strategy, we expect that our combined ratio may also be volatile from period to period.

Financial Condition

Investments, Financial Contracts Receivable, Financial Contracts Payable and Due to Prime Brokers

Our long investments and financial contracts receivable reported in the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2014, were $1,478.1 million compared to $1,497.7 million as of December 31, 2013, a decrease of $19.6 million, or 1.3%. The decrease primarily related to financial contracts receivable, partially offset by the purchases of gold bullion and corporate and sovereign debt securities during the year ended December 31, 2014. Financial contracts receivable as of December 31, 2014decreased by $56.9 million, or 54.7%, compared to December 31, 2013, primarily related to decreases in the total return equity swaps, as certain equity swaps were disposed during 2014, and partially due to decreases in the market prices of the underlying equities during 2014. As of December 31, 2014, our exposure to long investments decreased to 105.8%, compared to 123.7% as of December 31, 2013, while our exposure to short investments decreased to 66.9%, compared to 69.8% as of December 31, 2013, as we decreased our margin leverage and reduced the number and size of short positions in our portfolio. This exposure analysis is conducted on a notional basis and does not include gold, CDS, sovereign debt, cash, foreign currency positions, interest rate options and other macro positions. 

Financial contracts payable as of December 31, 2014increased by $25.7 million, or 136.5%, compared to December 31, 2013, primarily due to an increase in total return equity swaps payable resulting from decreases in the market prices of the underlying equities during 2014.

From time to time, we incur indebtedness to our prime brokers to implement our investment strategy in accordance with our investment guidelines. As of December 31, 2014, we had borrowed $76.1 million (2013: $112.5 million) from our prime brokers in order to purchase investment securities. In accordance with our current investment guidelines, DME Advisors may use margin leverage up to 15% for Greenlight Re and up to 5% for GRIL for extended time periods and an aggregate of 30% for Greenlight Re and 20% for GRIL for periods not exceeding 30 days. At December 31, 2014, the margin borrowing from prime brokers for our investment portfolio was within these guidelines. The decrease in amounts borrowed from prime brokers for investing was consistent with the decrease in our exposure to long and short investments during the year ended December 31, 2014. In addition, as of December 31, 2014, we had borrowed $135.0 million (2013: $202.2 million) under term margin agreements from prime brokers to provide collateral for some of our letters of credit outstanding whereby we pledge certain investment securities to borrow cash from the prime brokers.

Our investment portfolio, including any derivatives, is valued at fair value and any unrealized gains or losses are reflected in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income. As of December 31, 2014, 83.9% (2013: 85.9%) of our investment portfolio (excluding restricted and unrestricted cash and cash equivalents) was comprised of investments valued based on quoted prices in actively traded markets (Level 1), 14.5% (2013: 12.3%) was comprised of securities valued based on observable inputs other than quoted prices (Level 2) and 1.6% (2013: 1.8%) was comprised of securities valued based on non-observable inputs (Level 3).

In determining whether a market for a financial instrument is active or inactive, we obtain information from DME Advisors, based on feedback it receives from executing brokers, market makers, analysts and traders to assess the level of market activity and available liquidity for any given financial instrument. Where a financial instrument is valued based on broker quotes, DME Advisors requests multiple quotes. The ultimate value is based on an average of the quotes obtained. Broker quoted prices are generally not adjusted in determining the ultimate values and are obtained with the expectation of the quotes being binding. As of December 31, 2014, $316.4 million (2013: $222.6 million) of our investments

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(longs, shorts and derivatives) were valued based on broker quotes, of which $315.7 million (2013: $218.8 million) were based on broker quotes that utilized observable market information and classified as Level 2 fair value measurements, and $0.7 million (2013: $3.8 million) were based on broker quotes that utilized non-observable inputs and classified as Level 3 fair value measurements.

During the year ended December 31, 2014, equity securities with a fair value of $4.0 million, on the date of transfer, were transferred out of Level 3 classification. During the year ended December 31, 2014, $14.4 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer were transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 classification. Details regarding the transfers and reconciliation of Level 3 investments are presented in Note 3 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements. No other transfers into or out of Level 3 took place during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Non-observable inputs used by our investment advisor include discounted cash flow models for valuing certain corporate debt instruments. In addition, other non-observable inputs include the use of investment manager statements and management estimates based on third party appraisals of underlying assets for valuing private equity investments. 

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents; Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased

As of December 31, 2014, our securities sold, not yet purchased decreased by $21.0 million, or 1.9%, to $1,090.7 million from $1,111.7 million at December 31, 2013, as we reduced the number and size of short positions and decreased the short exposure in our portfolio from 69.8% to 66.9%. As of December 31, 2014, the restricted cash included $1,090.7 million relating to collateral for securities sold, not yet purchased compared to $1,111.7 million as of December 31, 2013.

Overall our restricted cash decreased by $37.2 million, or 2.8%, from $1,334.1 million to $1,296.9 million, primarily as a result of needing less collateral to support the securities sold, not yet purchased and as a result of a decrease of $67.3 million in restricted cash relating to our letters of credit outstanding. This decrease was partially offset by an increase of $51.1 million in cash collateral held by derivative counterparties.

Unlike long investments, short sales theoretically involve unlimited loss potential since there is no limit as to how high the market price of a security may rise. While it is not possible to list all of the reasons why a loss on a short sale may occur, a loss on a short sale may be caused by one or more of the following factors:

• Fluctuations in the share price due to an overall positive investment market;

• Sudden unexpected changes in the underlying business model of the issuer;

• Changes in laws and regulations relating to short sales;

• Press releases and earnings guidance issued by the issuer;

• A merger or acquisition of the issuer at a price in excess of the current share price;

• The shares of the issuer becoming difficult to borrow; or

• A short squeeze.

Given the various scenarios under which a loss may occur on a short sale, it is not possible to quantify the risk and uncertainty of loss relating to short sales. However, DME Advisors typically performs a detailed analysis prior to entering into a short sale. Thereafter, the investment is routinely monitored by DME Advisors. As of December 31, 2014, Greenlight Re's investment guidelines limit any single investment from constituting more than 20% of the portfolio (10% for GRIL's portfolio) at any given time, hence limiting the potential adverse impact on our results of operations and financial position.

Reinsurance Balances Receivable; Deferred Acquisition Costs, Net

At December 31, 2014, reinsurance balances receivable were $151.2 million compared to $167.3 million as of December 31, 2013, a decrease of $16.2 million, or 9.7%. The decrease in the reinsurance balances receivable was primarily attributable to the decrease in premiums written during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Included in reinsurance balance receivable were $10.3 million of ceding commissions due from a ceding insurer and $6.8 million from its affiliated retrocessionaire that were past due. See Note 8 and Note 17 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for details.

At December 31, 2014, deferred acquisition costs (net of retrocession) decreased by $17.4 million, or 33.5%, compared to December 31, 2013. The decrease was primarily due to the corresponding decrease in unearned premium reserves which decreased by $44.3 million, or 25.6%, during the same period. We evaluate the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs by determining if the sum of future earned premiums and anticipated investment income is greater than the expected future claims and expenses. If a loss is probable on the unexpired portion of policies in force, a premium deficiency loss is

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recognized. As of December 31, 2014, we believe that the deferred acquisition costs were fully recoverable and no premium deficiency loss was recorded.

Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves; Loss and Loss Adjustment Expenses Recoverable

Reserves for loss and loss adjustment expenses were comprised of the following table: 

	December 31, 2014						December 31, 2013
	Case Reserves		IBNR		Total		Case Reserves		IBNR		Total
	($ in thousands)
Frequency	$	103,357	$	124,173	$	227,530	$	122,042	$	167,986	$	290,028
Severity	13,692		23,021		36,713		15,783		24,083		39,866
Total	$	117,049	$	147,194	$	264,243	$	137,825	$	192,069	$	329,894

The decrease in frequency loss reserves as of December 31, 2014 was partially due to the decrease in premiums earned for the year ended December 31, 2014 and partially due to losses paid on contracts currently in run-off. See "Note 7. Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves" for a summary of changes in outstanding loss and loss adjustment expense reserves. The decrease in severity loss reserves as of December 31, 2014, was principally a result of losses paid during the 2014 year for which loss reserves had been established in the prior year.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable decreased by $5.3 million, or 31.5%, principally due to the losses recovered on retrocession contracts exceeding the loss reserves added on retrocession contracts during the year ended 2014.

For most of the contracts written as of December 31, 2014, our risk exposure is limited by defined limits of liability. Once the loss limit for a contract has been reached, we have no further exposure to additional losses from that contract. However, certain contracts, particularly quota share contracts that relate to first dollar exposure, may not contain aggregate limits.

Our severity business includes contracts that contain or may contain natural peril loss exposure. As of January 1, 2015, our maximum aggregate loss exposure to any series of natural peril events was $216.2 million. For purposes of the preceding sentence, aggregate loss exposure is net of any retrocession and is equal to the difference between the aggregate limits available in the contracts that contain natural peril exposure minus estimated reinstatement or additional premiums, if any, for the same contracts. We categorize peak zones as: United States, Canada and the Caribbean, Europe, Japan and the rest of the world. The following table provides any single event loss exposure and aggregate loss exposure information for the peak zones of our natural peril coverage as of the date of this filing: 

Zone	Single Event Loss	Aggregate Loss
	($ in thousands)
United States, Canada and the Caribbean	162,516	216,222
Europe	119,003	118,321
Japan	119,003	118,321
Rest of the world	119,003	118,321
Maximum Aggregate	162,516	216,222

Funds Withheld

For the year ended December 31, 2014, funds withheld decreased by $3.6 million, or 35.2%, primarily as a result of funds withheld relating to a retroceded contract that were offset against the losses recoverable on that contract.

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Shareholders’ Equity

Total equity reported on the balance sheet, which includes non-controlling interest, increased by $107.7 million to $1,194.0 million as of December 31, 2014, compared to $1,086.3 million as of December 31, 2013. Retained earnings increased due to net income of $109.6 million reported for the year ended December 31, 2014, while the non-controlling interest decreased by $5.8 million primarily due to a net withdrawal of funds by DME from the joint venture during the year ended December 31, 2014. The increase in additional paid-in capital of $3.9 million related to stock compensation expense and from stock options exercised during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

General

Greenlight Capital Re is organized as a holding company with no operations of its own. As a holding company, Greenlight Capital Re has minimal continuing cash needs, most of which are related to the payment of administrative expenses. All of our underwriting operations are conducted through our wholly-owned reinsurance subsidiaries, Greenlight Re and GRIL, which underwrite risks associated with our property and casualty reinsurance programs. There are restrictions on Greenlight Re’s and GRIL’s ability to pay dividends which are described in more detail below. It is our current policy to retain earnings to support the growth of our business. We currently do not expect to pay dividends on our ordinary shares.

As of December 31, 2014, Greenlight Re and GRIL were each rated "A (Excellent)" with a stable outlook by A.M. Best. The ratings reflect A.M. Best’s opinion of our reinsurance subsidiaries’ financial strength, operating performance and ability to meet obligations and it is not an evaluation directed toward the protection of investors or a recommendation to buy, sell or hold our Class A ordinary shares. If A.M. Best downgrades our ratings below "A- (Excellent)" or withdraws our rating, we could be severely limited or prevented from writing any new reinsurance contracts, which would significantly and negatively affect our business. Insurer financial strength ratings are based upon factors relevant to policyholders and are not directed toward the protection of investors. Our A.M. Best ratings may be revised or revoked at the sole discretion of the rating agency. 

Sources and Uses of Funds

Our sources of funds consist primarily of premium receipts (net of brokerage and ceding commissions), investment income (net of advisory compensation and investment expenses), including realized gains, and other income. We use cash from our operations to pay losses and loss adjustment expenses, profit commissions and general and administrative expenses. Substantially all of our funds, including shareholders’ capital, net of funds required for cash liquidity purposes, are invested by DME Advisors in accordance with our investment guidelines. As of December 31, 2014, approximately 92% (December 31, 2013: 89%) of our long investments were comprised of publicly-traded equity securities and gold bullion which can be readily liquidated to meet current and future liabilities. As of December 31, 2014, the majority of our investments were valued based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets (Level 1). Given our value-oriented long and short investment strategy, if markets are distressed we would expect the liability of the short portfolio to decline. Any reduction in the liability would cause our need for restricted cash to decrease and thereby free up cash to be used for any purpose. Additionally, since the majority of our invested assets are liquid, even in distressed markets, we believe securities can be sold or covered to generate cash to pay claims. Since we classify our investments as "trading," we book all gains and losses (including unrealized gains and losses) on all our investments (including derivatives) as net investment income in our consolidated statements of income for each reporting period.     

For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the net cash used in operating activities was $133.7 million, $92.7 million and $50.6 million, respectively. Included in the net cash used in operating activities were investment related expenses (such as investment advisor compensation, and net interest and dividend expenses) of $56.6 million, $97.9 million and $53.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively. Excluding the investment related expenses from the net cash used in our operating activities, results in net cash primarily provided by (used in) our underwriting activities of $(77.1) million, $5.2 million and $2.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively. During the 2014 year, the use of cash for underwriting activities was primarily a result of losses paid in excess of the premiums collected (net of acquisition costs) due to decrease in premiums written during the year. Generally, in a given period if the premiums collected are sufficient to cover claim payments, we would generate cash from our underwriting activities. During the year ended December 31, 2014, we had a decrease in premiums written (and collected) while at the same time we continued to pay losses on contracts written in prior years. Due to the inherent nature of our underwriting portfolio, claims are often paid several months or even years after the premiums are collected. The cash generated from (used in) our underwriting activities, however, may be volatile from period to period depending on the underwriting opportunities available.

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We generated $142.0 million (2013: $74.0 million) from investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2014, mainly from the net sale of investments, partially offset by a decrease in funds borrowed from our prime brokers as we reduced our margin leverage. There were no significant cash flows related to financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2014 and 2013.

As of December 31, 2014, we believe we have sufficient cash flow from operating and investing activities to meet our foreseeable liquidity requirements. We believe that our future operational needs for liquidity can be readily fulfilled from the use of cash, funds generated from underwriting activities and investment income, including realized gains. As of December 31, 2014, we had no plans to issue debt and expect to fund our operations for the next twelve months from operating cash flow. However, we cannot provide assurances that in the future we will not incur indebtedness to implement our business strategy, pay claims or make acquisitions.

Although GLRE is not subject to any significant legal prohibitions on the payment of dividends, Greenlight Re and GRIL are each subject to regulatory minimum capital requirements and regulatory constraints that affect their ability to pay dividends to us. In addition, any dividend payment would have to be approved by the relevant regulatory authorities prior to payment. As of December 31, 2014, Greenlight Re and GRIL both exceeded the regulatory minimum capital requirements.  

Letters of Credit

As of December 31, 2014, neither Greenlight Re nor GRIL was licensed or admitted as a reinsurer in any jurisdiction other than the Cayman Islands and the European Economic Area, respectively. Because many jurisdictions do not permit domestic insurance companies to take credit on their statutory financial statements for loss recoveries or ceded unearned premiums unless appropriate measures are in place for reinsurance obtained from unlicensed or non-admitted insurers, we anticipate that all of our U.S. clients and some of our non-U.S. clients will require us to provide collateral through funds withheld, trust arrangements, letters of credit or a combination thereof.

As of December 31, 2014, we had four letter of credit facilities with an aggregate capacity of $760.0 million (2013: $760.0 million) with various financial institutions. See Note 8 of the accompanying consolidated financial statements for details on each of these facilities. As of December 31, 2014, an aggregate amount of $273.7 million (2013: $379.1 million) in letters of credit was issued under these facilities. Under these facilities, we provide collateral that may consist of equity securities or cash and cash equivalents. At December 31, 2014, total equity securities and cash and cash equivalents with a fair value in the aggregate of $302.6 million (2013: $410.3 million) were pledged as security against the letters of credit issued.

Each of the facilities contain customary events of default and restrictive covenants, including but not limited to, limitations on liens on collateral, transactions with affiliates, mergers and sales of assets, as well as solvency and maintenance of certain minimum pledged equity requirements, and restricts issuance of any debt without the consent of the letter of credit provider. Additionally, if an event of default exists, as defined in the letter of credit facilities, Greenlight Re would be prohibited from paying dividends to its parent company. The Company was in compliance with all the covenants of each of these facilities as of December 31, 2014.

Capital

Our capital structure currently consists entirely of equity issued in two separate classes of ordinary shares. We expect that the existing capital base and internally generated funds will be sufficient to implement our business strategy for the foreseeable future. Consequently, we do not presently anticipate that we will incur any material indebtedness in the ordinary course of our business other than temporary borrowing directly related to the management of our investment portfolio. However, in order to provide us with flexibility and timely access to public capital markets should we require additional capital for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions or other general corporate purposes, we have filed a Form S-3 registration statement, which expires in June 2015 unless renewed. We did not make any significant commitments for capital expenditures during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Our Board of Directors has adopted a share repurchase plan authorizing the Company to repurchase up to 2.0 million Class A ordinary shares or securities convertible into Class A ordinary shares in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions. The current share repurchase plan expires on June 30, 2015 unless renewed by the Board of Directors. The Company is not required to repurchase any of the Class A ordinary shares and the repurchase plan may be modified, suspended or terminated at the election of our Board of Directors at any time without prior notice. No Class A ordinary shares were repurchased by the Company during the year ended December 31, 2014.

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On April 28, 2010, our shareholders approved an amendment to our stock incentive plan to increase the number of Class A ordinary shares available for issuance from 2.0 million to 3.5 million. As of December 31, 2014, there were 803,558 Class A ordinary shares available for future issuance. 

Contractual Obligations and Commitments

The following table shows our aggregate contractual obligations as of December 31, 2014 by time period remaining: 

	Less than  1 year		1-3 years		3-5 years		More than  5 years		Total
	($ in thousands)
Operating lease obligations (1)	$	557	$	966	$	233	$	—	$	1,756
Specialist service agreement	750		300		—		—		1,050
Private equity and limited partnerships (2)	8,929		—		—		—		8,929
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves (3)	138,062		87,424		21,427		17,330		264,243
	$	148,298	$	88,690	$	21,660	$	17,330	$	275,978

(1)    Reflects our contractual obligations pursuant to the lease agreements as described below. 

(2)   As of December 31, 2014, we had made total commitments of $22.9 million in private investments of which we had invested $14.0 million, and our remaining commitments to these investments total $8.9 million. Given the nature of the private equity investments, we are unable to determine with any degree of accuracy as to when the commitments will be called. As such, for the purposes of the above table, we have assumed that all commitments with no fixed payment schedule will be made within one year. Under our investment guidelines, in effect as of the date hereof, no more than 10% of the assets in the investment portfolio may be held in private equity securities without specific approval from the Board of Directors. 

(3)    Due to the nature of our reinsurance operations, the amount and timing of the cash flows associated with our reinsurance contractual liabilities will fluctuate, perhaps materially, and, therefore, are highly uncertain.

As of December 31, 2014, $1,090.7 million of securities sold, not yet purchased, were secured by $1,090.7 million of restricted cash held by prime brokers to cover obligations relating to securities sold, not yet purchased. These amounts are not included in the contractual obligations table above because there is no maturity date for securities sold, not yet purchased, and their maturities are not set by any contract and as such their due dates cannot be estimated.

Greenlight Re has entered into lease agreements for office space in the Cayman Islands. The leases expire on June 30, 2018 and Greenlight Re has the option to renew the leases for a further five year term. Under the terms of the lease agreements, Greenlight Re is committed to annual rent payments ranging from $0.3 million at inception to $0.5 million at expiry. The minimum lease payment obligations are included in the above table under operating lease obligations and in Note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements.

GRIL has entered into a lease agreement for office space in Dublin, Ireland. Under the terms of this lease agreement, GRIL is committed to average annual rent payments denominated in Euros approximating €0.1 million until May 2016 (net of rent inducements), and adjusted to the prevailing market rates for each of the three subsequent five-year terms. GRIL has the option to terminate the lease agreement in 2016 and 2021. The minimum lease payment obligations are included in the above table under operating lease obligations and in Note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements.

The Company has entered into a service agreement with a specialist service provider for the provision of administration and support in developing and maintaining business relationships, reviewing and recommending programs and managing risks relating to certain specialty lines of business. The specialist service provider does not have any authority to bind the Company to any reinsurance contracts. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company has committed to quarterly payments to the specialist service provider. If the agreement is terminated, the Company is obligated to make minimum payments for twelve months starting on September 1 of the year in which the agreement is terminated, to ensure contracts to which the Company is bound are adequately administered by the specialist service provider. The minimum payments are included in the above table under specialist service agreement and in Note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements.

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On January 1, 2008, we entered into an agreement wherein the Company and DME Advisors agreed to create a joint venture for the purposes of managing certain jointly-held assets. This agreement was amended effective August 31, 2010 to include GRIL as a participant to the agreement. Effective January 1, 2014, the agreement was amended and restated to replace DME Advisors with DME Advisors, LLC ("DME") as the participant to the joint venture (the "venture agreement"). Simultaneously, the Company, its reinsurance subsidiaries and DME entered into a separate investment advisory agreement with DME Advisors (the "advisory agreement"). The term of the venture agreement and the advisory agreement is January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2016, with automatic three-year renewals unless 90 days prior to the end of the then current term, either DME notifies the other participants of its desire to terminate the venture agreement or any other participant notifies DME of its desire to withdraw from the venture agreement.

Pursuant to the venture agreement, we pay DME Advisors a monthly management fee of 0.125% on our share of the assets managed by DME Advisors and we provide DME a performance allocation equal to 20% of the net profit, calculated per annum, of the Company’s share of the capital account managed by DME Advisors, subject to a loss carry forward provision. The loss carry forward provision allows DME to earn a reduced performance allocation of 10% of profits in any year subsequent to the year in which the investment account incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an additional amount equal to 150% of the aggregate investment loss is earned. DME is not entitled to earn a performance allocation in a year in which the investment portfolio incurs a loss. For the year ended December 31, 2014, performance allocation of $28.5 million, was recorded in net investment income. For the year ended December 31, 2014, management fees of $20.6 million, were recorded in net investment income.

In February 2007, we entered into a service agreement with DME Advisors pursuant to which DME Advisors provides investor relations services to us for compensation of $5,000 per month plus expenses. The service agreement had an initial term of one year, and continues for sequential one-year periods until terminated by us or DME Advisors. Either party may terminate the service agreement for any reason with 30 days prior written notice to the other party.

Off-Balance Sheet Financing Arrangements

We have no obligations, assets or liabilities, other than those derivatives in our investment portfolio that are disclosed in the consolidated financial statements, which would be considered off-balance sheet arrangements. We do not participate in transactions that create relationships with unconsolidated entities or financial partnerships, often referred to as variable interest entities, which would have been established for the purpose of facilitating off-balance sheet arrangements. 

Effects of Inflation

We consider the effects of inflation in our pricing and when estimating loss and loss adjustment expense reserves. The actual effects of inflation on our results of operations cannot be accurately known until claims are ultimately settled. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, inflation had no significant impact on our revenues or net income. We do not believe that inflation has had or will have a material effect on our combined results of operations, except insofar as inflation may affect interest rates and the asset values in our investment portfolio.

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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

We believe we are principally exposed to the following types of market risk:

• equity price risk;

• commodity price risk;

• foreign currency risk;

• interest rate risk;

• credit risk; and

• political risk.

Equity Price Risk

As of December 31, 2014, our investment portfolio consisted of long and short equity securities, along with certain equity-based derivative instruments, the carrying values of which are primarily based on quoted market prices. Generally, market prices of common equity securities are subject to fluctuation, which could cause the amount to be realized upon the closing of the position to differ significantly from their current reported value. This risk is partly mitigated by the presence of both long and short equity securities. As of December 31, 2014, a 10% decline in the price of each of these listed equity securities and equity-based derivative instruments would result in a $54.1 million, or 3.8%, decline in the fair value of our total investment portfolio.

Computations of the prospective effects of hypothetical equity price changes are based on numerous assumptions, including the maintenance of the existing level and composition of investment securities and should not be relied on as indicative of future results.

Commodity Price Risk

Generally, market prices of commodities are subject to fluctuation. Our investment portfolio periodically includes long or short investments in commodities or in derivative securities directly impacted by fluctuations in the prices of commodities. As of December 31, 2014, our investment portfolio included exposure to changes in gold prices, through ownership of physical gold. As of December 31, 2014, a 10% decline in the price of gold would have resulted in a $9.7 million, or 0.7%, decline in the fair value of our total investment portfolio. We, along with our investment advisor, periodically monitor our exposure to any other commodity price fluctuations and generally do not expect changes in commodity prices to have a materially adverse impact on our operations.

Foreign Currency Risk

Certain of our reinsurance contracts provide that ultimate losses may be payable or calculated in foreign currencies depending on the country of original loss. Foreign currency exchange rate risk exists to the extent that there is an increase in the exchange rate of the foreign currency in which losses are ultimately owed. As of December 31, 2014, we had loss reserves (case reserves and IBNR) reported in foreign currencies of £27.5 million. As of December 31, 2014, a 10% decrease in the U.S. dollar against the GBP (all else being constant) would result in additional estimated loss reserves of $4.3 million and a corresponding foreign exchange loss. Alternatively, a 10% increase in the U.S dollar against the GBP, would result in a reduction of $4.3 million in our recorded loss reserves and a corresponding foreign exchange gain.

While we do not seek to specifically match our liabilities under reinsurance policies that are payable in foreign currencies with investments denominated in such currencies, we continually monitor our exposure to potential foreign currency losses and would consider the use of forward foreign currency exchange contracts in an effort to mitigate against adverse foreign currency movements.

We are also exposed to foreign currency risk through cash, forwards, options and investments in securities denominated in foreign currencies. Foreign currency exchange rate risk is the potential for adverse changes in the U.S. dollar value of

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investments (long and short), speculative foreign currency options and cash positions due to a change in the exchange rate of the foreign currency in which cash and financial instruments are denominated. As of December 31, 2014, some of our currency exposure resulting from foreign denominated securities (longs and shorts) was reduced by offsetting cash balances denominated in the corresponding foreign currencies. 

The following table summarizes the net impact that a 10% increase and decrease in the value of the U.S. dollar against select foreign currencies would have on the value of our investment portfolio as of December 31, 2014: 

	10% increase in U.S. dollar					10% decrease in U.S. dollar
Foreign Currency	Change in fair value			Change in fair value as % of investment portfolio		Change in fair value			Change in fair value as % of investment portfolio
	($ in thousands)
Argentine Peso	$	(2,069	)	(0.1	)%	$	2,069		0.1	%
Brazilian Real	1,625			0.1		(1,625		)	(0.1	)
British Pound	(2,812		)	(0.2	)	2,812			0.2
Chinese Yuan	32,810			2.3		(3,243		)	(0.2	)
Japanese Yen	22,083			1.6		(19,879		)	(1.4	)
Other	768			0.1		(768		)	(0.1	)
Total	$	52,405		3.8	%	$	(20,634	)	(1.5	)%

Computations of the prospective effects of hypothetical currency price changes are based on numerous assumptions, including the maintenance of the existing level and composition of investment securities denominated in foreign currencies and related foreign currency instruments, and should not be relied on as indicative of future results.

Interest Rate Risk

Our investment portfolio includes interest rate sensitive securities, such as corporate and sovereign debt instruments, CDS, interest rate options and futures. The primary market risk exposure for any debt instrument is interest rate risk. As interest rates rise, the market value of our long fixed-income portfolio falls, and the opposite is also true as interest rates fall. Additionally, some of our derivative investments may also be credit sensitive and their value may indirectly fluctuate with changes in interest rates. 

The following table summarizes the impact that a 100 basis point increase or decrease in interest rates would have on the value of our investment portfolio as of December 31, 2014:

	100 basis point increase in interest rates					100 basis point decrease in interest rates
	Change in fair value			Change in fair value as % of investment portfolio		Change in fair value			Change in fair value as % of investment portfolio
	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	15,445		1.09	%	$	(16,652	)	(1.17	)%
Credit default swaps	(15		)	—		15			—
Net exposure to interest rate risk	$	15,430		1.09	%	$	(16,637	)	(1.17	)%

For the purposes of the above table, the hypothetical impact of changes in interest rates on debt instruments, CDS, interest rate options and futures was determined based on the interest rates applicable to each instrument individually. We periodically monitor our net exposure to interest rate risk and generally do not expect changes in interest rates to have a materially adverse impact on our operations.

Credit Risk

We are exposed to credit risk primarily from the possibility that counterparties may default on their obligations to us. The amount of the maximum exposure to credit risk is indicated by the carrying value of our financial assets including notes

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receivable. Our notes receivable are due from parties whom we consider our strategic partners and we evaluate their financial condition and monitor our exposure to them on a regular basis. We are also exposed to credit risk from our business partners and clients relating to balances receivable under the reinsurance contracts, including premiums receivable, losses recoverable and commission adjustments recoverable. We monitor the collectability of these balances on a regular basis.

In addition, the securities, commodities, and cash in our investment portfolio are held with several prime brokers, subjecting us to the related credit risk from the possibility that one or more of them may default on their obligations to us. We closely and regularly monitor our concentration of credit risk with each prime broker and if necessary, transfer cash or securities between prime brokers to diversify and mitigate our credit risk. Other than our investment in derivative contracts and corporate and sovereign debt, and the fact that our investments and majority of cash balances are held by prime brokers on our behalf, we have no other significant concentrations of credit risk. 

Political Risk

We are exposed to political risk to the extent that we underwrite business from entities located in foreign markets and to the extent that DME Advisors, on our behalf and subject to our investment guidelines, trades securities that are listed on various U.S. and foreign exchanges and markets. The governments in any of these jurisdictions could impose restrictions, regulations or other measures, which may have a material adverse impact on our underwriting operations and investment strategy. We currently do not write political risk coverage on our insurance contracts; however, changes in government laws and regulations may impact our underwriting operations (see "Item 1A. Risk Factors"). 

ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA

Information with respect to this Item is set forth under Part IV Item 15.

ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE

There have been no disagreements with any accountants regarding accounting and financial disclosure for the period since the Company’s incorporation on July 13, 2004 through the date of this filing.

ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

As required by Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 of the Exchange Act, the Company has evaluated, with the participation of management, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer, the effectiveness of its disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in such rules) as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based on such evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures are effective to ensure that information required to be disclosed by the Company in reports prepared in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified by the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by an issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to the issuer’s management, including its principal executive officer and principal financial officer, or persons performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, does not expect that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures will prevent all errors and all frauds. A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. Further, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, within the Company have been detected. These inherent limitations include the realities that judgments in decision-making can be faulty and that breakdowns can occur because of simple error or mistake.

Additionally, controls can be circumvented by the individual acts of some persons, by collusion of two or more people, or by management override of the control. The design of any system of controls also is based, in part, upon certain assumptions

70

about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions; over time, controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. Because of the inherent limitations in a cost-effective control system, misstatements due to error or fraud may occur and not be detected.  

Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting during the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2014 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Company continues to review its disclosure controls and procedures, including its internal controls over financial reporting, and may from time to time make changes aimed at enhancing their effectiveness and to ensure that the Company’s systems evolve with its business.

Management Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Our internal control system is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) and includes those policies and procedures that:

● pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the Company;

● provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and that receipts and expenditures of the Company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the Company; and

● provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of the Company’s assets that could have a material effect on its financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, a system of internal control over financial reporting can provide only reasonable assurance and may not prevent or detect misstatements. Further, because of changes in conditions, effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting may vary over time. Our system contains self-monitoring mechanisms, and actions are taken to correct deficiencies as they are identified.

Our management conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the system of internal control over financial reporting based on the framework in the Internal Control — Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (the 2013 framework). Based on this evaluation, our management concluded that our system of internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2014. The effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting has been audited by BDO USA, LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report, which is included herein.

ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION

None

PART III

ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

This item is omitted because a definitive proxy statement that involves the election of directors will be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after the close of the fiscal year pursuant to Regulation 14A, which information required by this item set forth in the proxy statement is incorporated by reference.

71

ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

This item is omitted because a definitive proxy statement that involves the election of directors will be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after the close of the fiscal year pursuant to Regulation 14A, which information required by this item set forth in the proxy statement is incorporated by reference.

ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

This item is omitted because a definitive proxy statement that involves the election of directors will be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after the close of the fiscal year pursuant to Regulation 14A, which information required by this item set forth in the proxy statement is incorporated by reference.

ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

This item is omitted because a definitive proxy statement that involves the election of directors will be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after the close of the fiscal year pursuant to Regulation 14A, which information required by this item set forth in the proxy statement is incorporated by reference.

ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES

This item is omitted because a definitive proxy statement that involves the election of directors will be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after the close of the fiscal year pursuant to Regulation 14A, which information required by this item set forth in the proxy statement is incorporated by reference.

72

PART IV

ITEM 15. EXHIBITS AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES

		Page
(a)(1)	Financial Statements
	Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (on internal control over financial reporting)		F-1
	Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (on the consolidated financial statements)		F-2
	Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2014 and 2013		F-3
	Consolidated Statements of Income for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012		F-4
	Consolidated Statements of Shareholders' Equity for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012		F-5
	Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012		F-6
	Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements		F-7
(a)(2)	Financial Statement Schedules
	Schedule I – Summary of Investments — Other Than Investments in Related Parties		F-39
	Schedule II – Condensed Financial Information of Registrant		F-40
	Schedule III – Supplementary Insurance Information		F-42
	Schedule IV – Supplementary Reinsurance Information		F-42
(a)(3)	The exhibits required to be filed by this Item 15. are set forth in the Exhibit Index accompanying this report.

73

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

	GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.
By:	/s/ Barton Hedges
	Barton Hedges Chief Executive Officer
	February 17, 2015

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

/s/ DAVID M. EINHORN	/s/ LEONARD GOLDBERG
David M. Einhorn Director	Leonard Goldberg Director
February 17, 2015	February 17, 2015
/s/ FRANK D. LACKNER	/s/ ALAN BROOKS
Frank D. Lackner Director	Alan Brooks Director
February 17, 2015	February 17, 2015
/s/ IAN ISAACS	/s/ JOSEPH P. PLATT
Ian Isaacs Director	Joseph P. Platt Director
February 17, 2015	February 17, 2015
/s/ TIM COURTIS	/s/ BRYAN MURPHY
Tim Courtis Chief Financial Officer (principal financial and accounting officer)	Bryan Murphy Director
February 17, 2015	February 17, 2015
/s/ BARTON HEDGES
Barton Hedges Director & Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer)
February 17, 2015

74

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Board of Directors and Shareholders

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

We have audited Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2014, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (the COSO criteria). Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in the accompanying “Item 9A, Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting”. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audit also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

In our opinion, Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2014, based on the COSO criteria.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), the consolidated balance sheets of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. as of December 31, 2014 and 2013, and the related consolidated statements of income, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2014, and our report dated February 17, 2015 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

/s/ BDO USA, LLP

Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

February 17, 2015

F-1

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Board of Directors and Shareholders

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. as of December 31, 2014 and 2013 and the related consolidated statements of income, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2014. In connection with our audits of the financial statements, we have also audited the financial statement schedules listed in the accompanying index. These financial statements and schedules are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements and schedules based on our audits.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements and schedules. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. at December 31, 2014 and 2013, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2014, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Also, in our opinion, the financial statement schedules, when considered in relation to the basic consolidated financial statements taken as a whole, present fairly, in all material respects, the information set forth therein.

We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2014, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) and our report dated February 17, 2015 expressed an unqualified opinion thereon.

/s/ BDO USA, LLP

Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

February 17, 2015

F-2

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

December 31, 2014 and 2013

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)

	2014		2013
Assets
Investments
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	$	49,212	$	4,312
Equity securities, trading, at fair value	1,266,175		1,282,156
Other investments, at fair value	115,591		107,211
Total investments	1,430,978		1,393,679
Cash and cash equivalents	12,030		3,722
Restricted cash and cash equivalents	1,296,914		1,334,074
Financial contracts receivable, at fair value	47,171		104,048
Reinsurance balances receivable	151,185		167,340
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	11,523		16,829
Deferred acquisition costs, net	34,420		51,797
Unearned premiums ceded	4,027		3,173
Notes receivable	1,566		16,049
Other assets	5,478		4,565
Total assets	$	2,995,292	$	3,095,276
Liabilities and equity
Liabilities
Securities sold, not yet purchased, at fair value	$	1,090,731	$	1,111,690
Financial contracts payable, at fair value	44,592		18,857
Due to prime brokers	211,070		314,702
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves	264,243		329,894
Unearned premium reserves	128,736		173,057
Reinsurance balances payable	40,372		38,789
Funds withheld	6,558		10,126
Other liabilities	14,949		11,857
Total liabilities	1,801,251		2,008,972
Equity
Preferred share capital (par value $0.10; authorized, 50,000,000; none issued)	—		—
Ordinary share capital (Class A: par value $0.10; authorized, 100,000,000; issued and outstanding, 31,129,648 (2013: 30,791,865): Class B: par value $0.10; authorized, 25,000,000; issued and outstanding, 6,254,895 (2013: 6,254,949))	3,738		3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553		496,622
Retained earnings	660,860		551,268
Shareholders’ equity attributable to shareholders	1,165,151		1,051,595
Non-controlling interest in joint venture	28,890		34,709
Total equity	1,194,041		1,086,304
Total liabilities and equity	$	2,995,292	$	3,095,276

  The accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements are an

integral part of the Consolidated Financial Statements.

F-3

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME

Years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars, except per share and share amounts)

	2014			2013			2012
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	324,023		$	535,702		$	427,844
Gross premiums ceded	(13,493		)	(2,780		)	24,275
Net premiums written	310,530			532,922			452,119
Change in net unearned premium reserves	43,710			14,977			14,595
Net premiums earned	354,240			547,899			466,714
Net investment income	122,575			218,140			78,941
Other income (expense), net	413			(950		)	(259		)
Total revenues	477,228			765,089			545,396
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	234,986			338,493			366,601
Acquisition costs, net	107,665			171,872			142,721
General and administrative expenses	21,926			21,718			17,539
Total expenses	364,577			532,083			526,861
Income before income tax expense	112,651			233,006			18,535
Income tax (expense) benefit	624			(538		)	(86		)
Net income including non-controlling interest	113,275			232,468			18,449
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	(3,683		)	(6,769		)	(3,851		)
Net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598
Earnings per share
Basic	$	2.94		$	6.13		$	0.40
Diluted	$	2.89		$	6.01		$	0.39
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	37,242,687			36,838,128			36,702,128
Diluted	37,874,387			37,585,167			37,361,338

The accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements are an

integral part of the Consolidated Financial Statements. 

F-4

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY

Years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Ordinary share capital		Additional paid-in capital		Retained earnings		Shareholders' equity attributable to shareholders		Non-controlling interest in joint venture			Total equity
Balance at December 31, 2011	$	3,654	$	488,478	$	310,971	$	803,103	$	42,595		$	845,698
Issue of Class A ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	16		316		—		332		—			332
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	—		3,675		—		3,675		—			3,675
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	—		—		—		—		(7,744		)	(7,744		)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	—		—		—		—		3,851			3,851
Net income	—		—		14,598		14,598		—			14,598
Balance at December 31, 2012	$	3,670	$	492,469	$	325,569	$	821,708	$	38,702		$	860,410
Issue of Class A ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	35		492		—		527		—			527
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	—		3,661		—		3,661		—			3,661
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	—		—		—		—		(10,762		)	(10,762		)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	—		—		—		—		6,769			6,769
Net income	—		—		225,699		225,699		—			225,699
Balance at December 31, 2013	$	3,705	$	496,622	$	551,268	$	1,051,595	$	34,709		$	1,086,304
Issue of Class A ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	33		—		—		33		—			33
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	—		3,931		—		3,931		—			3,931
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	—		—		—		—		(9,502		)	(9,502		)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	—		—		—		—		3,683			3,683
Net income	—		—		109,592		109,592		—			109,592
Balance at December 31, 2014	$	3,738	$	500,553	$	660,860	$	1,165,151	$	28,890		$	1,194,041

The accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements are an

integral part of the Consolidated Financial Statements. 

F-5

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

Years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	2014			2013			2012
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net change in unrealized gains and losses on investments and financial contracts	172,403			(154,792		)	(67,307		)
Net realized gains on investments and financial contracts	(353,264		)	(141,976		)	(60,762		)
Foreign exchange (gains) losses on restricted cash and cash equivalents, net	1,684			(19,305		)	(3,682		)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	3,683			6,769			3,851
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,964			3,675			3,689
Depreciation expense	436			325			250
Net change in
Reinsurance balances receivable	16,155			5,881			(31,943		)
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	5,306			17,622			(4,693		)
Deferred acquisition costs, net	17,377			7,380			9,548
Unearned premiums ceded	(854		)	443			23,617
Other assets	(1,349		)	(291		)	1,683
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves	(65,651		)	(26,576		)	115,191
Unearned premium reserves	(44,321		)	(15,128		)	(37,550		)
Reinsurance balances payable	1,583			3,497			3,100
Funds withheld	(3,568		)	(7,289		)	(20,616		)
Other liabilities	3,092			1,369			434
Net cash used in operating activities	(133,732		)	(92,697		)	(50,592		)
Investing activities
Purchases of investments, trading	(1,603,856		)	(931,036		)	(830,515		)
Sales of investments, trading	1,722,936			933,356			903,344
Purchases of financial contracts	(13,302		)	(64,153		)	(70,658		)
Dispositions of financial contracts	113,011			90,282			39,417
Securities sold, not yet purchased	934,769			940,486			822,718
Dispositions of securities sold, not yet purchased	(952,843		)	(766,680		)	(645,225		)
Change in due to prime brokers	(103,632		)	(11,786		)	66,129
Change in restricted cash and cash equivalents, net	35,476			(107,932		)	(245,693		)
Change in notes receivable, net	18,983			3,281			(1,893		)
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	(9,502		)	(10,762		)	(7,744		)
Fixed assets additions	—			(1,040		)	—
Net cash provided by investing activities	142,040			74,016			29,880
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	—			513			318
Net cash provided by financing activities	—			513			318
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	8,308			(18,168		)	(20,394		)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period	3,722			21,890			42,284
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period	$	12,030		$	3,722		$	21,890
Supplementary information
Interest paid in cash	$	21,482		$	23,741		$	23,506
Interest received in cash	562			1,468			1,213
Income tax paid in cash	—			531			216

The accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements are an

integral part of the Consolidated Financial Statements. 

F-6

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

NOTES TO THE CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012

1.   ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. ("GLRE") was incorporated as an exempted company under the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands on July 13, 2004. GLRE’s principal wholly-owned subsidiary, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. ("Greenlight Re"), provides global specialty property and casualty reinsurance. Greenlight Re has a Class D insurer license issued in accordance with the terms of The Insurance Law, 2010 and underlying regulations thereto (the "Law") and is subject to regulation by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority ("CIMA"), in terms of the Law. Greenlight Re commenced underwriting in April 2006. Effective May 30, 2007, GLRE completed an initial public offering of 11,787,500 Class A ordinary shares at $19.00 per share. Concurrently, 2,631,579 Class B ordinary shares of GLRE were sold at $19.00 per share in a private placement offering. During 2008, Verdant Holding Company, Ltd. ("Verdant"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of GLRE, was incorporated in the state of Delaware. During 2010, GLRE established Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd. ("GRIL"), a wholly-owned reinsurance subsidiary based in Dublin, Ireland. GRIL is authorized as a non-life reinsurance undertaking in accordance with the provisions of the European Communities (Reinsurance) Regulations 2006 ("Irish Regulations"). GRIL provides multi-line property and casualty reinsurance capacity to the European broker market and provides GLRE with an additional platform to serve clients located in Europe and North America.  As used herein, the "Company" refers collectively to GLRE and its consolidated subsidiaries.

The Class A ordinary shares of GLRE are listed on Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "GLRE".

These consolidated financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP"). The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of GLRE and the consolidated financial statements of its wholly owned subsidiaries, Greenlight Re, GRIL and Verdant. All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated on consolidation.

Reclassifications

Certain prior period balances have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. The reclassifications resulted in no changes to net income or retained earnings for any of the periods presented.

2.   SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the period. Actual results could differ from these estimates. 

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash and certain short-term, highly liquid investments with original maturity dates of three months or less.

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company is required to maintain certain cash in segregated accounts with prime brokers and derivative counterparties. The amount of restricted cash held by prime brokers is primarily used to support the liability created from securities sold, not yet purchased, and to collateralize the letters of credit issued under certain letter of credit facilities (see Notes 4 and 6). The amount of cash encumbered varies depending on the market value of the securities sold, not yet purchased, and letters of credit issued. In addition, derivative counterparties require cash collateral to support the current value of any amounts that may be due to the counterparty based on the value of the underlying financial instrument. 

F-7

Premium Revenue Recognition

The Company accounts for reinsurance contracts in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In the event that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient risk, deposit accounting is used and the contract is reported as a deposit liability.

The Company writes excess of loss contracts as well as quota share contracts. The Company estimates the ultimate premiums for the entire contract period. These estimates are based on information received from the ceding companies and estimates from actuarial pricing models used by the Company. For excess of loss contracts, the total ultimate estimated premiums are recorded as premiums written at the inception of the contract. For quota share contracts, the premiums are recorded as written based on cession statements from cedents which typically are received monthly or quarterly depending on terms specified in each contract. For any reporting lag, premiums written are estimated based on the portion of the ultimate estimated premiums relating to the risks underwritten during the lag period.

Premium estimates are reviewed by management at least quarterly. Such review includes a comparison of actual reported premiums to expected ultimate premiums along with a review of the aging and collection of premium estimates. Based on management’s review, the appropriateness of the premium estimates is evaluated, and any adjustments to these estimates are recorded in the period in which they are determined. Changes in premium estimates, including premium receivable on both excess of loss and quota share contracts, are expected and may result in significant adjustments in any period. A significant portion of amounts included in reinsurance balances receivable represent estimated premiums written, net of commissions and brokerage, and are not currently due based on the terms of the underlying contracts.

Certain contracts allow for reinstatement premiums in the event of a full limit loss prior to the expiry of a contract. A reinstatement premium is not due until there is a full limit loss event and therefore, in accordance with U.S. GAAP, the Company records a reinstatement premium as written only in the event that a client incurs a full limit loss on the contract and the contract allows for a reinstatement of coverage upon payment of an additional premium. For catastrophe contracts which contractually require the payment of a reinstatement premium equal to or greater than the original premium upon the occurrence of a full limit loss, the reinstatement premiums are earned over the original contract period. Reinstatement premiums that are contractually calculated on a pro-rata basis of the original premiums, are earned over the remaining coverage period.

Certain contracts provide for a penalty to be paid if the contract is terminated and cancelled prior to its expiration term. Cancellation penalties are recognized in the period the notice of cancellation is received and are recorded in the consolidated statements of income under other income (expense).

Premiums written are generally recognized as earned over the contract period in proportion to the period of risk covered. Unearned premiums consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance provided.

Reinsurance Premiums Ceded

The Company reduces the risk of future losses on business assumed by reinsuring certain risks and exposures with other reinsurers (retrocessionaires). The Company remains liable to the extent that any retrocessionaire fails to meet its obligations and to the extent the Company does not hold sufficient security for their unpaid obligations.

Ceded premiums are written during the period in which the risks incept and are expensed over the contract period in proportion to the period of protection. Unearned premiums ceded consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance obtained.

Deferred Acquisition Costs

Policy acquisition costs, such as commission and brokerage costs, relate directly to, and vary with, the writing of reinsurance contracts. Acquisition costs relating solely to bound contracts are deferred subject to ultimate recoverability and are amortized over the related contract term. The Company evaluates the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs by determining if the sum of future earned premiums and anticipated investment income is greater than the expected future claims and expenses. If a loss is probable on the unexpired portion of policies in force, a premium deficiency loss is recognized. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, the deferred acquisition costs were considered fully recoverable and no premium deficiency loss was recorded. 

Acquisition costs also include profit commissions which are expensed when incurred. Profit commissions are calculated and accrued based on the expected loss experience for contracts and recorded when the current loss estimate indicates that a profit commission is probable under the contract terms. As of December 31, 2014, $11.0 million (2013: $10.5 million) of profit commission reserves were included in reinsurance balances payable on the consolidated balance sheets. For the year ended

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December 31, 2014, $2.7 million (2013: $3.7 million and 2012: $1.5 million) of net profit commission expense was included in acquisition costs, respectively, on the consolidated statements of income.

Funds Withheld

Funds withheld include reinsurance balances retained from retrocessionaires as security for a period of time in accordance with the contract terms. Any interest expense that the Company incurs during the period these funds are withheld, are included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves and Recoverable

The Company establishes reserves for contracts based on estimates of the ultimate cost of all losses including losses incurred but not reported ("IBNR"). These estimated ultimate reserves are based on the Company’s own actuarial estimates derived from reports received from ceding companies, industry data and historical experience. These estimates are reviewed by the Company periodically on a contract by contract basis and adjusted as necessary. Since reserves are estimates, the final settlement of losses may vary from the reserves established and any adjustments to the estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period they are determined.

Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable include the amounts due from retrocessionaires for unpaid loss and loss adjustment expenses on retrocession agreements. Ceded losses incurred but not reported are estimated based on the Company’s actuarial estimates. These estimates are reviewed periodically and adjusted when deemed necessary. The Company may not be able to ultimately recover the loss and loss adjustment expense recoverable amounts due to the retrocessionaires’ inability to pay. The Company regularly evaluates the financial condition of its retrocessionaires and records provisions for uncollectible reinsurance expenses recoverable when recovery is no longer probable.

Notes Receivable

Notes receivable include promissory notes receivable from third party entities. These notes are recorded at cost along with accrued interest, if any, which approximates the fair value. The Company regularly reviews all notes receivable individually for impairment and records provisions for uncollectible and non-performing notes. The Company places notes on non-accrual status when the value of the note is not considered impaired but there is uncertainty as to the collection of interest based on the terms of the note. The Company resumes accrual of interest on a note when none of the principal or interest remains past due, and the Company expects to collect the remaining contractual principal and interest. Interest collected on notes that are placed on non-accrual status is treated on a cash-basis and recorded as interest income when collected, provided that the recorded value of the note is deemed to be fully collectible. Where doubt exists as to the collectability of the remaining recorded value of the notes placed on non-accrual status, any payments received are applied to reduce the recorded value of the notes.

At December 31, 2014, there were no notes receivable placed on non-accrual status (2013: $10.5 million). During the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company had recorded an impairment charge of $6.0 million relating to the accrued interest and principal on a note placed on non-accrual status. During 2014, the Company sold this note receivable to a third party for a gain of $4.5 million. There were no other impairment charges for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012.

At December 31, 2014, the notes receivable earned interest at an annual interest rate of 13.5% and had a remaining maturity term of six months. Interest income and realized gains or losses on sale of notes receivable are included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income. Impairment charges are also included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

At December 31, 2014, there was no accrued interest included in the notes receivable balance (2013: $0.1 million). Based on management’s assessment, the recorded values of the notes receivable, net of any impairment charges, at December 31, 2014 and 2013, were expected to be fully collectible and therefore no provision for uncollectible amounts was deemed necessary at December 31, 2014 and 2013.

Deposit Assets and Liabilities

In accordance with U.S. GAAP, deposit accounting is used in the event that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient insurance risk, or a contract provides retroactive reinsurance. Any losses on such contracts are charged to earnings immediately. Any gains relating to such contracts are deferred and amortized over the estimated remaining settlement period. All such deferred gains are included in reinsurance balances payable in the consolidated balance sheets. Amortized gains are

F-9

recorded in the consolidated statements of income as other income. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, there were no material deposit assets or deposit liabilities and no material gains or losses on deposit accounted contracts.

Fixed Assets

Fixed assets are included in other assets on the consolidated balance sheets and are recorded at cost when acquired. Fixed assets are comprised of computer software, furniture and fixtures and leasehold improvements and are depreciated, using the straight-line method, over their estimated useful lives, which are five years for both computer software, and furniture and fixtures.  Leasehold improvements are amortized over the lesser of the estimated useful lives of the assets or remaining lease term. The Company periodically reviews fixed assets that have finite lives, and that are not held for sale, for impairment by comparing the carrying value of the assets to their estimated future undiscounted cash flows. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, there were no impairments in fixed assets.

At December 31, 2014, the cost, accumulated depreciation and net book values of the fixed assets were as follows:

	Cost		Accumulated depreciation			Net book value
	($ in thousands)
Computer software	$	556	$	(277	)	$	279
Furniture and fixtures	620		(442		)	178
Leasehold improvements	2,002		(966		)	1,036
Total	$	3,178	$	(1,685	)	$	1,493

At December 31, 2013, the cost, accumulated depreciation and net book values of the fixed assets were as follows:

	Cost		Accumulated depreciation			Net book value
	($ in thousands)
Computer software	$	556	$	(206	)	$	350
Furniture and fixtures	620		(340		)	280
Leasehold improvements	2,002		(703		)	1,299
Total	$	3,178	$	(1,249	)	$	1,929

Financial Instruments

Investments in Securities and Investments in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased

The Company’s investments in debt instruments and equity securities that are classified as "trading securities" are carried at fair value. The fair values of the listed equity investments are derived based on quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets (Level 1 inputs). The fair values of listed equities that have restrictions on sale or transfer which expire within one year, are determined by adjusting the observed market price of the equity using a liquidity discount based on observable market inputs. The fair values of debt instruments are derived based on inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as market maker or broker quotes reflecting recent transactions (Level 2 inputs), and are generally derived based on the average of multiple market maker or broker quotes which are considered to be binding. Where quotes are not available, debt instruments are valued using cash flow models using assumptions and estimates that may be subjective and non-observable (Level 3 inputs).

The Company’s "other investments" may include investments in private and unlisted equity securities, limited partnerships, and commodities, which are all carried at fair value. The fair values of commodities are determined based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets (Level 1). The Company maximizes the use of observable direct or indirect inputs (Level 2 inputs) when deriving the fair values for "other investments". For limited partnerships and private and unlisted equity securities, where observable inputs are not available, the fair values are derived based on unobservable inputs (Level 3 inputs) such as management’s assumptions developed from available information using the services of the investment advisor, including the most recent net asset values obtained from the managers of those underlying investments.

For securities classified as "trading securities", and "other investments", any realized and unrealized gains or losses are determined on the basis of the specific identification method (by reference to cost or amortized cost, as appropriate) and included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

F-10

Dividend income and expense are recorded on the ex-dividend date. The ex-dividend date is the date as of when the underlying security must have been traded to be eligible for the dividend declared. Interest income and interest expense are recorded on an accrual basis.

Derivative Financial Instruments

U.S. GAAP requires that an entity recognize all derivatives in the balance sheet at fair value. It also requires that unrealized gains and losses resulting from changes in fair value be included in income or comprehensive income, depending on whether the instrument qualifies as a hedge transaction, and if so, the type of hedge transaction. The Company’s derivative financial instrument assets are included in financial contracts receivable. Derivative financial instrument liabilities are generally included in financial contracts payable. The Company's derivatives do not qualify as hedges for financial reporting purposes and are recorded in the consolidated balance sheets on a gross basis and not offset against any collateral pledged or received. Pursuant to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association ("ISDA") master agreements, securities lending agreements and other derivatives agreements, the Company and its counterparties typically have the ability to net certain payments owed to each other in specified circumstances. In addition, in the event a party to one of the ISDA master agreements, securities lending agreements or other derivatives agreements defaults, or a transaction is otherwise subject to termination, the non-defaulting party generally has the right to set off against payments owed to the defaulting party or collateral held by the non-defaulting party.

Financial Contracts

The Company enters into financial contracts with counterparties as part of its investment strategy. Financial contracts which include total return swaps, credit default swaps ("CDS"), futures, options, currency forwards and other derivative instruments are recorded at their fair value with any unrealized gains and losses included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income. Financial contracts receivable represents derivative contracts whereby, based upon the contract's current fair value, the Company will be entitled to receive payments upon settlement of the contract. Financial contracts payable represents derivative contracts whereby, based upon the contract's current fair value, the Company will be obligated to make payments upon settlement of the contract.

Total return swap agreements, included on the consolidated balance sheets as financial contracts receivable and financial contracts payable, are derivative financial instruments whereby the Company is either entitled to receive or obligated to pay the product of a notional amount multiplied by the movement in an underlying security, which the Company may not own, over a specified time frame. In addition, the Company may also be obligated to pay or receive other payments based on interest rates, dividend payments and receipts, or foreign exchange movements during a specified period. The Company measures its rights or obligations to the counterparty based on the fair value movements of the underlying security together with any other payments due. These contracts are carried at fair value, based on observable inputs (Level 2 inputs) with the resultant unrealized gains and losses reflected in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income. Additionally, any changes in the value of amounts received or paid on swap contracts are reported as a gain or loss in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

Financial contracts may also include exchange traded futures or options contracts that are based on the movement of a particular index, equity security, commodity, currency or interest rate. Where such contracts are traded in an active market, the Company’s obligations or rights on these contracts are recorded at fair value based on the observable quoted prices of the same or similar financial contracts in an active market (Level 1) or on broker quotes which reflect market information based on actual transactions (Level 2). Amounts invested in exchange traded options and over the counter ("OTC") options are recorded either as an asset or liability at inception. Subsequent to initial recognition, unexpired exchange traded option contracts are recorded at fair value based on quoted prices in active markets (Level 1). For OTC options or exchange traded options where a quoted price in an active market is not available, fair values are derived based upon observable inputs (Level 2) such as multiple quotes from brokers and market makers, which are considered to be binding.

The Company purchases and sells CDS for strategic investment purposes. A CDS is a derivative instrument that provides protection against an investment loss due to specified credit or default events of a reference entity. The seller of a CDS guarantees to pay the buyer a specified amount if the reference entity defaults on its obligations or fails to perform. The buyer of a CDS pays a premium over time to the seller in exchange for obtaining this protection. A CDS trading in an active market is valued at fair value based on broker or market maker quotes for identical instruments in an active market (Level 2) or based on the current credit spreads on identical contracts (Level 2).

Share-Based Compensation

The Company has established a stock incentive plan for directors, employees and consultants.

F-11

U.S. GAAP requires the Company to recognize share-based compensation transactions using the fair value at the grant date of the award. The Company measures compensation for restricted shares and restricted stock units ("RSUs") based on the price of the Company’s common shares at the grant date and the expense is recognized on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

Determining the fair value of share purchase options at the grant date requires significant estimation and judgment. The Company uses an option-pricing model (Black-Scholes option pricing model) to assist in the calculation of fair value for share purchase options. The model requires estimation of various inputs such as estimated term, forfeiture and dividend rates and expected volatility. The Company uses the full life of the options, ten years, as the estimated term of the options, and has assumed no forfeitures and no dividends paid during the life of the options. Effective from 2014, the estimate of expected volatility is based on the daily historical trading data of the Company's Class A ordinary shares from the date that these shares commenced trading (May 24, 2007) to the grant date. Prior to 2014, the Company's share had not been publicly traded for a sufficient length of time to reasonably estimate the expected volatility. Therefore, for share purchase options granted prior to 2014, the Company determined the expected volatility based primarily on the historical volatility of similar entities. The Company considered factors such as an entity's industry, stage of life cycle, size and financial leverage when selecting similar entities. The Company used a sample peer group of companies in the reinsurance industry as well as the Company’s own historical volatility in determining the expected volatility. 

For share purchase options issued under the employee stock incentive plan, compensation cost is calculated and expensed over the vesting periods on a graded vesting basis (see Note 10). 

If actual results differ significantly from these estimates and assumptions, particularly in relation to the Company’s estimation of volatility which requires the most judgment, share-based compensation expense, primarily with respect to future share-based awards, could be materially impacted.

Foreign Exchange

The reporting and functional currency of the Company and all its subsidiaries is the U.S. dollar. Transactions in foreign currencies are recorded in U.S. dollars at the exchange rates in effect on the transaction date. Monetary assets and liabilities in foreign currencies at the balance sheet date are translated at the exchange rate in effect at the balance sheet date and translation exchange gains and losses, if any, are included in the consolidated statements of income. 

Other Assets

Other assets consist primarily of investment income receivable, prepaid expenses, fixed assets and deferred tax assets.

Other Liabilities

Other liabilities consist primarily of dividends payable on securities sold, not yet purchased, and employee bonus accruals. At December 31, 2014, other liabilities included accrued bonus of $7.6 million (2013: $4.8 million). Under the Company's bonus program, each employee’s target bonus consists of two components: a discretionary component based on a qualitative assessment of each employee’s performance and a quantitative component based on the return on deployed equity (‘‘RODE”) for each underwriting year relating to reinsurance operations. The qualitative portion of an employee’s annual bonus is accrued at each employee's target amount, which may differ significantly from the actual amount approved and awarded annually by the Compensation Committee. The quantitative portion of each employee’s annual bonus is accrued based on the expected RODE for each underwriting year and adjusted for changes in the expected RODE and actual investment return each quarter until all losses are settled and the underwriting year is declared closed. The quantitative bonus is calculated and paid, with the approval of the Compensation Committee, in annual installments between two to five years from the end of the fiscal year in which the business was underwritten. Any further changes are incorporated into the following open underwriting year. The expected RODE calculation utilizes proprietary models which require significant estimation and judgment. Actual RODE may vary significantly from the expected RODE and any adjustments to the quantitative bonus estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period in which they are determined. 

Also included in other liabilities are accruals for income taxes payable, professional fees and other general expenses.

F-12

Non-controlling Interest

Non-controlling interest in joint venture on the consolidated balance sheets represents DME Advisors, LLC’s (‘‘DME”) share of assets in the joint venture whereby DME is a participant in the joint venture as disclosed in Note 13. DME’s share of investment income or loss is included in the consolidated statements of income as income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture.

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

The Company has no other comprehensive income or loss, other than the net income or loss disclosed in the consolidated statements of income.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Basic earnings per share are based on the weighted average number of common shares and participating securities outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share includes the dilutive effect of restricted stock units ("RSU") and additional potential common shares issuable when stock options are exercised and are determined using the treasury stock method. The Company treats its unvested restricted stock as participating securities in accordance with U.S. GAAP, which requires that unvested stock awards which contain non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents, whether paid or unpaid (referred to as "participating securities"), be included in the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per share calculations. In the event of a net loss, all RSUs, stock options outstanding and all participating securities are excluded from the calculation of both basic and diluted loss per share since their inclusion would be anti-dilutive.

	Year ended December 31
	2014	2013	2012
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic	37,242,687	36,838,128	36,702,128
Effect of dilutive service provider share-based awards	8,498	144,726	147,036
Effect of dilutive employee and director share-based awards	623,202	602,313	512,174
Weighted average shares outstanding - diluted	37,874,387	37,585,167	37,361,338
Anti-dilutive stock options outstanding	—	218,197	180,000

Taxation

Under current Cayman Islands law, no corporate entity, including GLRE and Greenlight Re, is obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. The Company has an undertaking from the Governor-in-Cabinet of the Cayman Islands, pursuant to the provisions of the Tax Concessions Law, as amended, that, in the event that the Cayman Islands enacts any legislation that imposes tax on profits, income, gains or appreciations, or any tax in the nature of estate duty or inheritance tax, such tax will not be applicable to GLRE, Greenlight Re nor their respective operations, or to the Class A or Class B ordinary shares or related obligations, until February 1, 2025.

Verdant is incorporated in Delaware and therefore is subject to taxes in accordance with the U.S. federal rates and regulations prescribed by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). Verdant’s taxable income is generally expected to be taxed at a rate of 35%.

GRIL is incorporated in Ireland and therefore is subject to the Irish corporation tax rate of 12.5% on its trading income, and 25% on its non-trading income, if any.

Any deferred tax asset is evaluated for recovery and a valuation allowance is recorded when it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset will not be realized in the future. The Company has not taken any income tax positions that are subject to significant uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact on the Company.

Segment Information

Under U.S. GAAP, operating segments are based on the internal information that management uses for allocating resources and assessing performance as the source of the Company's reportable segments.

F-13

The Company manages its business on the basis of one operating segment, Property and Casualty Reinsurance, in accordance with the qualitative and quantitative criteria established by U.S. GAAP. 

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

None.

3.         FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

In the normal course of its business, the Company purchases and sells various financial instruments which include listed and unlisted equities, corporate and sovereign debt, commodities, futures, put and call options, currency forwards, other derivatives and similar instruments sold, not yet purchased.

The Company is exposed to credit risk in relation to counterparties that may default on their obligations to the Company. The amount of counterparty credit risk predominantly relates to the value of financial contracts receivable and assets held at counterparties. The Company mitigates its counterparty credit risk by using several counterparties which decreases the likelihood of any significant concentration of credit risk with any one counterparty.  In addition, the Company is exposed to credit risk on corporate and sovereign debt instruments to the extent that the debtors may default on their debt obligations.    

The Company is exposed to market risk including interest rate and foreign exchange fluctuations on financial instruments that are valued at market prices. Market movements can be volatile and difficult to predict. This may affect the ultimate gains or losses realized upon the sale of its holdings as well as the amount of net investment income reported in the consolidated statements of income. Management utilizes the services of the Company's investment advisor to monitor the Company's positions to reduce the risk of potential loss due to changes in market values.

Purchases and sales of investments are disclosed in the consolidated statements of cash flows. Net realized gains on the sale of investments, financial contracts, and investments sold, not yet purchased during 2014 were $353.3 million (2013: $142.0 milliongains, 2012: $60.8 milliongains). Gross realized gains were $612.7 million (2013: $352.9 million, 2012: $268.1 million) and gross realized losses were $259.4 million (2013: $210.9 million, 2012: $207.3 million). For the year ended December 31, 2014, included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income were $172.4 million of net losses (2013: $154.8 million of net gains, 2012: $67.6 million of net gains) relating to change in unrealized gains and losses on trading securities still held at the balance sheet date.

As of December 31, 2014, cash and investments with a fair value of $302.6 million (2013: $410.3 million) have been pledged as security against letters of credit issued.

As of December 31, 2014, the Company’s investment in Micron Technology Inc. was the only investment in excess of 10% of the Company’s shareholders’ equity, with a fair value of $151.1 million, or 12.7% of shareholders' equity. As of December 31, 2013, the Company’s investments in Apple Inc. and Micron Technology Inc., were the only investments in excess of 10% of the Company’s shareholders’ equity, with fair values of $161.4 million and $147.0 million, or 14.9% and 13.5%, respectively, of shareholders' equity.

 Fair Value Hierarchy

The Company’s financial instruments are carried at fair value, and the net unrealized gains or losses are included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

F-14

The following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2014:

	Fair value measurements as of December 31, 2014
Description	Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)			Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)		Total
Assets:	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	—		$	26,953		$	22,259	$	49,212
Listed equity securities	1,259,298			6,877			—		1,266,175
Commodities	96,872			—			—		96,872
Private and unlisted equity securities	—			—			18,719		18,719
Financial contracts receivable	2,463			44,708			—		47,171
	$	1,358,633		$	78,538		$	40,978	$	1,478,149
Liabilities:
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	$	(834,228	)	$	—		$	—	$	(834,228	)
Debt instruments, sold not yet purchased	—			(256,503		)	—		(256,503		)
Financial contracts payable	—			(44,592		)	—		(44,592		)
	$	(834,228	)	$	(301,095	)	$	—	$	(1,135,323	)

The following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2013:

	Fair value measurements as of December 31, 2013
Description	Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)			Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)		Total
Assets:	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	—		$	3,785		$	527	$	4,312
Listed equity securities	1,274,920			7,236			—		1,282,156
Commodities	60,888			—			—		60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	—			—			46,323		46,323
Financial contracts receivable	4,500			99,548			—		104,048
	$	1,340,308		$	110,569		$	46,850	$	1,497,727
Liabilities:
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	$	(917,123	)	$	—		$	—	$	(917,123	)
Debt instruments, sold not yet purchased	—			(194,567		)	—		(194,567		)
Financial contracts payable	—			(18,857		)	—		(18,857		)
	$	(917,123	)	$	(213,424	)	$	—	$	(1,130,547	)

F-15

The following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the year ended December 31, 2014: 

2014	Fair Value Measurements Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	Debt instruments		Private and unlisted equity securities			Total
	($ in thousands)
Beginning balance	$	527	$	46,323		$	46,850
Purchases	21,561		3,958			25,519
Sales	—		(37,252		)	(37,252		)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	171		9,734			9,905
Transfers into Level 3	—		—			—
Transfers out of Level 3	—		(4,044		)	(4,044		)
Ending balance	$	22,259	$	18,719		$	40,978

During the year ended December 31, 2014, $4.0 million securities, at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 3 to Level 2 as these securities began actively trading on a listed exchange during the third quarter. However, due to lock-up restrictions on these securities, they were classified as Level 2 upon transfer until the lock-up period expires. During the year ended December 31, 2014, $14.4 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 as the lock-up period restrictions on those securities expired. There were no other transfers between Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 during the year ended December 31, 2014.

The following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the year ended December 31, 2013:

2013	Fair Value Measurements Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	Debt instruments			Private and unlisted equity securities			Total
	($ in thousands)
Beginning balance	$	260		$	38,801		$	39,061
Purchases	9,224			38,086			47,310
Sales	(9,224		)	(7,252		)	(16,476		)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	267			1,269			1,536
Transfers into Level 3	—			—			—
Transfers out of Level 3	—			(24,581		)	(24,581		)
Ending balance	$	527		$	46,323		$	46,850

During the year ended December 31, 2013, $5.0 million of securities, at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 3 to Level 2, as these securities began actively trading on a listed exchange during the third quarter of 2013. However due to lock-up restrictions on these securities, they were classified as Level 2 upon transfer until the lock-up period expired. Additionally, during the year ended December 31, 2013, $19.6 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 3 to Level 1 as these securities began actively trading on a listed exchange and there were no lock-up restrictions on these securities. During the year ended December 31, 2013, $2.4 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 as the lock-up period restrictions on those securities expired. There were no other transfers between Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 during the year ended December 31, 2013.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income were net realized gains relating to Level 3 securities of $13.5 million (2013: net realized gains of $0.7 million).

F-16

For Level 3 classified securities still held as of the reporting date, the change in net unrealized gains for the year ended December 31, 2014 of $1.4 million (2013: net unrealized loss of $1.1 million), were included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

Investments

Debt instruments, trading

At December 31, 2014, the following investments were included in debt instruments:

	Cost/  amortized  cost		Unrealized  gains		Unrealized  losses			Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Corporate debt – U.S.	$	23,677	$	5	$	(1,423	)	$	22,259
Corporate debt – Non U.S.	5,870		49		(1,405		)	4,514
Municipal debt – U.S.	1,759		—		(6		)	1,753
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	21,769		—		(1,083		)	20,686
Total debt instruments	$	53,075	$	54	$	(3,917	)	$	49,212

At December 31, 2013, the following investments were included in debt instruments:

	Cost/  amortized  cost		Unrealized  gains		Unrealized  losses			Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Corporate debt – U.S.	$	2,116	$	—	$	(1,589	)	$	527
Corporate debt – Non U.S.	3,761		115		(91		)	3,785
Total debt instruments	$	5,877	$	115	$	(1,680	)	$	4,312

The maturity distribution for debt instruments held at December 31, 2014 and 2013, was as follows:

	2014				2013
	Cost/  amortized  cost		Fair  value		Cost/  amortized  cost		Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Within one year	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—
From one to five years	21,922		21,923		—		—
From five to ten years	2,401		1,282		—		—
More than ten years	28,752		26,007		5,877		4,312
	$	53,075	$	49,212	$	5,877	$	4,312

Equity securities, trading

At December 31, 2014, the following long positions were included in equity securities: 

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	1,079,955	$	247,109	$	(80,637	)	$	1,246,427
Exchange traded funds	42,126		—		(22,378		)	19,748
Total equity securities	$	1,122,081	$	247,109	$	(103,015	)	$	1,266,175

F-17

At December 31, 2013, the following long positions were included in equity securities:

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	923,594	$	361,695	$	(28,712	)	$	1,256,577
Exchange traded funds	50,253		—		(24,674		)	25,579
Total equity securities	$	973,847	$	361,695	$	(53,386	)	$	1,282,156

Other Investments

"Other investments" include commodities and private and unlisted equity securities. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, commodities were comprised of gold bullion. 

At December 31, 2014, the following securities were included in other investments:

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Commodities	$	95,815	$	1,057	$	—		$	96,872
Private and unlisted equity securities	17,238		3,451		(1,970		)	18,719
	$	113,053	$	4,508	$	(1,970	)	$	115,591

At December 31, 2013, the following securities were included in other investments: 

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Commodities	$	54,633	$	6,255	$	—		$	60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	45,544		8,170		(7,391		)	46,323
	$	100,177	$	14,425	$	(7,391	)	$	107,211

As of December 31, 2014, included in private and unlisted equity securities are investments in private equity funds with a fair value of $12.3 million (December 31, 2013: $41.6 million) determined based on unadjusted net asset values reported by the managers of these securities. Some of these values were reported from periods prior to December 31, 2014. The private equity funds have varying lock-up periods and as of December 31, 2014, all of the funds had redemption restrictions, and therefore have been categorized within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy. The redemption restrictions have been in place since inception of the investments and are not expected to lapse in the near future. As of December 31, 2014, the Company had $8.9 million (2013: $6.3 million) of unfunded commitments relating to private equity funds whose fair values are determined based on unadjusted net asset values reported by the managers of these securities. These commitments are included in the amounts presented in the schedule of commitments and contingencies in Note 14 of these consolidated financial statements.    

Investments in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased

Securities sold, not yet purchased are securities that the Company has sold, but does not own, in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the security. The Company’s risk is that the value of the security will increase rather than decline. Consequently, the settlement amount of the liability for securities sold, not yet purchased may exceed the amount recorded in the consolidated balance sheet as the Company is obligated to purchase the securities sold, not yet purchased in the market at prevailing prices to settle its obligations. To sell a security, not yet purchased, the Company needs to borrow the security for delivery to the buyer. On each day the transaction is open, the liability for the obligation to replace the borrowed security is marked-to-market and an unrealized gain or loss is recorded. At the time the transaction is closed, the Company realizes a gain or loss equal to the difference between the price at which the security was sold and the cost of replacing the borrowed security. While the transaction is open, the Company will also incur an expense for any dividends or interest which will be paid to the lender of the securities.

F-18

At December 31, 2014, the following securities were included in investments in securities sold, not yet purchased:

	Proceeds			Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	(813,365	)	$	91,690	$	(101,715	)	$	(823,390	)
Exchange traded funds	(9,180		)	—		(1,658		)	(10,838		)
Corporate debt – U.S.	(7,066		)	1,007		(5		)	(6,064		)
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	(246,589		)	6,635		(10,485		)	(250,439		)
	$	(1,076,200	)	$	99,332	$	(113,863	)	$	(1,090,731	)

At December 31, 2013, the following securities were included in investments in securities sold, not yet purchased: 

	Proceeds			Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	(836,708	)	$	57,854	$	(130,621	)	$	(909,475	)
Exchange traded funds	(6,318		)	—		(1,330		)	(7,648		)
Corporate debt – U.S.	(8,135		)	2		(235		)	(8,368		)
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	(170,375		)	—		(15,824		)	(186,199		)
	$	(1,021,536	)	$	57,856	$	(148,010	)	$	(1,111,690	)

Financial Contracts

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, the Company had entered into total return swaps, CDS, options, warrants, rights, futures, forwards and interest rate options contracts with various financial institutions to meet certain investment objectives. Under the terms of each of these financial contracts, the Company is either entitled to receive or is obligated to make payments which are based on the product of a formula contained within each contract that includes the change in the fair value of the underlying or reference security.

F-19

At December 31, 2014, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Futures	USD	13,204	$	3,461
Put options (2)	USD	299,907	22,349
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	43,355	18,898
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	8,054	2,463
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	47,171
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	221,198	$	(1,305	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(1,714		)
Forwards	KRW	20,563	(512		)
Futures	USD	33,625	(867		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/INR/RON/USD	122,667	(40,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(44,592	)

(1) USD = US Dollar; JPY = Japanese Yen; EUR = Euro; GBP = British Pound; HKD = Hong Kong Dollar; KRW = Korean Won; RON = Romanian New Leu; INR = Indian Rupee.

(2) Includes options on the Japanese Yen and the Chinese Yuan, denominated in U.S. dollars.

At December 31, 2013, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Forwards	JPY	71,162	$	383
Futures	JPY/USD	117,494	4,500
Interest rate options (3)	USD	391,559	26
Put options (2)	USD	217,359	12,923
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	178,988	83,325
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	5,237	2,891
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	104,048
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	273,877	$	(3,625	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(3,980		)
Forwards	KRW	32,100	(58		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD	36,983	(11,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(18,857	)

(1) USD = US Dollar; JPY = Japanese Yen; EUR = Euro; GBP = British Pound; HKD = Hong Kong Dollar; KRW = Korean Won.

F-20

(2) Includes options on the Japanese Yen, the Australian Dollar and the Chinese Yuan, denominated in U.S. dollars.

(3)Includes contracts on U.S. and Japanese interest rates denominated in U.S. dollars.

Options are derivative financial instruments that give the buyer, in exchange for a premium payment, the right, but not the obligation, to either purchase from (call option) or sell to (put option) the writer, a specified underlying security at a specified price on or before a specified date. The Company enters into option contracts to meet certain investment objectives. For exchange traded option contracts, the exchange acts as the counterparty to specific transactions and therefore bears the risk of delivery to and from counterparties of specific positions. For OTC options, a dealer acts as the counterparty and therefore the Company is exposed to credit risk to the extent the dealer is unable to meet its obligations. As of December 31, 2014, the Company held no OTC put options (long) (December 31, 2013: $12.9 million).

During the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the Company reported gains and losses on derivatives as follows:

Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Location of gains and losses on derivatives recognized in income	Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income
		Year ended December 31
		2014			2013			2012
		($ in thousands)
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	Net investment income (loss)	$	(345	)	$	(3,552	)	$	(7,342	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	Net investment income (loss)	(298		)	(1,087		)	(5,086		)
Forwards	Net investment income (loss)	(490		)	11,209			—
Futures	Net investment income (loss)	16,721			12,504			(13,064		)
Interest rate options	Net investment income (loss)	(26		)	(82		)	(2,127		)
Options, warrants, and rights	Net investment income (loss)	1,020			21,446			(8,988		)
Total return swaps – equities	Net investment income (loss)	13,142			85,638			(13,176		)
Weather derivative swap	Other income (expense), net	—			—			(263		)
Total		$	29,724		$	126,076		$	(50,046	)

The Company generally does not enter into derivatives for risk management or hedging purposes. The volume of derivative activities varies from period to period depending on potential investment opportunities.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company’s volume of derivative activities (based on notional amounts) was as follows:

2014	Year ended December 31
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Entered		Exited
	($ in thousands)
Forwards	$	—	$	82,688
Futures	308,178		356,216
Options, warrants and rights (1)	1,044,241		314,876
Total return swaps	121,125		160,065
Total	$	1,473,544	$	913,845

(1) Exited amount excludes options which expired or were exercised during the period.

F-21

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company’s volume of derivative activities (based on notional amounts) was as follows:

2013	Year ended December 31
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Entered		Exited
	($ in thousands)
Forwards	$	423,443	$	115,884
Futures	401,672		292,529
Interest rate options (1)	—		376,385
Options, warrants and rights (1)	930,410		965,991
Total return swaps	194,343		88,404
Total	$	1,949,868	$	1,839,193

(1) Exited amount excludes options which expired or were exercised during the period.

The Company does not offset its derivative instruments and presents all amounts in the condensed consolidated balance sheets on a gross basis. The Company has pledged cash collateral to derivative counterparties to support the current value of amounts due to the counterparties based on the value of the underlying security.

As of December 31, 2014, the gross and net amounts of derivative instruments and the cash collateral applicable to derivative instruments were as follows:

December 31, 2014	(i)			(ii)		(iii) = (i) - (ii)			(iv) Gross amounts not offset in the balance sheet						(v) = (iii) + (iv)
Description	Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)			Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet		Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet			Financial instruments available for offset			Cash collateral (received) pledged			Net amount of asset (liability)
	($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable	$	47,171		$	—	$	47,171		$	(24,265	)	$	(9,452	)	$	13,454
Financial contracts payable	(44,592		)	—		(44,592		)	24,265			20,327			—

As of December 31, 2013, the gross and net amounts of derivative instruments and the cash collateral applicable to derivative instruments were as follows:

December 31, 2013	(i)			(ii)		(iii) = (i) - (ii)			(iv) Gross amounts not offset in the balance sheet						(v) = (iii) + (iv)
Description	Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)			Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet		Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet			Financial instruments available for offset			Cash collateral (received) pledged			Net amount of asset (liability)
	($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable	$	104,048		$	—	$	104,048		$	(18,857	)	$	(49,422	)	$	35,769
Financial contracts payable	(18,857		)	—		(18,857		)	18,857			—			—

F-22

4.        DUE TO PRIME BROKERS

As of December 31, 2014, the amount due to prime brokers is comprised of margin-borrowing from prime brokers relating to investments purchased on margin as well as the margin-borrowing for providing collateral to support some of the Company’s outstanding letters of credit (see Notes 6 and 14). Under term margin agreements and certain letter of credit facility agreements, the Company pledges certain investment securities to borrow cash from the prime brokers. The borrowed cash is placed in a custodial account in the name of the Company and this custodial account provides collateral for any letters of credit issued. Since there is no legal right of offset, the Company’s liability for the cash borrowed from the prime brokers is included on the consolidated balance sheets as due to prime brokers while the cash held in the custodial account is included on the consolidated balance sheets as restricted cash and cash equivalents. At December 31, 2014, the amounts due to prime brokers included $135.0 million (2013: $202.2 million) of cash borrowed under the term margin agreements to provide collateral for letters of credit facilities and $76.1 million (2013: $112.5 million) of borrowing relating to investment purchases.

Greenlight Re's investment guidelines, among other stipulations in the guidelines, allow for up to 15% (GRIL: 5%) net margin leverage for extended periods of time and up to 30% (GRIL: 20%) net margin leverage for periods of less than 30 days.

5.        CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash at banks	$	3,426	$	3,674
Cash held with brokers	8,604		48
Total cash and cash equivalents	$	12,030	$	3,722

Due to the short term nature of cash and cash equivalents, management believes the above noted carrying values approximate their fair value. Cash at banks include cash held at non-U.S. financial institutions which are not insured by the FDIC or any other deposit insurance programs.

6.        RESTRICTED CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

The Company is required to maintain certain cash in segregated accounts with prime brokers and swap counterparties. The amount of restricted cash held by prime brokers is primarily used to support the liability created from securities sold, not yet purchased, and for collateralizing the letters of credit issued under a certain letter of credit facility (see Notes 4 and 14). The amount of cash encumbered varies depending on the market value of the securities sold, not yet purchased and letters of credit issued. Swap counterparties require cash collateral to support the current value of any amounts that may be due to the counterparty based on the value of the underlying security.

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash held by prime brokers relating to securities sold, not yet purchased	$	1,090,731	$	1,111,690
Cash collateral relating to letters of credit issued	134,981		202,248
Cash and cash equivalents held by swap counterparties	71,202		20,136
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	$	1,296,914	$	1,334,074

F-23

7.        LOSS AND LOSS ADJUSTMENT EXPENSE RESERVES

A summary of changes in outstanding loss and loss adjustment expense reserves is as follows: 

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Gross balance at January 1	$	329,894		$	356,470		$	241,279
Less: Losses recoverable	(16,829		)	(34,451		)	(29,758		)
Net balance at January 1	313,065			322,019			211,521
Incurred losses related to:
Current year	216,757			344,613			309,703
Prior years	18,229			(6,120		)	56,898
Total incurred	234,986			338,493			366,601
Paid losses related to:
Current year	(163,139		)	(177,871		)	(130,717		)
Prior years	(130,438		)	(170,018		)	(125,767		)
Total paid	(293,577		)	(347,889		)	(256,484		)
Foreign currency revaluation	(1,754		)	442			381
Net balance at December 31	252,720			313,065			322,019
Add: Losses recoverable	11,523			16,829			34,451
Gross balance at December 31	$	264,243		$	329,894		$	356,470

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the net losses incurred included $18.2 million related to net adverse loss development on reserves relating to prior years. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the loss development on prior year contracts primarily related to the following:

● $7.8 million of adverse loss development, relating to a general liability contract currently in run-off. Loss reserves were increased on this contract after a detailed actuarial review of existing claims data received from the client, which reported an increase in the number of open claims. The loss reserves were also increased to take into account the corresponding claims handling fees expected to be incurred to settle the open claims;

● $7.1 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, relating to commercial motor claims on a multi-line quota share contract currently in run-off. Loss reserves were increased on this contract after a detailed actuarial review of existing claims data received from the client, which reported significant increases in incurred losses on some claims as well as an increase in the number of open claims;

● $4.0 million of adverse loss development relating to a solicitors' professional indemnity contract as a result of a combination of large claims reported and increases in case reserves on several smaller claims. Loss reserves were increased on this contract after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the client, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrator and actuarial analysis based on all available information. The contract terms included sliding scale ceding commission rates and profit commissions. As a result, the increase in loss reserves was offset by a $0.6 million decrease in ceding commissions and profit commissions which were recorded as decreases to acquisition costs;

● $3.0 million of adverse loss development relating to the employer medical stop-loss business. Loss reserves were increased on these contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrators and actuarial analysis based on all available information; and

● $3.8 million of favorable loss development relating to private passenger automobile business, primarily as a result of better than expected loss development noted on our private passenger automobile contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files and actuarial analysis based on all available information. Since these contracts included sliding scale ceding commission rates, the decrease in loss reserves was offset by a $2.2 million increase in ceding commissions recorded as acquisition costs.

F-24

There were no other significant developments of prior period loss reserves during the year ended December 31, 2014.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the net losses incurred included $6.1 million related to net favorable loss development on reserves relating to prior years. During the year ended December 31, 2013, the loss development on prior year contracts primarily related to the following:

● Elimination of $15.0 million of reserves relating to super-storm Sandy based on additional information received from the client which indicated that the losses would not exceed the threshold of coverage provided under the contract. As a result of the reversal of loss reserves, the Company also reversed reinstatement premiums earned of $2.6 million;

● $4.0 million of favorable loss development relating to commercial automobile business due to better than expected loss development on open claims and settling of claims at lower amounts than expected. Loss reserves were decreased on these contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrators and actuarial analysis based on all available information;

● $3.0 million favorable loss development relating to a private passenger automobile contract as a result of final settlement of losses upon commutation of the contract at an amount lower than originally reserved. However, because this contract included a sliding scale ceding commission rate, the decrease in loss reserves was offset by a $2.3 million increase in ceding commissions recorded as acquisition costs;

● $2.4 million favorable loss development relating to Florida homeowners' insurance business due to better than expected development on sinkhole claims, primarily as a result of legislative changes implemented in the State of Florida during 2012;

● $17.7 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, relating to general liability business. Loss reserves were increased on these contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrators and actuarial analysis based on all available information; and

● $4.0 million of adverse loss development on a 2007 casualty clash contract based on updated claims and loss information received from the client. The new information indicated that ground up losses under the contract estimated by the client had increased resulting in additional losses attaching to the Company's layer. As a result of this increase in loss reserves, the Company recorded reinstatement premiums of $1.2 million.

There were no other significant developments of prior period loss reserves during the year ended December 31, 2013.

For the year ended December 31, 2012, the net losses incurred included $56.9 million related to net adverse loss development on reserves relating to prior years. During the year ended December 31, 2012, the loss development on prior year contracts primarily related to the following:

● $18.8 million of adverse loss development on a commercial motor liability contract that has been in run-off since 2010. The increase in loss reserves was based on updated loss data received from the third party claims adjuster and the client, as well as the Company's quarterly analysis of the remaining open claims and the reserves required to settle and resolve all remaining claims and any new reported claims;

● $21.9 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, relating to commercial motor liability exposures that are currently in run-off on two multi-line quota share contracts. Since these contracts are less mature than the Company's other commercial motor liability contract, there is more uncertainty as to the ultimate losses to be paid. As a result, the Company has recorded loss reserves for the commercial motor portion of these contracts consistent with the loss ratio recorded for the more mature commercial motor contract. Loss reserves were increased on these contracts after extensive review of existing claims data, the Company's previous experience with commercial motor liability business and actuarial analysis based on data received from third party claims handlers and the client;

● $9.0 million of adverse loss development on a 2010 natural peril contract relating to the 2010 New Zealand earthquake. This adverse loss development resulted from revised estimated losses expected on the underlying policies by the ceding insurer, primarily due to complex engineering and structural requirements as well as

F-25

building-code changes being implemented in New Zealand. The updated loss reserves resulted in a full limit loss of $10.0 million under this contract; and

● $4.6 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, on prior period Florida homeowners' contracts due to a combination of an increase in attritional losses as well as an increase in sinkhole losses based on updated information received from the ceding insurer during the period as well as a reassessment in connection with the Company's quarterly reserve analysis. These contracts contain sliding scale commission adjustments which offset some of the adverse loss development. Therefore, $4.6 million of adverse loss development was offset by a reduction of $1.3 million in commission expenses.

There were no other significant developments of prior period loss reserves during the year ended December 31, 2012.

At December 31, 2014 and 2013, loss and loss adjustment expense reserves were comprised of the following:

	2014		2013
	($ in thousands)
Case reserves	$	117,049	$	137,825
IBNR	147,194		192,069
Total	$	264,243	$	329,894

8.        RETROCESSION

The Company, from time to time, purchases retrocessional coverage for one or more of the following reasons: to manage its overall exposure, to reduce its net liability on individual risks, to obtain additional underwriting capacity and to balance its underwriting portfolio. Additionally, retrocession can be used as a mechanism to share the risks and rewards of business written and therefore can be used as a tool to align the Company's interests with those of its counterparties. The Company currently has coverages that provide for recovery of a portion of loss and loss expenses incurred on certain contracts. Loss and loss adjustment expense recoverable from the retrocessionaires are recorded as assets.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred of $235.0 million (2013: $338.5 million and 2012: $366.6 million) reported on the consolidated statements of income are net of loss and loss expenses recovered and recoverable of $4.4 million (2013: $(10.2) million and 2012: $13.0 million). The negative loss and loss adjustment expenses recovered for the year ended December 31, 2013, were due to reversal of loss reserves on retrocession contracts that were novated during 2013.

Retrocession contracts do not relieve the Company from its obligations to the insureds. Failure of retrocessionaires to honor their obligations could result in losses to the Company. At December 31, 2014, the Company had losses receivable and loss reserves recoverable of $18.3 million (December 31, 2013: $16.8 million) with unrated retrocessionaires. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, $2.8 million and $4.0 million, respectively, of losses recoverable from unrated retrocessionaires were secured by cash collateral held by the Company, while $6.7 million and nil, respectively, were secured through a trust account and the remainder was secured by other collateral in the form of guarantees.

At December 31, 2014, the uncollateralized losses receivable and loss reserves recoverable of $8.9 million was related to an unrated retrocessionaire who is contractually obligated to post collateral for the entire balance but the retrocessionaire disputed its obligation and only provided partial collateral. During 2013, an arbitration panel ruled in favor of the Company. The retrocessionaire challenged the arbitration award, seeking to set it aside. A judge in the Grand Court in Grand Cayman subsequently ordered the retrocessionaire to post security in the amount of the arbitration award pending a hearing on the merits, whereupon the retrocessionaire challenged the posting of security. During 2014, the retrocession contract was novated to an affiliate of the retrocessionaire, which partially funded a trust account with collateral for the benefit of the Company. Additionally, at December 31, 2014, an affiliate of the retrocessionaire was also delinquent in its payment to the Company of $10.3 million (December 31, 2013: $12.0 million) relating to ceding commission adjustments which are included in reinsurance balances receivable. The Company initiated legal proceedings in order to enforce its contractual rights. By Opinion and Order dated July 28, 2014, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (the "Court") granted, in part, the Company's summary judgment motion. Subsequently, on October 15, 2014, the Court entered the judgment in the Company's favor. Subsequent to the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company entered into a settlement agreement with the retrocessionaire and its affiliate in order to collect the outstanding balances. See Note 17 - Subsequent Events for further details.

F-26

The Company regularly evaluates the financial condition of all its retrocessionaires to assess the ability of the retrocessionaires to honor their obligations. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, no provision for uncollectible losses recoverable was considered necessary.

9.        SHARE CAPITAL

The holders of all ordinary shares are entitled to share equally in dividends declared by the Board of Directors. In the event of a winding-up or dissolution of the Company, the ordinary shareholders share equally and ratably in the assets of the Company, after payment of all debts and liabilities of the Company and after liquidation of any issued and outstanding preferred shares. At December 31, 2014, no preferred shares were issued or outstanding. The Board of Directors is authorized to establish the rights and restrictions for preferred shares as they deem appropriate.

The Third Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association as revised by special resolution on July 10, 2008 (the "Articles"), provide that the holders of Class A ordinary shares generally are entitled to one vote per share. However, except upon unanimous consent of the Board of Directors, no Class A shareholder is permitted to vote an amount of shares which would cause any United States person to own (directly, indirectly or constructively under applicable United States tax attribution and constructive ownership rules) 9.9% or more of the total voting power of all issued and outstanding ordinary shares. The Articles further provide that the holders of Class B ordinary shares generally are entitled to ten votes per share. However, holders of Class B ordinary shares, together with their affiliates, are limited to voting that number of Class B ordinary shares equal to 9.5% of the total voting power of the total issued and outstanding ordinary shares. 

Pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement, dated August 11, 2004, by and among the Company and certain of its shareholders, (the “Shareholders’ Agreement”) the holders of at least 50% of the outstanding Registrable Securities (as defined in the Shareholders' Agreement), may, subject to certain conditions, request to have all or part of their Registrable Securities to become registered. The Shareholders' Agreement requires, among other things, that the Company use its commercially reasonable best efforts to have a registration statement covering such Registrable Securities to be declared effective. The registration rights granted pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement are not deemed to be liabilities; therefore, there has been no recognition in the consolidated financial statements of the registration rights granted pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement.

As of December 31, 2014, the Company had an unused Form S-3 registration statement, declared effective by the SEC on July 10, 2009, which was renewed in June 2012 and expires in June 2015 unless renewed, for an aggregate principal amount of $200 million in securities.

Shares authorized for issuance are comprised of 300,000 (2013: 300,000) Class A ordinary shares in relation to share purchase options granted to a service provider and 3,500,000 (2013: 3,500,000) Class A ordinary shares authorized for the Company’s stock incentive plan for eligible employees, directors and consultants. As of December 31, 2014, there were no (2013: 20,000) remaining Class A ordinary shares available for future issuance relating to share purchase options granted to the service provider, and 803,558 (2013: 961,587) Class A ordinary shares remained available for future issuance under the Company's stock incentive plan. The stock incentive plan is administered by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors. 

The Board has adopted a share repurchase plan. Under the share repurchase plan, the Board authorized the Company to purchase up to 2.0 million of its Class A ordinary shares from time to time. Class A ordinary shares or securities convertible into Class A ordinary shares, may be purchased in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions. The timing of such repurchases and actual number of shares repurchased will depend on a variety of factors including price, market conditions and applicable regulatory and corporate requirements. The share repurchase plan, which expires on June 30, 2015, does not require the Company to repurchase any specific number of shares and may be modified, suspended or terminated at any time without prior notice. As of December 31, 2014, 2.0 million shares remained available under the share repurchase plan. Under the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands, the Company cannot hold treasury shares; therefore, all ordinary shares repurchased are canceled immediately upon repurchase.

F-27

The following table is a summary of voting ordinary shares issued and outstanding:

	2014			2013		2012
	Class A	Class B		Class A	Class B	Class A	Class B
Balance – beginning of year	30,791,865	6,254,949		30,447,179	6,254,949	30,283,200	6,254,949
Issue of ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	337,729	—		344,686	—	163,979	—
Class B shares converted to Class A	54	(54	)	—	—	—	—
Balance – end of year	31,129,648	6,254,895		30,791,865	6,254,949	30,447,179	6,254,949

Greenlight Re is subject to the Cayman Islands' Insurance (Capital and Solvency) (Classes B, C, and D Insurers) Regulations, 2012 (the "Insurance Regulations"). The Insurance Regulations impose a Minimum Capital Requirement of US$50.0 million and a Prescribed Capital Requirement of $443.5 million on Greenlight Re as of December 31, 2014 (2013: $449.4 million). As of December 31, 2014, Greenlight Re's statutory capital and surplus of $1,102.4 million exceeded the Minimum Capital Requirement as well as the Prescribed Capital Requirement. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, Greenlight Re's net income was $113.3 million, $229.8 million, and $15.3 million, respectively.

Greenlight Re is not required to prepare separate statutory financial statements for filing with CIMA and there were no material differences between Greenlight Re's GAAP capital, surplus and net income, and its statutory capital, surplus and net income as of December 31, 2014 and 2013.

As of December 31, 2014, $660.9 million of the Company's retained earnings were restricted from payment of dividends to the Company's shareholders. However, since most of the Company's capital and retained earnings are invested in its subsidiaries, a dividend from one or more of the Company's subsidiaries would likely be required in order to fund a dividend to the Company's shareholders. Any dividends declared and paid from Greenlight Re to the Company would require approval of CIMA. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, $658.8 million and $539.3 million, respectively, of Greenlight Re's capital and surplus was available for distribution as dividends. The amount of dividends that GRIL is permitted to distribute is limited to its retained earnings and the Central Bank of Ireland has powers to intervene if a dividend payment were to lead to a breach of regulatory capital requirements. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, $2.7 million and $6.0 million, respectively, of GRIL's capital and surplus was available for distribution as dividends.

GRIL is obligated to maintain a minimum level of capital (the "Required Minimum Margin"). As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, GRIL met such requirements. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, GRIL's statutory capital and surplus was the same as its U.S. GAAP capital and surplus of $42.9 million and $46.1 million, respectively. The required solvency margin for GRIL as of December 31, 2014 and 2013 was $13.6 million and $13.6 million, respectively. GRIL's statutory net income (loss) was $(3.3) million, $3.6 million and $1.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Additional paid-in capital includes the premium per share paid by the subscribing shareholders for Class A and B ordinary shares which have a par value of $0.10 each. It also includes share-based awards earned not yet issued.

10.      SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

The Company has a stock incentive plan for directors, employees and consultants as detailed in Note 9 above.

Service Provider Share Purchase Options

On September 20, 2004, the Company granted share purchase options to a service provider to purchase 400,000 Class A ordinary shares at an exercise price of $10.00 per share. During 2014, the remaining 20,000 share purchase options outstanding were exercised, resulting in the net issuance of 13,861 Class A ordinary shares (net of shares surrendered as a result of the cashless exercise of stock options).

Employee and Director Restricted Shares

As part of its stock incentive plan, the Company issues restricted shares for which the fair value is equal to the price of the Company’s Class A ordinary shares on the grant date. Compensation based on the grant date fair market value of the shares is expensed on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

F-28

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 127,186 (2013: 111,231, 2012: 112,477) restricted Class A ordinary shares were issued to employees pursuant to the Company’s stock incentive plan. These shares contain certain restrictions relating to, among other things, vesting, forfeiture in the event of termination of employment and transferability. Each of these restricted shares will cliff vest after three years from the date of issuance, subject to the grantee’s continued service with the Company. During the vesting period, the holder of the restricted shares retains voting rights and is entitled to any dividends declared by the Company.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company also issued to non-employee directors an aggregate of 28,060 (2013: 36,374, 2012: 35,994) restricted Class A ordinary shares as part of their remuneration for services to the Company. Each of these restricted shares issued to non-employee directors contains similar restrictions to those issued to employees and will vest on the earlier of the first anniversary of the share issuance or the Company’s next annual general meeting, subject to the grantee’s continued service with the Company.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 38,706 (2013: 16,826, 2012: 7,492) restricted shares were forfeited by employees who left the Company prior to the expiration of the vesting period. For the year ended December 31, 2014, in accordance with U.S. GAAP, $0.4 million of stock compensation expense (2013: $0.2 million, 2012: $0.2 million) relating to the forfeited restricted shares was reversed.

The Company recorded $3.3 million of share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures, relating to restricted shares for the year ended December 31, 2014 (2013: $3.2 million, 2012: $3.1 million). As of December 31, 2014, there were $4.2 million (2013: $3.5 million, 2012: $3.4 million) of unrecognized compensation costs related to non-vested restricted shares which are expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.8 years (2013: 1.7 years, 2012: 1.7 years). For the year ended December 31, 2014, the total fair value of restricted shares vested was $2.9 million (2013: $2.8 million, 2012: $3.3 million).

The restricted share award activity during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 was as follows:

	Number of non-vested restricted  shares		Weighted  average grant date fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	308,406		$	24.93
Granted	147,605		24.59
Vested	(110,194	)	25.08
Forfeited	(16,826	)	24.55
Balance at December 31, 2013	328,991		24.74
Granted	155,246		32.58
Vested	(115,444	)	25.35
Forfeited	(38,706	)	27.43
Balance at December 31, 2014	330,087		$	27.90

Employee and Director Stock Options

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 31,821 Class A ordinary share purchase options were granted to the Company's Chief Executive Officer, pursuant to his employment contract (2013: 38,197). These options vest 25% on the date of the grant, and 25% each on the anniversary thereof in 2015, 2016 and 2017, and expire 10 years after the grant date. The grant date fair value of these options was $15.71 per share (2013: $13.09 per share), based on the Black-Scholes option pricing model.

F-29

The Company uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine the valuation of its options and has applied the assumptions set forth in the following table.

	2014		2013		2012
Risk free rate	2.47	%	2.85	%	1.50	%
Estimated volatility	34.3	%	35.0	%	35.0	%
Expected term (in years)	10		10		10
Dividend yield	0	%	0	%	0	%
Forfeiture rate	0	%	0	%	0	%

At the present time, the Board of Directors does not anticipate that any dividends will be declared during the expected term of the options. The Company uses graded vesting for expensing employee stock options. The total compensation cost expensed for the year ended December 31, 2014 related to employee and director stock options was $0.5 million (2013: $0.6 million, 2012: $0.6 million). At December 31, 2014, the total compensation cost related to non-vested options not yet recognized was $0.4 million (2013: $0.4 million, 2012: $0.5 million) to be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.5 years (2013: 1.5 years, 2012: 1.5 years) assuming the employees complete their service period for vesting of the options.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 318,500 (2013: 56,500) stock options were exercised by directors and employees resulting in 207,328 Class A ordinary shares issued, net of shares surrendered as a result of the cashless exercise of stock options (2013: 52,173). When stock options are granted, the Company reduces the corresponding number from the shares authorized for issuance as part of the Company’s stock incentive plan. The intrinsic value of options exercised during the year ended December 31, 2014 was $6.7 million (2013: $0.8 million).

Employee and director stock option activity during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 was as follows: 

	Number of  options		Weighted  average  exercise  price		Weighted  average  grant date  fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	1,421,290		$	15.36	$	6.87
Granted	38,197		26.44		13.09
Exercised	(56,500	)	11.44		5.70
Forfeited	—		—		—
Expired	—		—		—
Balance at December 31, 2013	1,402,987		15.82		7.08
Granted	31,821		32.37		15.71
Exercised	(318,500	)	11.29		5.67
Forfeited	—		—		—
Expired	—		—		—
Balance at December 31, 2014	1,116,308		$	17.58	$	7.73

At December 31, 2014, the weighted-average remaining contractual term for options outstanding was 3.0 years (2013: 3.3 years).

At December 31, 2014, 1,062,022 (2013: 1,326,694) stock options were exercisable. These options had a weighted-average exercise price of $17.02 (2013: $15.35) and a weighted-average remaining contractual term of 2.7 years (2013: 3.0 years).

The weighted average grant date fair value of options granted during the year ended December 31, 2014 was $15.71 (2013: $13.09, 2012: $11.04). The aggregate intrinsic value of options outstanding and options exercisable at December 31, 2014 was $16.8 million and $16.6 million, respectively (2013: $25.1 million and $24.4 million, respectively). During the year ended December 31, 2014, 53,828 (2013: 45,871, 2012: 36,323) options vested which had a weighted average grant date fair value of $11.76 (2013: $11.08, 2012: $10.55).

F-30

Employee Restricted Stock Units

The Company issues restricted stock units ("RSUs") to certain employees as part of the stock incentive plan. The grant date fair value of the RSUs is equal to the price of the Company’s Class A ordinary shares on the grant date. Compensation based on the grant date fair market value of the RSUs is expensed on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 9,668 (2013: 5,941, 2012: nil) RSUs were issued to employees pursuant to the Company’s stock incentive plan. These shares contain certain restrictions relating to, among other things, vesting, forfeiture in the event of termination of employment and transferability. Each of these RSUs will cliff vest after three years from the date of issuance, subject to the grantee’s continued service with the Company. On the vesting date, the Company converts each RSU into one Class A ordinary share and issues new Class A ordinary shares from the shares authorized for issuance as part of the Company’s stock incentive plan.

The Company recorded $0.13 million of share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures, relating to RSUs for the year ended December 31, 2014 (2013: $0.03 million, 2012: nil).

Employee RSU activity during the year ended December 31, 2014 was as follows:

	Number of non-vested RSUs	Weighted  average grant date fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	—	—
Granted	5,941	24.41
Vested	—	—
Forfeited	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2013	5,941	$	24.41
Granted	9,668	32.60
Vested	—	—
Forfeited	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2014	15,609	$	29.72

For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the general and administrative expenses included stock compensation expense (net of forfeitures) of $4.0 million, $3.8 million and $3.7 million, respectively, for the expensing of the fair value of stock options, restricted stocks and RSUs granted to employees and directors.

11.      NET INVESTMENT INCOME

A summary of net investment income for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 is as follows:

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Realized gains	$	353,264		$	141,976		$	60,762
Change in unrealized gains	(172,402		)	154,791			67,569
Investment related foreign exchange gains (losses)	(1,684		)	19,305			3,682
Interest and dividend income	31,422			22,265			21,131
Interest, dividend and other expenses	(38,892		)	(47,665		)	(38,545		)
Investment advisor compensation	(49,133		)	(72,532		)	(35,658		)
Net investment income	$	122,575		$	218,140		$	78,941

Interest and dividend income in the above table are net of any withholding taxes. Investment returns are calculated monthly and compounded to calculate the annual returns. The resulting actual investment income may vary depending on cash flows into or out of the investment account. For the year ended December 31, 2014, investment income, net of all fees and expenses, resulted in a gain of 8.7% on the investment portfolio. This compares to a gain of 19.6% and a gain of 7.1% reported for the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

F-31

12.      TAXATION

The Company and Greenlight Re are each domiciled in the Cayman Islands and under current Cayman Islands law, no corporate entity, including the Company and Greenlight Re, is obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. Each of the Company and Greenlight Re intends to conduct all of its operations in a manner that will not cause it to be treated as engaging in a trade or business within the United States and will not cause it to be subject to current U.S. federal income taxation on its net income. However, because there are no definitive standards provided by the Internal Revenue Code, regulations or court decisions as to the specific activities that constitute being engaged in the conduct of a trade or business within the United States, and as any such determination is essentially factual in nature, there can be no assurance that the IRS will not successfully assert that the Company or Greenlight Re is engaged in a trade or business within the U.S.

Verdant is incorporated in Delaware, and therefore is subject to taxes in accordance with the U.S. federal rates and regulations prescribed by the IRS. Verdant’s taxable income is taxed at an effective tax rate of 35%. GRIL is incorporated in Ireland and, therefore, is subject to the Irish corporation tax. GRIL is taxed at a rate of 12.5% on its trading income.

At December 31, 2014, included in the consolidated balance sheet under other assets were taxes recoverable of $0.8 million (2013: taxes payable of $0.3 million) relating to both Verdant and GRIL, and a deferred tax asset of $0.03 million (2013: $0.05 million) primarily relating to Verdant resulting from the temporary differences in recognition of expenses. Based on the timing of the reversal of the temporary differences and likelihood of generating sufficient taxable income to realize the future tax benefit, management believes it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset and taxes recoverable will be fully realized in the future and therefore no valuation allowance has been recorded.

At December 31, 2014, the Company had a net operating loss carryforward of $1.6 million relating to Verdant which can be carried forward for a period of 20 years and will expire in 2033. 

The following table sets forth our current and deferred income tax benefit (expense) on a consolidated basis for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012:

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Current tax (expense) benefit	$	638		$	(534	)	$	(246	)
Tax recovered	—			—			169			(1)
Deferred tax (expense) benefit	(14		)	(4		)	(9		)
Income tax (expense) benefit	$	624		$	(538	)	$	(86	)

⁽¹⁾ During the year ended December 31, 2012, $0.2 million of tax refunds were received by GRIL relating to its operating losses for the 2011 tax year which were carried back and applied against the taxes previously paid for the 2010 tax year.

The Company has not taken any tax positions that are subject to uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact to the Company, Greenlight Re, GRIL or Verdant.

Federal Excise Taxes

The United States also imposes an excise tax on reinsurance premiums paid to non-U.S. insurers or reinsurers with respect to risks located in the United States. The rate of tax, unless exempted or reduced by an applicable U.S. tax treaty, is 1.0% for all reinsurance premiums. The Company incurs federal excise taxes on certain of its reinsurance transactions, including amounts ceded through intercompany transactions. For the years ended 2014, 2013, and 2012, the Company incurred approximately $2.2 million, $3.5 million and $3.8 million, respectively, of federal excise taxes. These amounts are reflected as acquisition costs in the Company’s consolidated statements of income.

F-32

13.      RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Investment Advisory Agreement

Prior to January 1, 2014, the Company and its reinsurance subsidiaries were party to an investment advisory agreement with DME Advisors (the "prior agreement") under which the Company, its reinsurance subsidiaries and DME Advisors created a joint venture for the purpose of managing certain jointly held assets. Effective January 1, 2014, the prior agreement was amended and restated to replace DME Advisors with DME Advisors, LLC ("DME") as the participant to the joint venture (the "venture agreement"). Simultaneously, the Company, its reinsurance subsidiaries and DME entered into a separate investment advisory agreement with DME Advisors (the "advisory agreement"). DME and DME Advisors are related to the Company and are an affiliate of David Einhorn, Chairman of the Company’s Board of Directors.

Pursuant to the venture agreement, performance allocation equal to 20% of the net investment income of the Company’s share of the account managed by DME Advisors is allocated, subject to a loss carry forward provision, to DME’s account. The loss carry forward provision allows DME to earn a reduced performance allocation of 10% on net investment income in any year subsequent to the year in which the investment account incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an additional amount equal to 150% of the aggregate investment loss is earned. DME is not entitled to earn a performance allocation in a year in which the investment portfolio incurs a loss. For the year ended December 31, 2014, performance allocation of $28.5 million (2013: $54.2 million, 2012: $18.8 million) was netted against gross investment income.  

Pursuant to the advisory agreement, a monthly management fee, equal to 0.125% (1.5% on an annual basis) of the Company’s investment account managed by DME Advisors, is paid to DME Advisors. Included in the net investment income for the year ended December 31, 2014 were management fees of $20.6 million (2013: $18.3 million, 2012: $16.9 million). The management fees have been fully paid as of December 31, 2014.

Pursuant to the venture and advisory agreements, the Company has agreed to indemnify DME and DME Advisors for any expense, loss, liability, or damage arising out of any claim asserted or threatened in connection with DME Advisors serving as the Company’s investment advisor. The Company will reimburse DME and DME Advisors for reasonable costs and expenses of investigating and/or defending such claims provided such claims were not caused due to gross negligence, breach of contract or misrepresentation by DME or DME Advisors. For the year ended December 31, 2014, there were no indemnification payments made by the Company.

David Einhorn also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Green Brick Partners Inc ("GRBK"), a publicly traded company. During the year end December 31, 2014, the Company, along with certain affiliates of DME Advisors, provided debt financing to GRBK and acquired equity shares of GRBK. As of December 31, 2014, $21.6 million of the GRBK debt and $18.4 million of listed equities were included on the Company's balance sheet as debt instruments, trading, at fair value and equity securities, trading, at fair value, respectively. The debt matures on October 27, 2019, and carries an annual interest rate of 9.0% until October 27, 2015, and 10.0% thereafter. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company's investment income included $0.4 million of interest relating to this debt.

Service Agreement

The Company has entered into a service agreement with DME Advisors, pursuant to which DME Advisors provides investor relations services to the Company for compensation of five thousand dollars per month (plus expenses). The agreement is automatically renewed annually until terminated by either the Company or DME Advisors for any reason with 30 days prior written notice to the other party. 

F-33

14.      COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Letters of Credit

At December 31, 2014, the Company had the following letter of credit facilities, which automatically renew each year unless terminated by either party in accordance with the required notice period:

	Facility		Termination Date	Notice period required for termination
	($ in thousands)
Bank of America, N.A.	$	200,000	July 20, 2015	90 days prior to termination date
Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited	60,000		June 30, 2015	90 days prior to termination date
Citibank Europe plc	400,000		October 11, 2015	120 days prior to termination date
JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.	100,000		January 27, 2016	120 days prior to termination date
	$	760,000

As of December 31, 2014, an aggregate amount of $273.7 million (2013: $379.1 million) in letters of credit were issued under the above facilities. Under the facilities, the Company provides collateral that may consist of equity securities and cash and cash equivalents. As of December 31, 2014, total equity securities, restricted cash, and cash and cash equivalents with a fair value in the aggregate of $302.6 million (2013: $410.3 million) were pledged as security against the letters of credit issued (also see Note 4). Each of the facilities contain customary events of default and restrictive covenants, including but not limited to, limitations on liens on collateral, transactions with affiliates, mergers and sales of assets, as well as solvency and maintenance of certain minimum pledged equity requirements, and restricts issuance of any debt without the consent of the letter of credit provider. Additionally, if an event of default exists, as defined in the letter of credit facilities, Greenlight Re will be prohibited from paying dividends to its parent company. The Company was in compliance with all the covenants of each of these facilities as of December 31, 2014 and 2013.

Operating Lease Obligations

Greenlight Re has entered into lease agreements for office space in the Cayman Islands. Under the terms of the lease agreements, Greenlight Re is committed to annual rent payments ranging from $0.3 million at inception to $0.5 million at lease termination. The leases expire on June 30, 2018 and Greenlight Re has the option to renew the leases for a further five year term. Included in the schedule below are the minimum lease payment obligations relating to these leases as of December 31, 2014.

GRIL has entered into a lease agreement for office space in Dublin, Ireland. Under the terms of this lease agreement, GRIL is committed to average annual rent payments denominated in Euros approximating €0.1 million until May 2016 (net of rent inducements), which shall be adjusted to the prevailing market rates for each of three subsequent five-year terms. GRIL has the option to terminate the lease agreement in 2016 and 2021. Included in the schedule below are the net minimum lease payment obligations relating to this lease as of December 31, 2014.

The total rent expense related to leased office space for the year ended December 31, 2014 was $0.5 million, (2013: $0.5 million, 2012: $0.4 million). 

Specialist Service Agreement

The Company has entered into a service agreement with a specialist service provider for the provision of administration and support in developing and maintaining business relationships, reviewing and recommending programs and managing risks relating to certain specialty lines of business. The specialist service provider does not have any authority to bind the Company to any reinsurance contracts. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company has committed to quarterly payments to the specialist service provider. If the agreement is terminated, the Company is obligated to make minimum payments for twelve months starting on September 1 of the year in which the agreement is terminated, to ensure contracts to which the Company is bound are adequately administered by the specialist service provider. Included in the schedule below are the minimum payment obligations relating to the agreement as of December 31, 2014.

F-34

Private Equity and Limited Partnerships

From time to time the Company makes investments in private equity vehicles. As part of the Company's participation in such private equity investments, the Company may make funding commitments. As of December 31, 2014, the Company had commitments to invest an additional $8.9 million (2013: $6.3 million) in private equity investments. Included in the schedule below are the minimum payment obligations relating to these investments as of December 31, 2014.

Schedule of Commitments and Contingencies

The following is a schedule of future minimum payments required under the above commitments: 

	2015		2016		2017		2018		2019		Thereafter		Total
	($ in thousands)
Operating lease obligations	$	557	$	500	$	466	$	233	$	—	$	—	$	1,756
Specialist service agreement	750		300		—		—		—		—		1,050
Private equity and limited partnerships (1)	8,929		—		—		—		—		—		8,929
	$	10,236	$	800	$	466	$	233	$	—	$	—	$	11,735

(1) Given the nature of these investments, the Company is unable to determine with any degree of accuracy when these commitments will be called. Therefore, for purposes of the above table, the Company has assumed that all commitments with no fixed payment schedules will be called during the year ended December 31, 2015.

Litigation

From time to time in the normal course of business, the Company may be involved in formal and informal dispute resolution procedures, which may include arbitration or litigation, the outcomes of which determine the rights and obligations under the Company's reinsurance contracts and other contractual agreements. In some disputes, the Company may seek to enforce its rights under an agreement or to collect funds owing to it. In other matters, the Company may resist attempts by others to collect funds or enforce alleged rights. While the final outcome of legal disputes cannot be predicted with certainty, the Company does not believe that any existing dispute, when finally resolved, will have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition or operating results.

15.      SEGMENT REPORTING

The Company manages its business on the basis of one operating segment, Property & Casualty Reinsurance.

Substantially all of the business is sourced through reinsurance brokers. The following table sets forth the premiums sourced from brokers who each accounted for more than 10% of the Company's gross written premiums:  

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Largest broker	$	161,405	49.8	%	$	282,337	52.7	%	$	242,665	56.7	%
2nd largest broker	61,809		19.1		119,117		22.2		63,044		14.7
3rd largest broker	40,773		12.6		—		—		48,497		11.3
	$	263,987	81.5	%	$	401,454	74.9	%	$	354,206	82.7	%

F-35

The following tables provide a breakdown of the Company's gross premiums written by line of business and by geographic area of risks insured for the periods indicated:

Gross Premiums Written by Line of Business

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013					2012
	($ in thousands)
Property
Aviation	$	391	0.1	%	$	168		—	%	$	—		—	%
Commercial	11,529		3.6		9,999			1.9		15,110			3.5
Energy	2,131		0.6		659			0.1		—			—
Motor physical damage	24,008		7.4		57,952			10.8		60,262			14.1
Personal	64,479		19.9		145,807			27.2		81,662			19.1
Total Property	102,538		31.6		214,585			40.0		157,034			36.7
Casualty
General liability (1)	11,639		3.6		(815		)	(0.2	)	22,462			5.3
Marine liability	5,120		1.6		1,956			0.4		2,240			0.5
Motor liability	127,858		39.5		253,698			47.4		178,204			41.7
Professional liability	27,009		8.4		29,901			5.6		17,301			4.0
Total Casualty	171,626		53.1		284,740			53.2		220,207			51.5
Specialty
Financial (1)	5,292		1.6		3,498			0.7		(256		)	(0.1	)
Health	43,837		13.5		37,094			6.9		33,874			7.9
Workers’ compensation (1)	730		0.2		(4,215		)	(0.8	)	16,985			4.0
Total Specialty	49,859		15.3		36,377			6.8		50,603			11.8
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702		100.0	%	$	427,844		100.0	%

(1)  The negative balance represents reversal of premiums due to premium adjustments, termination of contracts or premiums returned upon novation or commutation of contracts.

Gross Premiums Written by Geographic Area of Risks Insured

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
U.S. and Caribbean	$	275,402	85.0	%	$	496,949	92.8	%	$	399,410	93.4	%
Worldwide (1)	31,106		9.6		9,821		1.8		11,134		2.6
Europe	17,432		5.4		28,932		5.4		17,300		4.0
Asia	83		—		—		—		—		—
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702	100.0	%	$	427,844	100.0	%

(1) "Worldwide" is comprised of contracts that reinsure risks in more than one geographic area and do not specifically exclude the U.S. 

F-36

16.      QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS (UNAUDITED)

The following table presents the quarterly financial results for each of the quarters ended during 2014:

	2014
	Quarter ended
	March 31			June 30			September 30			December 31
	($ in thousands, except per share amounts)
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	118,901		$	33,654		$	97,200		$	74,268
Gross premiums ceded	(5,940		)	(2,759		)	(2,706		)	(2,088		)
Net premiums written	112,961			30,895			94,494			72,180
Change in net unearned premium reserves	(1,272		)	56,960			(15,003		)	3,025
Net premiums earned	111,689			87,855			79,491			75,205
Net investment income (loss)	(10,150		)	113,932			(54,027		)	72,820
Other income (expense), net	441			(18		)	(22		)	12
Total revenues	101,980			201,769			25,442			148,037
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	67,363			56,644			53,028			57,951
Acquisition costs, net	37,796			25,570			22,478			21,821
General and administrative expenses	6,459			6,941			3,327			5,199
Total expenses	111,618			89,155			78,833			84,971
Income (loss) before income tax expense	(9,638		)	112,614			(53,391		)	63,066
Income tax (expense) benefit	560			14			254			(204		)
Net income (loss) including non-controlling interest	(9,078		)	112,628			(53,137		)	62,862
(Income) loss attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	197			(3,075		)	1,369			(2,174		)
Net income (loss)	$	(8,881	)	$	109,553		$	(51,768	)	$	60,688
Earnings per share
Basic	$	(0.24	)	$	2.94		$	(1.40	)	$	1.62
Diluted	$	(0.24	)	$	2.89		$	(1.40	)	$	1.60
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	36,808,386			37,246,922			36,984,650			37,356,187
Diluted	36,808,386			37,902,106			36,984,650			37,905,836

F-37

The following table presents the quarterly financial results for each of the quarters ended during 2013:

	2013
	Quarter ended
	March 31			June 30			September 30			December 31
	($ in thousands)
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	126,964		$	135,198		$	148,765		$	124,775
Gross premiums ceded	3,978			(2,514		)	(2,389		)	(1,855		)
Net premiums written	130,942			132,684			146,376			122,920
Change in net unearned premium reserves	(21,471		)	316			17,515			18,617
Net premiums earned	109,471			133,000			163,891			141,537
Net investment income	61,139			24,247			49,448			83,306
Other income (expense), net	389			(488		)	(1		)	(850		)
Total revenues	170,999			156,759			213,338			223,993
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	66,278			78,345			94,366			99,504
Acquisition costs, net	41,296			42,936			53,521			34,119
General and administrative expenses	3,760			5,943			7,085			4,930
Total expenses	111,334			127,224			154,972			138,553
Income before income tax expense	59,665			29,535			58,366			85,440
Income tax (expense) benefit	(308		)	(142		)	(90		)	2
Net income including non-controlling interest	59,357			29,393			58,276			85,442
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	(2,624		)	(893		)	(1,740		)	(1,512		)
Net income	$	56,733		$	28,500		$	56,536		$	83,930
Earnings per share
Basic	$	1.54		$	0.77		$	1.53		$	2.27
Diluted	$	1.52		$	0.76		$	1.50		$	2.22
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	36,730,315			36,830,046			36,875,716			36,908,919
Diluted	37,424,894			37,537,500			37,645,053			37,746,223

17. SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

As described in Note 8 - Retrocession, the Company had previously successfully litigated and had been awarded a judgment to collect certain amounts owing to it from a third party retrocessionaire and an affiliate of the retrocessionaire. Subsequent to year end, the Company entered into a settlement agreement whereby scheduled payments would be made to the Company such that the Company would receive in full, with interest, all amounts owing.

F-38

SCHEDULE I

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

SUMMARY OF INVESTMENTS — OTHER THAN INVESTMENTS IN RELATED PARTIES

AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2014

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

Type of Investment	Cost		Fair Value		Balance Sheet Value
	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	$	53,075	$	49,212	$	49,212
Equity securities, trading, at fair value
Common stocks, listed	1,079,955		1,246,427		1,246,427
Exchange traded funds	42,126		19,748		19,748
Total equity securities, trading, at fair value	1,122,081		1,266,175		1,266,175
Total investments, trading	$	1,175,156	$	1,315,387	$	1,315,387
Other investments, at fair value
Private and unlisted equities securities	$	17,238	$	18,719	$	18,719
Commodities	95,815		96,872		96,872
Total other investments, at fair value	113,053		115,591		115,591
Total investments	$	1,288,209	$	1,430,978	$	1,430,978

F-39

SCHEDULE II

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED BALANCE SHEETS — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash and cash equivalents	$	1	$	5
Investment in subsidiaries	1,148,308		1,035,423
Note receivable	1,566		3,728
Due from subsidiaries	15,276		16,247
Total assets	$	1,165,151	$	1,055,403
Liabilities and shareholders’ equity
Liabilities
Due to subsidiaries	$	—	$	3,808
Total liabilities	—		3,808
Shareholders’ equity
Share capital	3,738		3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553		496,622
Retained earnings	660,860		551,268
Total shareholders’ equity	1,165,151		1,051,595
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity	$	1,165,151	$	1,055,403

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF INCOME — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Year ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Revenue
Investment income	$	671		$	1,100		$	810
Total revenues	671			1,100			810
Expenses
General and administrative expenses	3,806			3,735			3,603
Net income (loss) before equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(3,135		)	(2,635		)	(2,793		)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	112,727			228,334			17,391
Consolidated net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598

F-40

SCHEDULE II (continued)

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Year Ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to cash provided by operating activities
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(112,727		)	(228,334		)	(17,391		)
Share-based compensation expense	3,964			3,675			3,689
Change in
Due from subsidiaries	971			(2,006		)	(52		)
Due to subsidiaries	(3,808		)	2,438			587
Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities	(2,008		)	1,472			1,431
Investing activities
Change in note receivable	2,162			(2,053		)	(1,675		)
Contributed surplus to subsidiaries, net	(158		)	59			(85		)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	2,004			(1,994		)	(1,760		)
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	—			513			318
Net cash provided by financing activities	—			513			318
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents	(4		)	(9		)	(11		)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the year	5			14			25
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year	$	1		$	5		$	14

F-41

SCHEDULE III

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

SUPPLEMENTARY INSURANCE INFORMATION

AS OF AND FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2014, 2013 AND 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

Year	Segment	Deferred acquisition costs, net		Reserves for losses and loss adjustment expenses – gross		Unearned premiums – gross		Net premiums earned		Net investment income (loss)		Net losses, and loss adjustment expenses		Amortization of deferred acquisition costs		Other operating expenses		Gross premiums written
2014	Property & Casualty	$	34,420	$	264,243	$	128,736	$	354,240	$	122,575	$	234,986	$	107,665	$	21,926	$	324,023
2013	Property & Casualty	$	51,797	$	329,894	$	173,057	$	547,899	$	218,140	$	338,493	$	171,872	$	21,718	$	535,702
2012	Property & Casualty	$	59,177	$	356,470	$	188,185	$	466,714	$	78,941	$	366,601	$	142,721	$	17,539	$	427,844

SCHEDULE IV

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

SUPPLEMENTARY REINSURANCE INFORMATION

AS OF AND FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2014, 2013 AND 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

Year	Segment	Direct gross  premiums		Premiums  ceded to  other companies			Premiums assumed from other companies		Net amount		Percentage of  amount assumed to net
2014	Property & Casualty	$	—	$	13,493		$	324,023	$	310,530	104	%
2013	Property & Casualty	$	—	$	2,780		$	535,702	$	532,922	101	%
2012	Property & Casualty	$	—	$	(24,275	)	$	427,844	$	452,119	95	%

F-42

EXHIBIT INDEX

Exhibit Number Description of Exhibit

3.1	Third Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association as revised by special resolution on July 10, 2008 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on August 7, 2008)
4.1	Form of Specimen Certificate of Class A ordinary shares (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
4.2	Share Purchase Option, dated August 11, 2004, by and between the Registrant and First International Capital Holdings, Ltd. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.1	Form of Securities Purchase Agreement for Class A ordinary shares by and between the Registrant and each of the subscribers thereto (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.2 (1)	Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. Third Amended and Restated 2004 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.19 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.3 (1)	Form of Restricted Stock Award Agreement by and between the Registrant and the Grantee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.6 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.4 (1)	Form of Stock Option Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.7 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.5 (1)	Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. Form of Directors’ Restricted Stock Award (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.20 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.6 (1)	Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. Form of Employees’ Restricted Stock Award (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.21 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.7	Form of Shareholders’ Agreement, dated August 11, 2004, by and among the Registrant and each of the subscribers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.8 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.8	Form of Deed of Indemnity between the Registrant and each of its directors and certain of its officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.11 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.9 (1)	Amended and Restated Employment Agreement, dated as of December 30, 2008, by and among Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Tim Courtis (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 2, 2009)
10.10 (1)	Concurrent Private Placement Stock Purchase Agreement for Class B Ordinary Shares, dated January 11, 2007, by and between the Company and David Einhorn (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.16 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.11	Service Agreement, dated as of February 21, 2007, between DME Advisors, LP and Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.17 of the Company’s Registration Statement No. 333-139993)
10.12 (1)	Amendment No. 1, dated February 18, 2009, to the Amended and Restated Employment Agreement, dated as of December 30, 2008, by and among Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Tim Courtis (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.26 of the Company’s Form 10-K filed on February 23, 2009)
10.13	Letter of Credit Agreement, executed July 21, 2009, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Bank of America, N.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on November 2, 2009)
10.14 (1)	Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. Amended and Restated 2004 Stock Incentive Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company’s Form 8-K filed on May 4, 2010)
10.15	Amended and Restated Letter of Credit Agreement, executed June 17, 2010, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on August 2, 2010)
10.16	Amended Letter of Credit Agreement, executed June 14, 2010, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Bank of America, N.A (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed August 2, 2010)
10.17	Letter of Understanding, dated June 10, 2010, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Citibank, N.A (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on August 2, 2010)
10.18	Letter of Credit Agreement, dated August 20, 2010, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Citibank Europe plc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on November 2, 2010)
10.19	Master Reimbursement Agreement, dated August 20, 2010, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Citibank Europe plc (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on November 2, 2010)
10.20	Reinsurance Deposit Agreement, dated August 20, 2010, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Citibank Europe plc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on November 2, 2010)

10.21		Amended and Restated Agreement, effective as of August 31, 2010, between Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd., and DME Advisors, LP (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 of the Company’s Form 10-Q filed on November 2, 2010)
10.22		Letter of Credit Agreement, effective as of February 3, 2011, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.38 of the Company’s Form 10-K filed on February 22, 2011)
10.23 (1)		Amended and Restated Employment Agreement, dated July 26, 2012, by and among Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Barton Hedges (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company's Form 10-Q filed on July 30, 2012)
10.24 (1)		Employment Agreement, dated August 15, 2006, by and among Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Brendan Barry (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.24 of the Company’s Form 10-K filed on February 21, 2012)
10.25 (1)		Employment Agreement, dated September 28, 2006, by and among Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Claude Wagner (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.25 of the Company’s Form 10-K filed on February 21, 2012)
10.26		Amendment to amended letter of credit agreement executed on December 16, 2011 between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and Bank of America, N.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.26 of the Company’s Form 10-K filed on February 21, 2012)
10.27		Amended letter of credit agreement effective as of December 16, 2011, between Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.27 of the Company’s Form 10-K filed on February 21, 2012)
10.28		Second Amended and Restated Agreement by and among Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd., Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (for limited purposes) and DME Advisors, LLC, Amended and Restated as of January 1, 2014 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company's Form 8-K filed on January 7, 2014)
10.29		Investment Advisory Agreement among DME Advisors, LP, The Venture Among Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd. and DME Advisors, LLC, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd., Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd. and DME Advisors, LLC, effective January 1, 2014 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 of the Company's Form 8-K filed on January 7, 2014)
10.30 (1)		Employment Agreement, dated July 31, 2014, by and among Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. and James McNichols. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Company's Form 10-Q filed on November 3, 2014)
12.1		Ratio of earnings to fixed charges and preferred share dividends.
21.1		Subsidiaries of the registrant (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 21.1 of the Company's Form 10-K filed on February 22, 2011)
23.1		Consent of BDO USA, LLP
31.1		Certification of the Chief Executive Officer of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. filed herewith pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
31.2		Certification of the Chief Financial Officer of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. filed herewith pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.1		Certification of the Chief Executive Officer of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. furnished herewith pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.2		Certification of the Chief Financial Officer of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. furnished herewith pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
101		The following materials from the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014, formatted in XBRL (eXtensible Business Reporting Language): (i) the Consolidated Balance Sheets; (ii) the Consolidated Statements of Income; (iii) the Consolidated Statements of Shareholders’ Equity; (iv) the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows; and (v) the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
(1	)	Management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

EX-12.1

Exhibit 12.1

RATIO OF EARNINGS TO FIXED CHARGES AND PREFERRED SHARE DIVIDENDS

The following table sets forth our consolidated ratios:

	Year ended December 31, 2014	Year ended December 31, 2013
	(2)	(2)
Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges (1)	5.94	10.23

(1) The ratio of earnings to fixed charges was determined by dividing consolidated earnings by total fixed charges. For purposes of the ratios of earnings to fixed charges (i) earnings consist of consolidated net income before considering income taxes, minority interest and fixed charges and (ii) fixed charges consist of interest on indebtedness, interest expense on funds withheld from reinsurers and that portion of rent expense that is deemed by our management to be an appropriate interest factor. We have estimated that one-third of rent expense represents a reasonable approximation of the interest factor.

(2) No preferred shares were outstanding during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, and no preferred share dividends were paid during those periods.

EX-23.1

EXHIBIT 23.1

Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.

Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

We hereby consent to the incorporation by reference in the Registration Statements on Form S-3 (No. 333-158970) and Form S-8 (No. 333-139993) of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. of our reports dated February 17, 2015, relating to the consolidated financial statements and financial statement schedules, and the effectiveness of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.’s internal control over financial reporting, which appear in this Form 10-K.

/s/ BDO USA, LLP

Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA

February 17, 2015

EX-31.1

EXHIBIT 31.1 

CERTIFICATION OF

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

I, Barton Hedges, certify that:

1. I have reviewed this annual report on Form 10-K of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.;

2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the periods covered by this report;

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared; 

b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; 

c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and 

d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and 

5. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and 

b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.   

Dated:	February 17, 2015	/s/ Barton Hedges
		Barton Hedges
		Chief Executive Officer

EX-31.2

 EXHIBIT 31.2 

CERTIFICATION OF

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER OF

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

I, Tim Courtis, certify that:

1. I have reviewed this annual report on Form 10-K of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd.;

2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the periods covered by this report;

3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;

4. The registrant’s other certifying officers and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) and internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)) for the registrant and have:

a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared; 

b) Designed such internal control over financial reporting, or caused such internal control over financial reporting to be designed under our supervision, to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles; 

c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and 

d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and 

5. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):

a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and 

b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.   

Dated:	February 17, 2015	/s/ Tim Courtis
		Tim Courtis
		Chief Financial Officer

EX-32.1

EXHIBIT 32.1   

CERTIFICATION OF

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD. 

This certification is provided pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and accompanies the annual report on Form 10-K (the ‘‘Form 10-K’’) for the year ended December 31, 2014 of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (the ‘‘Issuer’’). 

I, Barton Hedges, the Principal Executive Officer of the Issuer, certify that to the best of my knowledge: 

1. The Form 10-K fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m(a) or 78o(d)), as amended; and 

2. The information contained in the Form 10-K fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Issuer. 

Dated:	February 17, 2015	/s/ Barton Hedges
		Barton Hedges

EX-32.2

EXHIBIT 32.2  

CERTIFICATION OF

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER OF

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.  

This certification is provided pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and accompanies the annual report on Form 10-K (the ‘‘Form 10-K’’) for the year ended December 31, 2014 of Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. (the ‘‘Issuer’’). 

I, Tim Courtis, the Principal Financial Officer of the Issuer, certify that to the best of my knowledge: 

1. The Form 10-K fully complies with the requirements of Section 13(a) or Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m(a) or 78o(d)), as amended; and 

2. The information contained in the Form 10-K fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Issuer.  

Dated:	February 17, 2015	/s/ Tim Courtis
		Tim Courtis

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SEGMENT REPORTING (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

Gross premiums written by brokers greater than 10% of premiums

The following table sets forth the premiums sourced from brokers who each accounted for more than 10% of the Company's gross written premiums:  

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Largest broker	$	161,405	49.8	%	$	282,337	52.7	%	$	242,665	56.7	%
2nd largest broker	61,809		19.1		119,117		22.2		63,044		14.7
3rd largest broker	40,773		12.6		—		—		48,497		11.3
	$	263,987	81.5	%	$	401,454	74.9	%	$	354,206	82.7	%

Gross Premiums Written by Line of Business

The following tables provide a breakdown of the Company's gross premiums written by line of business and by geographic area of risks insured for the periods indicated:

Gross Premiums Written by Line of Business

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013					2012
	($ in thousands)
Property
Aviation	$	391	0.1	%	$	168		—	%	$	—		—	%
Commercial	11,529		3.6		9,999			1.9		15,110			3.5
Energy	2,131		0.6		659			0.1		—			—
Motor physical damage	24,008		7.4		57,952			10.8		60,262			14.1
Personal	64,479		19.9		145,807			27.2		81,662			19.1
Total Property	102,538		31.6		214,585			40.0		157,034			36.7
Casualty
General liability (1)	11,639		3.6		(815		)	(0.2	)	22,462			5.3
Marine liability	5,120		1.6		1,956			0.4		2,240			0.5
Motor liability	127,858		39.5		253,698			47.4		178,204			41.7
Professional liability	27,009		8.4		29,901			5.6		17,301			4.0
Total Casualty	171,626		53.1		284,740			53.2		220,207			51.5
Specialty
Financial (1)	5,292		1.6		3,498			0.7		(256		)	(0.1	)
Health	43,837		13.5		37,094			6.9		33,874			7.9
Workers’ compensation (1)	730		0.2		(4,215		)	(0.8	)	16,985			4.0
Total Specialty	49,859		15.3		36,377			6.8		50,603			11.8
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702		100.0	%	$	427,844		100.0	%

(1)  The negative balance represents reversal of premiums due to premium adjustments, termination of contracts or premiums returned upon novation or commutation of contracts.

Gross Premiums Written by Geographic Area of Risks Insured

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
U.S. and Caribbean	$	275,402	85.0	%	$	496,949	92.8	%	$	399,410	93.4	%
Worldwide (1)	31,106		9.6		9,821		1.8		11,134		2.6
Europe	17,432		5.4		28,932		5.4		17,300		4.0
Asia	83		—		—		—		—		—
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702	100.0	%	$	427,844	100.0	%

(1) "Worldwide" is comprised of contracts that reinsure risks in more than one geographic area and do not specifically exclude the U.S. 

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Other Investments (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost	$ 113,053	$ 100,177
Unrealized gains	4,508	14,425
Unrealized losses	(1,970)	(7,391)
Fair value	115,591	107,211
Commodities
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost	95,815	54,633
Unrealized gains	1,057	6,255
Unrealized losses	0	0
Fair value	96,872	60,888
Private and unlisted equities securities
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost	17,238	45,544
Unrealized gains	3,451	8,170
Unrealized losses	(1,970)	(7,391)
Fair value	$ 18,719	$ 46,323

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Investments Categorized by the Level of Fair Value Hierarchy (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Trading Securities, Debt	$ 49,212	$ 4,312
Listed equity securities	1,266,175	1,282,156
Commodities	96,872	60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	18,719	46,323
Financial contracts receivable	47,171	104,048
Assets:	1,478,149	1,497,727
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	(834,228)	(917,123)
Financial Instruments Sold, Not yet Purchased, Other Sovereign Government Debt	256,503	194,567
Financial contracts payable	(44,592)	(18,857)
Liabilities:	(1,135,323)	(1,130,547)
Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Trading Securities, Debt	0	0
Listed equity securities	1,259,298	1,274,920
Commodities	96,872	60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	0	0
Financial contracts receivable	2,463	4,500
Assets:	1,358,633	1,340,308
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	(834,228)	(917,123)
Financial Instruments Sold, Not yet Purchased, Other Sovereign Government Debt	0	0
Financial contracts payable	0	0
Liabilities:	(834,228)	(917,123)
Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Trading Securities, Debt	26,953	3,785
Listed equity securities	6,877	7,236
Commodities	0	0
Private and unlisted equity securities	0	0
Financial contracts receivable	44,708	99,548
Assets:	78,538	110,569
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	0	0
Financial Instruments Sold, Not yet Purchased, Other Sovereign Government Debt	256,503	194,567
Financial contracts payable	(44,592)	(18,857)
Liabilities:	(301,095)	(213,424)
Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Trading Securities, Debt	22,259	527
Listed equity securities	0	0
Commodities	0	0
Private and unlisted equity securities	18,719	46,323
Financial contracts receivable	0	0
Assets:	40,978	46,850
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	0	0
Financial Instruments Sold, Not yet Purchased, Other Sovereign Government Debt	0	0
Financial contracts payable	0	0
Liabilities:	$ 0	$ 0

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION Black Scholes option pricing model assumptions (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]
Risk free rate	2.47%	2.85%	1.50%
Estimated volatility	34.30%	35.00%	35.00%
Expected term (in years)	10 years	10 years	10 years
Dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Forfeiture rate	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS NAV Instruments (Details) (Private and unlisted equities securities, USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair Value, Investments, Entities that Calculate Net Asset Value Per Share [Line Items]
Amount of unfunded commitments relating to private equity funds	$ 8.9	$ 6.3
Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)
Fair Value, Investments, Entities that Calculate Net Asset Value Per Share [Line Items]
Fair Value of investments in private equity funds	$ 12.3	$ 41.6
Percentage of funds that have redemption restrictions	100.00%

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SEGMENT REPORTING Schedule of Revenue by Major Customers (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014 Segment	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenue, Major Customer [Line Items]
Number of operating segments									1
Largest broker	$ 148,037	$ 25,442	$ 201,769	$ 101,980	$ 223,993	$ 213,338	$ 156,759	$ 170,999	$ 477,228	$ 765,089	$ 545,396
Broker Concentration Risk | Gross Premiums Written
Revenue, Major Customer [Line Items]
Largest broker									263,987	401,454	354,206
Concentration risk, percentage									81.50%	74.90%	82.70%
Broker Concentration Risk | Gross Premiums Written | Largest broker
Revenue, Major Customer [Line Items]
Largest broker									161,405	282,337	242,665
Concentration risk, percentage									49.80%	52.70%	56.70%
Broker Concentration Risk | Gross Premiums Written | 2nd largest broker
Revenue, Major Customer [Line Items]
Largest broker									61,809	119,117	63,044
Concentration risk, percentage									19.10%	22.20%	14.70%
Broker Concentration Risk | Gross Premiums Written | 3rd largest broker
Revenue, Major Customer [Line Items]
Largest broker									$ 40,773	$ 0	$ 48,497
Concentration risk, percentage									12.60%	0.00%	11.30%

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SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Income taxes (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Verdant
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Tax rate for taxable income	35.00%
Ireland | GRIL
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Tax rate for trading income	12.50%
Tax rate for non-trading income	25.00%

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LOSS AND LOSS ADJUSTMENT EXPENSE RESERVES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Insurance Loss Reserves [Abstract]

Schedule of Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense

A summary of changes in outstanding loss and loss adjustment expense reserves is as follows: 

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Gross balance at January 1	$	329,894		$	356,470		$	241,279
Less: Losses recoverable	(16,829		)	(34,451		)	(29,758		)
Net balance at January 1	313,065			322,019			211,521
Incurred losses related to:
Current year	216,757			344,613			309,703
Prior years	18,229			(6,120		)	56,898
Total incurred	234,986			338,493			366,601
Paid losses related to:
Current year	(163,139		)	(177,871		)	(130,717		)
Prior years	(130,438		)	(170,018		)	(125,767		)
Total paid	(293,577		)	(347,889		)	(256,484		)
Foreign currency revaluation	(1,754		)	442			381
Net balance at December 31	252,720			313,065			322,019
Add: Losses recoverable	11,523			16,829			34,451
Gross balance at December 31	$	264,243		$	329,894		$	356,470

Component of Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves

At December 31, 2014 and 2013, loss and loss adjustment expense reserves were comprised of the following:

	2014		2013
	($ in thousands)
Case reserves	$	117,049	$	137,825
IBNR	147,194		192,069
Total	$	264,243	$	329,894

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SEGMENT REPORTING Schedule of Gross Premiums Written by Line of Business (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014		Dec. 31, 2013		Dec. 31, 2012
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written	$ 74,268	$ 97,200	$ 33,654	$ 118,901	$ 124,775	$ 148,765	$ 135,198	$ 126,964	$ 324,023		$ 535,702		$ 427,844
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									100.00%		100.00%		100.00%
Total Property
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									102,538		214,585		157,034
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									31.60%		40.00%		36.70%
Aviation
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									391		168		0
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									0.10%		0.00%		0.00%
Commercial
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									11,529		9,999		15,110
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									3.60%		1.90%		3.50%
Energy
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									2,131		659		0
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									0.60%		0.10%		0.00%
Motor physical damage
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									24,008		57,952		60,262
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									7.40%		10.80%		14.10%
Personal
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									64,479		145,807		81,662
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									19.90%		27.20%		19.10%
Total Casualty
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									171,626		284,740		220,207
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									53.10%		53.20%		51.50%
General liability
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									11,639	[1]	(815)	[1]	22,462	[1]
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									3.60%	[1]	(0.20%)	[1]	5.30%	[1]
Marine liability
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									5,120		1,956		2,240
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									1.60%		0.40%		0.50%
Motor liability
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									127,858		253,698		178,204
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									39.50%		47.40%		41.70%
Professional liability
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									27,009		29,901		17,301
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									8.40%		5.60%		4.00%
Total Specialty
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									49,859		36,377		50,603
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									15.30%		6.80%		11.80%
Financial
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									5,292	[1]	3,498	[1]	(256)	[1]
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									1.60%	[1]	0.70%	[1]	(0.10%)	[1]
Health
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									43,837		37,094		33,874
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									13.50%		6.90%		7.90%
Workers’ compensation
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									$ 730	[1]	$ (4,215)	[1]	$ 16,985	[1]
Gross premiums by line of business as a percentage of total gross premiums									0.20%	[1]	(0.80%)	[1]	4.00%	[1]

[1] The negative balance represents reversal of premiums due to premium adjustments, termination of contracts or premiums returned upon novation or commutation of contracts.

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NET INVESTMENT INCOME (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Net Investment Income [Abstract]
Realized gains									$ 353,264	$ 141,976	$ 60,762
Change in unrealized gains									(172,402)	154,791	67,569
Investment related foreign exchange gains (losses)									(1,684)	19,305	3,682
Interest and dividend income									31,422	22,265	21,131
Interest, dividend and other expenses									(38,892)	(47,665)	(38,545)
Investment advisor compensation									(49,133)	(72,532)	(35,658)
Net investment income	$ 72,820	$ (54,027)	$ 113,932	$ (10,150)	$ 83,306	$ 49,448	$ 24,247	$ 61,139	$ 122,575	$ 218,140	$ 78,941
Net investment return (loss) (percentage)									8.70%	19.60%	7.10%

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Financial Contracts Additional Information (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Derivative [Line Items]
Financial contracts receivable, Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)	$ 47,171	$ 104,048
OTC options | Financial contracts receivable | Put options (2)
Derivative [Line Items]
Financial contracts receivable, Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)	$ 0	$ 12,900

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Letters of Credit (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Aggregate amount of letters of credit issued	$ 273,700,000	$ 379,100,000
Total equity securities, restricted cash, and cash and cash equivalents fair value pledged as security against the letters of credit	302,600,000	410,300,000
Financial Standby Letter of Credit
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Facility	760,000,000
Financial Standby Letter of Credit | Bank of America, N.A.
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Facility	200,000,000
Notice period required for termination	90 days
Financial Standby Letter of Credit | Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Facility	60,000,000
Notice period required for termination	90 days
Financial Standby Letter of Credit | Citibank Europe plc
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Facility	400,000,000
Notice period required for termination	120 days
Financial Standby Letter of Credit | JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.
Line of Credit Facility [Line Items]
Facility	$ 100,000,000
Notice period required for termination	120 days

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SCHEDULE III (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Supplementary Insurance Information [Abstract]
Deferred acquisition costs, net	$ 34,420	$ 51,797	$ 59,177
Reserves for losses and loss adjustment expenses – gross	264,243	329,894	356,470
Unearned premiums – gross	128,736	173,057	188,185
Net premiums earned	354,240	547,899	466,714
Net investment income (loss)	122,575	218,140	78,941
Net losses, and loss adjustment expenses	234,986	338,493	366,601
Amortization of deferred acquisition costs	107,665	171,872	142,721
Other operating expenses	21,926	21,718	17,539
Gross premiums written	$ 324,023	$ 535,702	$ 427,844

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QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS (UNAUDITED) (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$ 74,268	$ 97,200	$ 33,654	$ 118,901	$ 124,775	$ 148,765	$ 135,198	$ 126,964	$ 324,023	$ 535,702	$ 427,844
Gross premiums ceded	(2,088)	(2,706)	(2,759)	(5,940)	(1,855)	(2,389)	(2,514)	3,978	(13,493)	(2,780)	24,275
Net premiums written	72,180	94,494	30,895	112,961	122,920	146,376	132,684	130,942	310,530	532,922	452,119
Change in net unearned premium reserves	3,025	(15,003)	56,960	(1,272)	18,617	17,515	316	(21,471)	43,710	14,977	14,595
Net amount	75,205	79,491	87,855	111,689	141,537	163,891	133,000	109,471	354,240	547,899	466,714
Net investment income	72,820	(54,027)	113,932	(10,150)	83,306	49,448	24,247	61,139	122,575	218,140	78,941
Other income (expense), net	12	(22)	(18)	441	(850)	(1)	(488)	389	413	(950)	(259)
Total revenues	148,037	25,442	201,769	101,980	223,993	213,338	156,759	170,999	477,228	765,089	545,396
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	57,951	53,028	56,644	67,363	99,504	94,366	78,345	66,278	234,986	338,493	366,601
Acquisition costs, net	21,821	22,478	25,570	37,796	34,119	53,521	42,936	41,296	107,665	171,872	142,721
General and administrative expenses	5,199	3,327	6,941	6,459	4,930	7,085	5,943	3,760	21,926	21,718	17,539
Total expenses	84,971	78,833	89,155	111,618	138,553	154,972	127,224	111,334	364,577	532,083	526,861
Income (loss) before income tax expense	63,066	(53,391)	112,614	(9,638)	85,440	58,366	29,535	59,665	112,651	233,006	18,535
Income tax (expense) benefit	(204)	254	14	560	2	(90)	(142)	(308)	624	(538)	(86)
Net income including non-controlling interest	62,862	(53,137)	112,628	(9,078)	85,442	58,276	29,393	59,357	113,275	232,468	18,449
(Income) loss attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	(2,174)	1,369	(3,075)	197	(1,512)	(1,740)	(893)	(2,624)	(3,683)	(6,769)	(3,851)
Net income	$ 60,688	$ (51,768)	$ 109,553	$ (8,881)	$ 83,930	$ 56,536	$ 28,500	$ 56,733	$ 109,592	$ 225,699	$ 14,598
Earnings per share
Earnings Per Share, Basic	$ 1.62	$ (1.40)	$ 2.94	$ (0.24)	$ 2.27	$ 1.53	$ 0.77	$ 1.54	$ 2.94	$ 6.13	$ 0.40
Earnings Per Share, Diluted	$ 1.60	$ (1.40)	$ 2.89	$ (0.24)	$ 2.22	$ 1.50	$ 0.76	$ 1.52	$ 2.89	$ 6.01	$ 0.39
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic	37,356,187	36,984,650	37,246,922	36,808,386	36,908,919	36,875,716	36,830,046	36,730,315	37,242,687	36,838,128	36,702,128
Weighted Average Number of Shares Outstanding, Diluted	37,905,836	36,984,650	37,902,106	36,808,386	37,746,223	37,645,053	37,537,500	37,424,894	37,874,387	37,585,167	37,361,338

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SCHEDULE IV (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Reinsurance Premiums for Insurance Companies, by Product Segment [Line Items]
Net amount	$ 75,205	$ 79,491	$ 87,855	$ 111,689	$ 141,537	$ 163,891	$ 133,000	$ 109,471	$ 354,240	$ 547,899	$ 466,714
Property & Casualty
Reinsurance Premiums for Insurance Companies, by Product Segment [Line Items]
Direct gross premiums									0	0	0
Premiums ceded to other companies									13,493	2,780	(24,275)
Premiums assumed from other companies									324,023	535,702	427,844
Net amount									$ 310,530	$ 532,922	$ 452,119
Percentage of amount assumed to net									104.00%	101.00%	95.00%

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES Lease and commitments (Details)	12 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2012 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014 Specialist service agreement USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014 Private and unlisted equities securities USD ($)		Dec. 31, 2013 Private and unlisted equities securities USD ($)		Dec. 31, 2014 GLRE Minimum USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014 GLRE Maximum USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014 GRIL EUR (€)
Future commitments [Line Items]
Annual rent payments									$ 300,000	$ 500,000	€ 100,000
Operating lease renewal option	5 years
Total rent expense related to leased office space	500,000	500,000	400,000
Operating lease obligations, 2015	557,000
Operating lease obligations, 2016	500,000
Operating lease obligations, 2017	466,000
Operating lease obligations, 2018	233,000
Operating lease obligations, 2019	0
Operating lease obligations, Thereafter	0
Operating lease obligations, Total	1,756,000
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, 2015				750,000	8,929,000	[1]	6,300,000	[1]
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, 2016				300,000	0	[1]
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, 2017				0	0	[1]
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, 2018				0	0	[1]
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, 2019				0	0	[1]
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, Thereafter				0	0	[1]
Specialist service agreement and Private equity and limited partnerships, Total				1,050,000	8,929,000	[1]
2015	10,236,000
2016	800,000
2017	466,000
2018	233,000
2019	0
Thereafter	0
Total	$ 11,735,000

[1] Given the nature of these investments, the Company is unable to determine with any degree of accuracy when these commitments will be called. Therefore, for purposes of the above table, the Company has assumed that all commitments with no fixed payment schedules will be called during the year ended December 31, 2015.

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION Share Based Compensation Options Rollfoward (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding [Roll Forward]
Number of options, Balance at beginning of period	1,402,987	1,421,290
Number of options, Granted	31,821	38,197
Number of options, Exercised	(318,500)	(56,500)
Number of options, Forfeited	0	0
Number of options, Expired	0	0
Number of options, Balance at end of period	1,116,308	1,402,987	1,421,290
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price [Roll Forward]
Weighted average exercise price, Balance at beginning of period	$ 15.82	$ 15.36
Weighted average exercise price, Granted	$ 32.37	$ 26.44
Weighted average exercise price, Exercised	$ 11.29	$ 11.44
Weighted average exercise price, Forfeited	$ 0.00	$ 0.00
Weighted average exercise price, Expired	$ 0.00	$ 0.00
Weighted average exercise price, Balance at end of period	$ 17.58	$ 15.82	$ 15.36
Share-based compensation arrangement by share-based payment award, Options, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value [Roll Forward]
Weighted average grant date fair value, Balance at beginning of period	$ 7.08	$ 6.87
Weighted average grant date fair value, Granted	$ 15.71	$ 13.09	$ 11.04
Weighted average grant date fair value, Exercised	$ 5.67	$ 5.70
Weighted average grant date fair value, Forfeited	$ 0.00	$ 0.00
Weighted average grant date fair value, Expired	$ 0.00	$ 0.00
Weighted average grant date fair value, Balance at end of period	$ 7.73	$ 7.08	$ 6.87

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SCHEDULE II

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Condensed Financial Information of Parent Company Only Disclosure [Abstract]

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

SCHEDULE II

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED BALANCE SHEETS — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash and cash equivalents	$	1	$	5
Investment in subsidiaries	1,148,308		1,035,423
Note receivable	1,566		3,728
Due from subsidiaries	15,276		16,247
Total assets	$	1,165,151	$	1,055,403
Liabilities and shareholders’ equity
Liabilities
Due to subsidiaries	$	—	$	3,808
Total liabilities	—		3,808
Shareholders’ equity
Share capital	3,738		3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553		496,622
Retained earnings	660,860		551,268
Total shareholders’ equity	1,165,151		1,051,595
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity	$	1,165,151	$	1,055,403

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF INCOME — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Year ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Revenue
Investment income	$	671		$	1,100		$	810
Total revenues	671			1,100			810
Expenses
General and administrative expenses	3,806			3,735			3,603
Net income (loss) before equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(3,135		)	(2,635		)	(2,793		)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	112,727			228,334			17,391
Consolidated net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598

SCHEDULE II (continued)

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Year Ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to cash provided by operating activities
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(112,727		)	(228,334		)	(17,391		)
Share-based compensation expense	3,964			3,675			3,689
Change in
Due from subsidiaries	971			(2,006		)	(52		)
Due to subsidiaries	(3,808		)	2,438			587
Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities	(2,008		)	1,472			1,431
Investing activities
Change in note receivable	2,162			(2,053		)	(1,675		)
Contributed surplus to subsidiaries, net	(158		)	59			(85		)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	2,004			(1,994		)	(1,760		)
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	—			513			318
Net cash provided by financing activities	—			513			318
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents	(4		)	(9		)	(11		)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the year	5			14			25
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year	$	1		$	5		$	14

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Level 3 reconciliation (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair Value, Assets Measured on Recurring Basis, Unobservable Input Reconciliation, Calculation [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	$ 46,850	$ 39,061
Purchases	25,519	47,310
Sales	(37,252)	(16,476)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	9,905	1,536
Transfers into Level 3	0	0
Transfers out of Level 3	(4,044)	(24,581)
Ending balance	40,978	46,850
Debt instruments
Fair Value, Assets Measured on Recurring Basis, Unobservable Input Reconciliation, Calculation [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	527	260
Purchases	21,561	9,224
Sales	0	(9,224)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	171	267
Transfers into Level 3	0	0
Transfers out of Level 3	0	0
Ending balance	22,259	527
Private and unlisted equities securities
Fair Value, Assets Measured on Recurring Basis, Unobservable Input Reconciliation, Calculation [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance	46,323	38,801
Purchases	3,958	38,086
Sales	(37,252)	(7,252)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	9,734	1,269
Transfers into Level 3	0	0
Transfers out of Level 3	(4,044)	(24,581)
Ending balance	$ 18,719	$ 46,323

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ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Details) (USD $)	0 Months Ended
	May 30, 2007
Common Class A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares issued from initial public offering	11,787,500
Price per share of shares issued from initial public offering	$ 19.00
Common Class B
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares issued from initial public offering	2,631,579
Price per share of shares issued from initial public offering	$ 19.00

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RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Trading Securities, Debt, Related Party	$ 49,212,000	$ 4,312,000
Listed equity securities	1,266,175,000	1,282,156,000
Board of Directors Chairman | Investment Advisory Agreement
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Performance compensation full rate	20.00%
Performance compensation reduced rate	10.00%
Loss carry forward recoupment required	150.00%
Performance compensation expense	28,500,000	54,200,000	18,800,000
Investment management fee rate - monthly	0.125%
Investment management fee rate - annual	1.50%
Investment management fee expense	20,600,000	18,300,000	16,900,000
Board of Directors Chairman | Debt instruments
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Trading Securities, Debt, Related Party	21,600,000
Listed equity securities	18,400,000
Related party debt maturity date	Oct. 27, 2019
Interest Income, Related Party	400,000
Board of Directors Chairman | Service Agreement
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Investor relations fee monthly	$ 5,000
Minimum | Board of Directors Chairman | Debt instruments
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Trading Debt interest rate	9.00%
Maximum | Board of Directors Chairman | Debt instruments
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Trading Debt interest rate	10.00%

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TAXATION (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

Schedule of Components of Income Tax Benefit (Expense)

The following table sets forth our current and deferred income tax benefit (expense) on a consolidated basis for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012:

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Current tax (expense) benefit	$	638		$	(534	)	$	(246	)
Tax recovered	—			—			169			(1)
Deferred tax (expense) benefit	(14		)	(4		)	(9		)
Income tax (expense) benefit	$	624		$	(538	)	$	(86	)

⁽¹⁾ During the year ended December 31, 2012, $0.2 million of tax refunds were received by GRIL relating to its operating losses for the 2011 tax year which were carried back and applied against the taxes previously paid for the 2010 tax year.

The Company has not taken any tax positions that are subject to uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact to the Company, Greenlight Re, GRIL or Verdant.

Federal Excise Taxes

The United States also imposes an excise tax on reinsurance premiums paid to non-U.S. insurers or reinsurers with respect to risks located in the United States. The rate of tax, unless exempted or reduced by an applicable U.S. tax treaty, is 1.0% for all reinsurance premiums. The Company incurs federal excise taxes on certain of its reinsurance transactions, including amounts ceded through intercompany transactions. For the years ended 2014, 2013, and 2012, the Company incurred approximately $2.2 million, $3.5 million and $3.8 million, respectively, of federal excise taxes. These amounts are reflected as acquisition costs in the Company’s consolidated statements of income.

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Maturity Distribution of Debt Instruments (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Financial Instruments [Abstract]
Trading, debt maturities, next 12 twelve months, cost	$ 0	$ 0
Trading, debt maturities, next 12 months, fair value	0	0
Trading, debt maturities, 2 to 5 years, Cost	21,922	0
Trading, debt maturities, 2 to 5 years, fair value	21,923	0
Trading, debt maturities, 6 to 10 years, Cost	2,401	0
Trading, debt maturities, 6 to 10 years, fair value	1,282	0
Trading, debt maturities, after 10 years, Cost	28,752	5,877
Trading, debt maturities, after 10 years, fair value	26,007	4,312
Cost/ amortized cost	53,075	5,877
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	$ 49,212	$ 4,312

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SHARE CAPITAL (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 21, 2004	Dec. 31, 2011
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Preferred shares issued	0	0
Preferred shares outstanding	0
Registration rights	50.00%
Aggregate principal amount of securities	$ 200,000,000
Increase (Decrease) in Common Stock [Roll Forward]
Amount of retained earnings restricted from payment of dividends	660,860,000
Class A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Number of entitled votes per share	1
Percentage of total voting power of all issued and outstanding ordinary shares	9.90%
Shares authorized to purchase under the share repurchase plan	2,000,000
Number of shares available under share repurchase plan		2,000,000
Increase (Decrease) in Common Stock [Roll Forward]
Balance – beginning of year	31,129,648	30,791,865	30,447,179		30,283,200
Issue of ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	337,729	344,686	163,979
Class B shares converted to Class A	54	0	0
Balance – end of year	31,129,648	30,791,865	30,447,179		30,283,200
Par value per share	$ 0.10	$ 0.10
Class B
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Percentage of total voting power of all issued and outstanding ordinary shares	9.50%
Increase (Decrease) in Common Stock [Roll Forward]
Balance – beginning of year	6,254,895	6,254,949	6,254,949		6,254,949
Issue of ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	0	0	0
Class B shares converted to Class A	(54)	0	0
Balance – end of year	6,254,895	6,254,949	6,254,949		6,254,949
Par value per share	$ 0.10	$ 0.10
Service Provider | Class A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares authorized for issuance in relation to share purchase options granted to service provider	300,000	300,000		400,000
Shares available for future issuance	0	20,000
Stock Compensation Plan | Class A
Class of Stock [Line Items]
Shares authorized for the company's stock incentive plan	3,500,000	3,500,000
Shares available for future issuance	803,558	961,587
GLRE | Cayman Islands
Increase (Decrease) in Common Stock [Roll Forward]
Minimum net worth requirement	443,510,000	449,400,000	120,000
Insurance Regulations Minimum Capital Requirement	50,000,000
Statutory capital and surplus	1,102,400,000
Net income	113,300,000	229,800,000	15,300,000
Amount of capital and surplus available for distribution as dividends	658,800,000	539,300,000
GRIL | Ireland
Increase (Decrease) in Common Stock [Roll Forward]
Minimum net worth requirement	13,600,000	13,600,000
Statutory capital and surplus	42,900,000	46,100,000
Net income	(3,300,000)	3,600,000	1,800,000
Amount of capital and surplus available for distribution as dividends	$ 2,700,000	$ 6,000,000

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Gross and Net Amounts of Derivative Instruments and Cash Collateral (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Financial Instruments [Abstract]
Financial contracts receivable, Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)	$ 47,171	$ 104,048
Financial contracts receivable, Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet	0	0
Financial contracts receivable, Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet	47,171	104,048
Financial contracts receivable, financial instruments available for offset	24,265	18,857
Financial contracts receivable, Cash collateral (received) pledged	9,452	49,422
Financial contracts receivable, Net amount of asset (liability)	13,454	35,769
Financial contracts payable, Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)	(44,592)	(18,857)
Financial contracts payable, Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet	0	0
Financial contracts payable, Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet	(44,592)	(18,857)
Financial contracts payable, financial instruments available for offset	24,265	18,857
Financial contracts payable, Cash collateral (received) pledged	20,327	0
Financial contracts payable, Net amount of asset (liability)	$ 0	$ 0

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Financial Instruments Additional Information (Details) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Fair Value, Concentration of Risk, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Realized gains	$ 353.3	$ 142.0	$ 60.8
Gross realized gains	612.7	352.9	268.1
Gross realized losses	259.4	210.9	207.3
Fair value of cash and investments that have been pledged as security against letters of credit issued	302.6	410.3
Net investment income (loss)
Fair Value, Concentration of Risk, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Change in unrealized gains and losses on trading securities	(172.4)	154.8	67.6
Apple Inc.
Fair Value, Concentration of Risk, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of investments		161.4
Micron Technology Inc.
Fair Value, Concentration of Risk, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Fair value of investments	$ 151.1	$ 147.0
Stockholders' Equity, Total | Investment Concentration Risk | Apple Inc.
Fair Value, Concentration of Risk, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Concentration risk, percentage		14.90%
Stockholders' Equity, Total | Investment Concentration Risk | Micron Technology Inc.
Fair Value, Concentration of Risk, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Concentration risk, percentage	12.70%	13.50%

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Financial Instruments [Abstract]

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS

In the normal course of its business, the Company purchases and sells various financial instruments which include listed and unlisted equities, corporate and sovereign debt, commodities, futures, put and call options, currency forwards, other derivatives and similar instruments sold, not yet purchased.

The Company is exposed to credit risk in relation to counterparties that may default on their obligations to the Company. The amount of counterparty credit risk predominantly relates to the value of financial contracts receivable and assets held at counterparties. The Company mitigates its counterparty credit risk by using several counterparties which decreases the likelihood of any significant concentration of credit risk with any one counterparty.  In addition, the Company is exposed to credit risk on corporate and sovereign debt instruments to the extent that the debtors may default on their debt obligations.    

The Company is exposed to market risk including interest rate and foreign exchange fluctuations on financial instruments that are valued at market prices. Market movements can be volatile and difficult to predict. This may affect the ultimate gains or losses realized upon the sale of its holdings as well as the amount of net investment income reported in the consolidated statements of income. Management utilizes the services of the Company's investment advisor to monitor the Company's positions to reduce the risk of potential loss due to changes in market values.

Purchases and sales of investments are disclosed in the consolidated statements of cash flows. Net realized gains on the sale of investments, financial contracts, and investments sold, not yet purchased during 2014 were $353.3 million (2013: $142.0 milliongains, 2012: $60.8 milliongains). Gross realized gains were $612.7 million (2013: $352.9 million, 2012: $268.1 million) and gross realized losses were $259.4 million (2013: $210.9 million, 2012: $207.3 million). For the year ended December 31, 2014, included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income were $172.4 million of net losses (2013: $154.8 million of net gains, 2012: $67.6 million of net gains) relating to change in unrealized gains and losses on trading securities still held at the balance sheet date.

As of December 31, 2014, cash and investments with a fair value of $302.6 million (2013: $410.3 million) have been pledged as security against letters of credit issued.

As of December 31, 2014, the Company’s investment in Micron Technology Inc. was the only investment in excess of 10% of the Company’s shareholders’ equity, with a fair value of $151.1 million, or 12.7% of shareholders' equity. As of December 31, 2013, the Company’s investments in Apple Inc. and Micron Technology Inc., were the only investments in excess of 10% of the Company’s shareholders’ equity, with fair values of $161.4 million and $147.0 million, or 14.9% and 13.5%, respectively, of shareholders' equity.

 Fair Value Hierarchy

The Company’s financial instruments are carried at fair value, and the net unrealized gains or losses are included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

The following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2014:

	Fair value measurements as of December 31, 2014
Description	Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)			Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)		Total
Assets:	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	—		$	26,953		$	22,259	$	49,212
Listed equity securities	1,259,298			6,877			—		1,266,175
Commodities	96,872			—			—		96,872
Private and unlisted equity securities	—			—			18,719		18,719
Financial contracts receivable	2,463			44,708			—		47,171
	$	1,358,633		$	78,538		$	40,978	$	1,478,149
Liabilities:
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	$	(834,228	)	$	—		$	—	$	(834,228	)
Debt instruments, sold not yet purchased	—			(256,503		)	—		(256,503		)
Financial contracts payable	—			(44,592		)	—		(44,592		)
	$	(834,228	)	$	(301,095	)	$	—	$	(1,135,323	)

The following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2013:

	Fair value measurements as of December 31, 2013
Description	Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)			Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)		Total
Assets:	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	—		$	3,785		$	527	$	4,312
Listed equity securities	1,274,920			7,236			—		1,282,156
Commodities	60,888			—			—		60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	—			—			46,323		46,323
Financial contracts receivable	4,500			99,548			—		104,048
	$	1,340,308		$	110,569		$	46,850	$	1,497,727
Liabilities:
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	$	(917,123	)	$	—		$	—	$	(917,123	)
Debt instruments, sold not yet purchased	—			(194,567		)	—		(194,567		)
Financial contracts payable	—			(18,857		)	—		(18,857		)
	$	(917,123	)	$	(213,424	)	$	—	$	(1,130,547	)

The following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the year ended December 31, 2014: 

2014	Fair Value Measurements Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	Debt instruments		Private and unlisted equity securities			Total
	($ in thousands)
Beginning balance	$	527	$	46,323		$	46,850
Purchases	21,561		3,958			25,519
Sales	—		(37,252		)	(37,252		)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	171		9,734			9,905
Transfers into Level 3	—		—			—
Transfers out of Level 3	—		(4,044		)	(4,044		)
Ending balance	$	22,259	$	18,719		$	40,978

During the year ended December 31, 2014, $4.0 million securities, at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 3 to Level 2 as these securities began actively trading on a listed exchange during the third quarter. However, due to lock-up restrictions on these securities, they were classified as Level 2 upon transfer until the lock-up period expires. During the year ended December 31, 2014, $14.4 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 as the lock-up period restrictions on those securities expired. There were no other transfers between Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 during the year ended December 31, 2014.

The following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the year ended December 31, 2013:

2013	Fair Value Measurements Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	Debt instruments			Private and unlisted equity securities			Total
	($ in thousands)
Beginning balance	$	260		$	38,801		$	39,061
Purchases	9,224			38,086			47,310
Sales	(9,224		)	(7,252		)	(16,476		)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	267			1,269			1,536
Transfers into Level 3	—			—			—
Transfers out of Level 3	—			(24,581		)	(24,581		)
Ending balance	$	527		$	46,323		$	46,850

During the year ended December 31, 2013, $5.0 million of securities, at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 3 to Level 2, as these securities began actively trading on a listed exchange during the third quarter of 2013. However due to lock-up restrictions on these securities, they were classified as Level 2 upon transfer until the lock-up period expired. Additionally, during the year ended December 31, 2013, $19.6 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 3 to Level 1 as these securities began actively trading on a listed exchange and there were no lock-up restrictions on these securities. During the year ended December 31, 2013, $2.4 million of securities at fair value based on the date of transfer, were transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 as the lock-up period restrictions on those securities expired. There were no other transfers between Level 1, Level 2 or Level 3 during the year ended December 31, 2013.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income were net realized gains relating to Level 3 securities of $13.5 million (2013: net realized gains of $0.7 million).

For Level 3 classified securities still held as of the reporting date, the change in net unrealized gains for the year ended December 31, 2014 of $1.4 million (2013: net unrealized loss of $1.1 million), were included in net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

Investments

Debt instruments, trading

At December 31, 2014, the following investments were included in debt instruments:

	Cost/  amortized  cost		Unrealized  gains		Unrealized  losses			Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Corporate debt – U.S.	$	23,677	$	5	$	(1,423	)	$	22,259
Corporate debt – Non U.S.	5,870		49		(1,405		)	4,514
Municipal debt – U.S.	1,759		—		(6		)	1,753
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	21,769		—		(1,083		)	20,686
Total debt instruments	$	53,075	$	54	$	(3,917	)	$	49,212

At December 31, 2013, the following investments were included in debt instruments:

	Cost/  amortized  cost		Unrealized  gains		Unrealized  losses			Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Corporate debt – U.S.	$	2,116	$	—	$	(1,589	)	$	527
Corporate debt – Non U.S.	3,761		115		(91		)	3,785
Total debt instruments	$	5,877	$	115	$	(1,680	)	$	4,312

The maturity distribution for debt instruments held at December 31, 2014 and 2013, was as follows:

	2014				2013
	Cost/  amortized  cost		Fair  value		Cost/  amortized  cost		Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Within one year	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—
From one to five years	21,922		21,923		—		—
From five to ten years	2,401		1,282		—		—
More than ten years	28,752		26,007		5,877		4,312
	$	53,075	$	49,212	$	5,877	$	4,312

Equity securities, trading

At December 31, 2014, the following long positions were included in equity securities: 

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	1,079,955	$	247,109	$	(80,637	)	$	1,246,427
Exchange traded funds	42,126		—		(22,378		)	19,748
Total equity securities	$	1,122,081	$	247,109	$	(103,015	)	$	1,266,175

At December 31, 2013, the following long positions were included in equity securities:

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	923,594	$	361,695	$	(28,712	)	$	1,256,577
Exchange traded funds	50,253		—		(24,674		)	25,579
Total equity securities	$	973,847	$	361,695	$	(53,386	)	$	1,282,156

Other Investments

"Other investments" include commodities and private and unlisted equity securities. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, commodities were comprised of gold bullion. 

At December 31, 2014, the following securities were included in other investments:

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Commodities	$	95,815	$	1,057	$	—		$	96,872
Private and unlisted equity securities	17,238		3,451		(1,970		)	18,719
	$	113,053	$	4,508	$	(1,970	)	$	115,591

At December 31, 2013, the following securities were included in other investments: 

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Commodities	$	54,633	$	6,255	$	—		$	60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	45,544		8,170		(7,391		)	46,323
	$	100,177	$	14,425	$	(7,391	)	$	107,211

As of December 31, 2014, included in private and unlisted equity securities are investments in private equity funds with a fair value of $12.3 million (December 31, 2013: $41.6 million) determined based on unadjusted net asset values reported by the managers of these securities. Some of these values were reported from periods prior to December 31, 2014. The private equity funds have varying lock-up periods and as of December 31, 2014, all of the funds had redemption restrictions, and therefore have been categorized within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy. The redemption restrictions have been in place since inception of the investments and are not expected to lapse in the near future. As of December 31, 2014, the Company had $8.9 million (2013: $6.3 million) of unfunded commitments relating to private equity funds whose fair values are determined based on unadjusted net asset values reported by the managers of these securities. These commitments are included in the amounts presented in the schedule of commitments and contingencies in Note 14 of these consolidated financial statements.    

Investments in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased

Securities sold, not yet purchased are securities that the Company has sold, but does not own, in anticipation of a decline in the market value of the security. The Company’s risk is that the value of the security will increase rather than decline. Consequently, the settlement amount of the liability for securities sold, not yet purchased may exceed the amount recorded in the consolidated balance sheet as the Company is obligated to purchase the securities sold, not yet purchased in the market at prevailing prices to settle its obligations. To sell a security, not yet purchased, the Company needs to borrow the security for delivery to the buyer. On each day the transaction is open, the liability for the obligation to replace the borrowed security is marked-to-market and an unrealized gain or loss is recorded. At the time the transaction is closed, the Company realizes a gain or loss equal to the difference between the price at which the security was sold and the cost of replacing the borrowed security. While the transaction is open, the Company will also incur an expense for any dividends or interest which will be paid to the lender of the securities.

At December 31, 2014, the following securities were included in investments in securities sold, not yet purchased:

	Proceeds			Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	(813,365	)	$	91,690	$	(101,715	)	$	(823,390	)
Exchange traded funds	(9,180		)	—		(1,658		)	(10,838		)
Corporate debt – U.S.	(7,066		)	1,007		(5		)	(6,064		)
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	(246,589		)	6,635		(10,485		)	(250,439		)
	$	(1,076,200	)	$	99,332	$	(113,863	)	$	(1,090,731	)

At December 31, 2013, the following securities were included in investments in securities sold, not yet purchased: 

	Proceeds			Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	(836,708	)	$	57,854	$	(130,621	)	$	(909,475	)
Exchange traded funds	(6,318		)	—		(1,330		)	(7,648		)
Corporate debt – U.S.	(8,135		)	2		(235		)	(8,368		)
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	(170,375		)	—		(15,824		)	(186,199		)
	$	(1,021,536	)	$	57,856	$	(148,010	)	$	(1,111,690	)

Financial Contracts

As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, the Company had entered into total return swaps, CDS, options, warrants, rights, futures, forwards and interest rate options contracts with various financial institutions to meet certain investment objectives. Under the terms of each of these financial contracts, the Company is either entitled to receive or is obligated to make payments which are based on the product of a formula contained within each contract that includes the change in the fair value of the underlying or reference security.

At December 31, 2014, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Futures	USD	13,204	$	3,461
Put options (2)	USD	299,907	22,349
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	43,355	18,898
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	8,054	2,463
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	47,171
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	221,198	$	(1,305	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(1,714		)
Forwards	KRW	20,563	(512		)
Futures	USD	33,625	(867		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/INR/RON/USD	122,667	(40,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(44,592	)

(1) USD = US Dollar; JPY = Japanese Yen; EUR = Euro; GBP = British Pound; HKD = Hong Kong Dollar; KRW = Korean Won; RON = Romanian New Leu; INR = Indian Rupee.

(2) Includes options on the Japanese Yen and the Chinese Yuan, denominated in U.S. dollars.

At December 31, 2013, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Forwards	JPY	71,162	$	383
Futures	JPY/USD	117,494	4,500
Interest rate options (3)	USD	391,559	26
Put options (2)	USD	217,359	12,923
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	178,988	83,325
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	5,237	2,891
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	104,048
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	273,877	$	(3,625	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(3,980		)
Forwards	KRW	32,100	(58		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD	36,983	(11,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(18,857	)

(1) USD = US Dollar; JPY = Japanese Yen; EUR = Euro; GBP = British Pound; HKD = Hong Kong Dollar; KRW = Korean Won.

(2) Includes options on the Japanese Yen, the Australian Dollar and the Chinese Yuan, denominated in U.S. dollars.

(3)Includes contracts on U.S. and Japanese interest rates denominated in U.S. dollars.

Options are derivative financial instruments that give the buyer, in exchange for a premium payment, the right, but not the obligation, to either purchase from (call option) or sell to (put option) the writer, a specified underlying security at a specified price on or before a specified date. The Company enters into option contracts to meet certain investment objectives. For exchange traded option contracts, the exchange acts as the counterparty to specific transactions and therefore bears the risk of delivery to and from counterparties of specific positions. For OTC options, a dealer acts as the counterparty and therefore the Company is exposed to credit risk to the extent the dealer is unable to meet its obligations. As of December 31, 2014, the Company held no OTC put options (long) (December 31, 2013: $12.9 million).

During the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the Company reported gains and losses on derivatives as follows:

Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Location of gains and losses on derivatives recognized in income	Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income
		Year ended December 31
		2014			2013			2012
		($ in thousands)
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	Net investment income (loss)	$	(345	)	$	(3,552	)	$	(7,342	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	Net investment income (loss)	(298		)	(1,087		)	(5,086		)
Forwards	Net investment income (loss)	(490		)	11,209			—
Futures	Net investment income (loss)	16,721			12,504			(13,064		)
Interest rate options	Net investment income (loss)	(26		)	(82		)	(2,127		)
Options, warrants, and rights	Net investment income (loss)	1,020			21,446			(8,988		)
Total return swaps – equities	Net investment income (loss)	13,142			85,638			(13,176		)
Weather derivative swap	Other income (expense), net	—			—			(263		)
Total		$	29,724		$	126,076		$	(50,046	)

The Company generally does not enter into derivatives for risk management or hedging purposes. The volume of derivative activities varies from period to period depending on potential investment opportunities.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company’s volume of derivative activities (based on notional amounts) was as follows:

2014	Year ended December 31
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Entered		Exited
	($ in thousands)
Forwards	$	—	$	82,688
Futures	308,178		356,216
Options, warrants and rights (1)	1,044,241		314,876
Total return swaps	121,125		160,065
Total	$	1,473,544	$	913,845

(1) Exited amount excludes options which expired or were exercised during the period.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company’s volume of derivative activities (based on notional amounts) was as follows:

2013	Year ended December 31
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Entered		Exited
	($ in thousands)
Forwards	$	423,443	$	115,884
Futures	401,672		292,529
Interest rate options (1)	—		376,385
Options, warrants and rights (1)	930,410		965,991
Total return swaps	194,343		88,404
Total	$	1,949,868	$	1,839,193

(1) Exited amount excludes options which expired or were exercised during the period.

The Company does not offset its derivative instruments and presents all amounts in the condensed consolidated balance sheets on a gross basis. The Company has pledged cash collateral to derivative counterparties to support the current value of amounts due to the counterparties based on the value of the underlying security.

As of December 31, 2014, the gross and net amounts of derivative instruments and the cash collateral applicable to derivative instruments were as follows:

December 31, 2014	(i)			(ii)		(iii) = (i) - (ii)			(iv) Gross amounts not offset in the balance sheet						(v) = (iii) + (iv)
Description	Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)			Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet		Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet			Financial instruments available for offset			Cash collateral (received) pledged			Net amount of asset (liability)
	($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable	$	47,171		$	—	$	47,171		$	(24,265	)	$	(9,452	)	$	13,454
Financial contracts payable	(44,592		)	—		(44,592		)	24,265			20,327			—

As of December 31, 2013, the gross and net amounts of derivative instruments and the cash collateral applicable to derivative instruments were as follows:

December 31, 2013	(i)			(ii)		(iii) = (i) - (ii)			(iv) Gross amounts not offset in the balance sheet						(v) = (iii) + (iv)
Description	Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)			Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet		Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet			Financial instruments available for offset			Cash collateral (received) pledged			Net amount of asset (liability)
	($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable	$	104,048		$	—	$	104,048		$	(18,857	)	$	(49,422	)	$	35,769
Financial contracts payable	(18,857		)	—		(18,857		)	18,857			—			—

XML

DUE TO PRIME BROKERS (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Due to Prime Broker [Line Items]
Amounts due to prime brokers	211,070	$ 314,702
Collateral for LOCs issued
Due to Prime Broker [Line Items]
Amounts due to prime brokers	135,000	202,200
Bank Overdrafts
Due to Prime Broker [Line Items]
Amounts due to prime brokers	76,100	$ 112,500
GLRE
Due to Prime Broker [Line Items]
Maximum temporary leverage	30.00%
Maximum long-term leverage	15.00%
Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd. [Member]
Due to Prime Broker [Line Items]
Maximum temporary leverage	20.00%
Maximum long-term leverage	5.00%

XML

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Premium deficiency loss	$ 0	$ 0
Profit commission reserves	11,000,000	10,500,000
Profit commission expense, net	2,700,000	3,700,000	1,500,000
Notes receivable interest rate	13.50%
Maturity term of note receivable	0 years 6 months
Amount of notes receivable placed on non-accrual status	0	10,500,000
Amount of interest received relating to the notes placed on non-accrual status	0	0
Impairment charge relating to accrued interest and principal on the note placed on non-accrual status	0	6,000,000	0
Gain (Loss) on Sale of Notes Receivable	4,500,000
Accrued interest	0	100,000
Provision for uncollectible notes	0	0
Gain on deposit accounted contracts		0	0
Other Liabilities
Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Accrued bonuses	$ 7,600,000	$ 4,800,000
Minimum
Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Annual installment period to pay quantitative bonus	2 years
Maximum
Accounting Policies [Line Items]
Annual installment period to pay quantitative bonus	5 years

XML

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Property, Plant and Equipment

At December 31, 2014, the cost, accumulated depreciation and net book values of the fixed assets were as follows:

	Cost		Accumulated depreciation			Net book value
	($ in thousands)
Computer software	$	556	$	(277	)	$	279
Furniture and fixtures	620		(442		)	178
Leasehold improvements	2,002		(966		)	1,036
Total	$	3,178	$	(1,685	)	$	1,493

At December 31, 2013, the cost, accumulated depreciation and net book values of the fixed assets were as follows:

	Cost		Accumulated depreciation			Net book value
	($ in thousands)
Computer software	$	556	$	(206	)	$	350
Furniture and fixtures	620		(340		)	280
Leasehold improvements	2,002		(703		)	1,299
Total	$	3,178	$	(1,249	)	$	1,929

Schedule of Weighted Average Number of Shares

	Year ended December 31
	2014	2013	2012
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic	37,242,687	36,838,128	36,702,128
Effect of dilutive service provider share-based awards	8,498	144,726	147,036
Effect of dilutive employee and director share-based awards	623,202	602,313	512,174
Weighted average shares outstanding - diluted	37,874,387	37,585,167	37,361,338
Anti-dilutive stock options outstanding	—	218,197	180,000

XML

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Reclassifications

Reclassifications

Certain prior period balances have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. The reclassifications resulted in no changes to net income or retained earnings for any of the periods presented.

Use of Estimates

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the period. Actual results could differ from these estimates. 

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash and certain short-term, highly liquid investments with original maturity dates of three months or less.

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company is required to maintain certain cash in segregated accounts with prime brokers and derivative counterparties. The amount of restricted cash held by prime brokers is primarily used to support the liability created from securities sold, not yet purchased, and to collateralize the letters of credit issued under certain letter of credit facilities (see Notes 4 and 6). The amount of cash encumbered varies depending on the market value of the securities sold, not yet purchased, and letters of credit issued. In addition, derivative counterparties require cash collateral to support the current value of any amounts that may be due to the counterparty based on the value of the underlying financial instrument. 

Premium Revenue Recognition

Premium Revenue Recognition

The Company accounts for reinsurance contracts in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In the event that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient risk, deposit accounting is used and the contract is reported as a deposit liability.

The Company writes excess of loss contracts as well as quota share contracts. The Company estimates the ultimate premiums for the entire contract period. These estimates are based on information received from the ceding companies and estimates from actuarial pricing models used by the Company. For excess of loss contracts, the total ultimate estimated premiums are recorded as premiums written at the inception of the contract. For quota share contracts, the premiums are recorded as written based on cession statements from cedents which typically are received monthly or quarterly depending on terms specified in each contract. For any reporting lag, premiums written are estimated based on the portion of the ultimate estimated premiums relating to the risks underwritten during the lag period.

Premium estimates are reviewed by management at least quarterly. Such review includes a comparison of actual reported premiums to expected ultimate premiums along with a review of the aging and collection of premium estimates. Based on management’s review, the appropriateness of the premium estimates is evaluated, and any adjustments to these estimates are recorded in the period in which they are determined. Changes in premium estimates, including premium receivable on both excess of loss and quota share contracts, are expected and may result in significant adjustments in any period. A significant portion of amounts included in reinsurance balances receivable represent estimated premiums written, net of commissions and brokerage, and are not currently due based on the terms of the underlying contracts.

Certain contracts allow for reinstatement premiums in the event of a full limit loss prior to the expiry of a contract. A reinstatement premium is not due until there is a full limit loss event and therefore, in accordance with U.S. GAAP, the Company records a reinstatement premium as written only in the event that a client incurs a full limit loss on the contract and the contract allows for a reinstatement of coverage upon payment of an additional premium. For catastrophe contracts which contractually require the payment of a reinstatement premium equal to or greater than the original premium upon the occurrence of a full limit loss, the reinstatement premiums are earned over the original contract period. Reinstatement premiums that are contractually calculated on a pro-rata basis of the original premiums, are earned over the remaining coverage period.

Certain contracts provide for a penalty to be paid if the contract is terminated and cancelled prior to its expiration term. Cancellation penalties are recognized in the period the notice of cancellation is received and are recorded in the consolidated statements of income under other income (expense).

Premiums written are generally recognized as earned over the contract period in proportion to the period of risk covered. Unearned premiums consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance provided.

Reinsurance Premiums Ceded

Reinsurance Premiums Ceded

The Company reduces the risk of future losses on business assumed by reinsuring certain risks and exposures with other reinsurers (retrocessionaires). The Company remains liable to the extent that any retrocessionaire fails to meet its obligations and to the extent the Company does not hold sufficient security for their unpaid obligations.

Ceded premiums are written during the period in which the risks incept and are expensed over the contract period in proportion to the period of protection. Unearned premiums ceded consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance obtained.

Deferred Acquisition Costs

Deferred Acquisition Costs

Policy acquisition costs, such as commission and brokerage costs, relate directly to, and vary with, the writing of reinsurance contracts. Acquisition costs relating solely to bound contracts are deferred subject to ultimate recoverability and are amortized over the related contract term. The Company evaluates the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs by determining if the sum of future earned premiums and anticipated investment income is greater than the expected future claims and expenses. If a loss is probable on the unexpired portion of policies in force, a premium deficiency loss is recognized. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, the deferred acquisition costs were considered fully recoverable and no premium deficiency loss was recorded. 

Acquisition costs also include profit commissions which are expensed when incurred. Profit commissions are calculated and accrued based on the expected loss experience for contracts and recorded when the current loss estimate indicates that a profit commission is probable under the contract terms. As of December 31, 2014, $11.0 million (2013: $10.5 million) of profit commission reserves were included in reinsurance balances payable on the consolidated balance sheets. For the year ended December 31, 2014, $2.7 million (2013: $3.7 million and 2012: $1.5 million) of net profit commission expense was included in acquisition costs, respectively, on the consolidated statements of income.

Funds Withheld

Funds Withheld

Funds withheld include reinsurance balances retained from retrocessionaires as security for a period of time in accordance with the contract terms. Any interest expense that the Company incurs during the period these funds are withheld, are included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves and Recoverable

Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves and Recoverable

The Company establishes reserves for contracts based on estimates of the ultimate cost of all losses including losses incurred but not reported ("IBNR"). These estimated ultimate reserves are based on the Company’s own actuarial estimates derived from reports received from ceding companies, industry data and historical experience. These estimates are reviewed by the Company periodically on a contract by contract basis and adjusted as necessary. Since reserves are estimates, the final settlement of losses may vary from the reserves established and any adjustments to the estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period they are determined.

Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable include the amounts due from retrocessionaires for unpaid loss and loss adjustment expenses on retrocession agreements. Ceded losses incurred but not reported are estimated based on the Company’s actuarial estimates. These estimates are reviewed periodically and adjusted when deemed necessary. The Company may not be able to ultimately recover the loss and loss adjustment expense recoverable amounts due to the retrocessionaires’ inability to pay. The Company regularly evaluates the financial condition of its retrocessionaires and records provisions for uncollectible reinsurance expenses recoverable when recovery is no longer probable.

Notes Receivable

Notes Receivable

Notes receivable include promissory notes receivable from third party entities. These notes are recorded at cost along with accrued interest, if any, which approximates the fair value. The Company regularly reviews all notes receivable individually for impairment and records provisions for uncollectible and non-performing notes. The Company places notes on non-accrual status when the value of the note is not considered impaired but there is uncertainty as to the collection of interest based on the terms of the note. The Company resumes accrual of interest on a note when none of the principal or interest remains past due, and the Company expects to collect the remaining contractual principal and interest. Interest collected on notes that are placed on non-accrual status is treated on a cash-basis and recorded as interest income when collected, provided that the recorded value of the note is deemed to be fully collectible. Where doubt exists as to the collectability of the remaining recorded value of the notes placed on non-accrual status, any payments received are applied to reduce the recorded value of the notes.

At December 31, 2014, there were no notes receivable placed on non-accrual status (2013: $10.5 million). During the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company had recorded an impairment charge of $6.0 million relating to the accrued interest and principal on a note placed on non-accrual status. During 2014, the Company sold this note receivable to a third party for a gain of $4.5 million. There were no other impairment charges for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012.

Deposit Assets and Liabilities

Deposit Assets and Liabilities

In accordance with U.S. GAAP, deposit accounting is used in the event that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient insurance risk, or a contract provides retroactive reinsurance. Any losses on such contracts are charged to earnings immediately. Any gains relating to such contracts are deferred and amortized over the estimated remaining settlement period. All such deferred gains are included in reinsurance balances payable in the consolidated balance sheets. Amortized gains are recorded in the consolidated statements of income as other income. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, there were no material deposit assets or deposit liabilities and no material gains or losses on deposit accounted contracts.

Fixed Assets

Fixed Assets

Fixed assets are included in other assets on the consolidated balance sheets and are recorded at cost when acquired. Fixed assets are comprised of computer software, furniture and fixtures and leasehold improvements and are depreciated, using the straight-line method, over their estimated useful lives, which are five years for both computer software, and furniture and fixtures.  Leasehold improvements are amortized over the lesser of the estimated useful lives of the assets or remaining lease term. The Company periodically reviews fixed assets that have finite lives, and that are not held for sale, for impairment by comparing the carrying value of the assets to their estimated future undiscounted cash flows.

Financial Instruments

Financial Instruments

Investments in Securities and Investments in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased

The Company’s investments in debt instruments and equity securities that are classified as "trading securities" are carried at fair value. The fair values of the listed equity investments are derived based on quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets (Level 1 inputs). The fair values of listed equities that have restrictions on sale or transfer which expire within one year, are determined by adjusting the observed market price of the equity using a liquidity discount based on observable market inputs. The fair values of debt instruments are derived based on inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as market maker or broker quotes reflecting recent transactions (Level 2 inputs), and are generally derived based on the average of multiple market maker or broker quotes which are considered to be binding. Where quotes are not available, debt instruments are valued using cash flow models using assumptions and estimates that may be subjective and non-observable (Level 3 inputs).

The Company’s "other investments" may include investments in private and unlisted equity securities, limited partnerships, and commodities, which are all carried at fair value. The fair values of commodities are determined based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets (Level 1). The Company maximizes the use of observable direct or indirect inputs (Level 2 inputs) when deriving the fair values for "other investments". For limited partnerships and private and unlisted equity securities, where observable inputs are not available, the fair values are derived based on unobservable inputs (Level 3 inputs) such as management’s assumptions developed from available information using the services of the investment advisor, including the most recent net asset values obtained from the managers of those underlying investments.

For securities classified as "trading securities", and "other investments", any realized and unrealized gains or losses are determined on the basis of the specific identification method (by reference to cost or amortized cost, as appropriate) and included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

Dividend income and expense are recorded on the ex-dividend date. The ex-dividend date is the date as of when the underlying security must have been traded to be eligible for the dividend declared. Interest income and interest expense are recorded on an accrual basis.

Derivative Financial Instruments

Derivative Financial Instruments

U.S. GAAP requires that an entity recognize all derivatives in the balance sheet at fair value. It also requires that unrealized gains and losses resulting from changes in fair value be included in income or comprehensive income, depending on whether the instrument qualifies as a hedge transaction, and if so, the type of hedge transaction. The Company’s derivative financial instrument assets are included in financial contracts receivable. Derivative financial instrument liabilities are generally included in financial contracts payable. The Company's derivatives do not qualify as hedges for financial reporting purposes and are recorded in the consolidated balance sheets on a gross basis and not offset against any collateral pledged or received. Pursuant to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association ("ISDA") master agreements, securities lending agreements and other derivatives agreements, the Company and its counterparties typically have the ability to net certain payments owed to each other in specified circumstances. In addition, in the event a party to one of the ISDA master agreements, securities lending agreements or other derivatives agreements defaults, or a transaction is otherwise subject to termination, the non-defaulting party generally has the right to set off against payments owed to the defaulting party or collateral held by the non-defaulting party.

Financial Contracts

The Company enters into financial contracts with counterparties as part of its investment strategy. Financial contracts which include total return swaps, credit default swaps ("CDS"), futures, options, currency forwards and other derivative instruments are recorded at their fair value with any unrealized gains and losses included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income. Financial contracts receivable represents derivative contracts whereby, based upon the contract's current fair value, the Company will be entitled to receive payments upon settlement of the contract. Financial contracts payable represents derivative contracts whereby, based upon the contract's current fair value, the Company will be obligated to make payments upon settlement of the contract.

Total return swap agreements, included on the consolidated balance sheets as financial contracts receivable and financial contracts payable, are derivative financial instruments whereby the Company is either entitled to receive or obligated to pay the product of a notional amount multiplied by the movement in an underlying security, which the Company may not own, over a specified time frame. In addition, the Company may also be obligated to pay or receive other payments based on interest rates, dividend payments and receipts, or foreign exchange movements during a specified period. The Company measures its rights or obligations to the counterparty based on the fair value movements of the underlying security together with any other payments due. These contracts are carried at fair value, based on observable inputs (Level 2 inputs) with the resultant unrealized gains and losses reflected in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income. Additionally, any changes in the value of amounts received or paid on swap contracts are reported as a gain or loss in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

Financial contracts may also include exchange traded futures or options contracts that are based on the movement of a particular index, equity security, commodity, currency or interest rate. Where such contracts are traded in an active market, the Company’s obligations or rights on these contracts are recorded at fair value based on the observable quoted prices of the same or similar financial contracts in an active market (Level 1) or on broker quotes which reflect market information based on actual transactions (Level 2). Amounts invested in exchange traded options and over the counter ("OTC") options are recorded either as an asset or liability at inception. Subsequent to initial recognition, unexpired exchange traded option contracts are recorded at fair value based on quoted prices in active markets (Level 1). For OTC options or exchange traded options where a quoted price in an active market is not available, fair values are derived based upon observable inputs (Level 2) such as multiple quotes from brokers and market makers, which are considered to be binding.

The Company purchases and sells CDS for strategic investment purposes. A CDS is a derivative instrument that provides protection against an investment loss due to specified credit or default events of a reference entity. The seller of a CDS guarantees to pay the buyer a specified amount if the reference entity defaults on its obligations or fails to perform. The buyer of a CDS pays a premium over time to the seller in exchange for obtaining this protection. A CDS trading in an active market is valued at fair value based on broker or market maker quotes for identical instruments in an active market (Level 2) or based on the current credit spreads on identical contracts (Level 2).

Share-Based Compensation

Share-Based Compensation

The Company has established a stock incentive plan for directors, employees and consultants.

U.S. GAAP requires the Company to recognize share-based compensation transactions using the fair value at the grant date of the award. The Company measures compensation for restricted shares and restricted stock units ("RSUs") based on the price of the Company’s common shares at the grant date and the expense is recognized on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

Determining the fair value of share purchase options at the grant date requires significant estimation and judgment. The Company uses an option-pricing model (Black-Scholes option pricing model) to assist in the calculation of fair value for share purchase options. The model requires estimation of various inputs such as estimated term, forfeiture and dividend rates and expected volatility. The Company uses the full life of the options, ten years, as the estimated term of the options, and has assumed no forfeitures and no dividends paid during the life of the options. Effective from 2014, the estimate of expected volatility is based on the daily historical trading data of the Company's Class A ordinary shares from the date that these shares commenced trading (May 24, 2007) to the grant date. Prior to 2014, the Company's share had not been publicly traded for a sufficient length of time to reasonably estimate the expected volatility. Therefore, for share purchase options granted prior to 2014, the Company determined the expected volatility based primarily on the historical volatility of similar entities. The Company considered factors such as an entity's industry, stage of life cycle, size and financial leverage when selecting similar entities. The Company used a sample peer group of companies in the reinsurance industry as well as the Company’s own historical volatility in determining the expected volatility. 

For share purchase options issued under the employee stock incentive plan, compensation cost is calculated and expensed over the vesting periods on a graded vesting basis (see Note 10). 

If actual results differ significantly from these estimates and assumptions, particularly in relation to the Company’s estimation of volatility which requires the most judgment, share-based compensation expense, primarily with respect to future share-based awards, could be materially impacted.

Foreign Exchange

Foreign Exchange

The reporting and functional currency of the Company and all its subsidiaries is the U.S. dollar. Transactions in foreign currencies are recorded in U.S. dollars at the exchange rates in effect on the transaction date. Monetary assets and liabilities in foreign currencies at the balance sheet date are translated at the exchange rate in effect at the balance sheet date and translation exchange gains and losses, if any, are included in the consolidated statements of income.

Other Assets

Other Assets

Other assets consist primarily of investment income receivable, prepaid expenses, fixed assets and deferred tax assets.

Other Liabilities

Other Liabilities

Other liabilities consist primarily of dividends payable on securities sold, not yet purchased, and employee bonus accruals. At December 31, 2014, other liabilities included accrued bonus of $7.6 million (2013: $4.8 million). Under the Company's bonus program, each employee’s target bonus consists of two components: a discretionary component based on a qualitative assessment of each employee’s performance and a quantitative component based on the return on deployed equity (‘‘RODE”) for each underwriting year relating to reinsurance operations. The qualitative portion of an employee’s annual bonus is accrued at each employee's target amount, which may differ significantly from the actual amount approved and awarded annually by the Compensation Committee. The quantitative portion of each employee’s annual bonus is accrued based on the expected RODE for each underwriting year and adjusted for changes in the expected RODE and actual investment return each quarter until all losses are settled and the underwriting year is declared closed. The quantitative bonus is calculated and paid, with the approval of the Compensation Committee, in annual installments between two to five years from the end of the fiscal year in which the business was underwritten. Any further changes are incorporated into the following open underwriting year. The expected RODE calculation utilizes proprietary models which require significant estimation and judgment. Actual RODE may vary significantly from the expected RODE and any adjustments to the quantitative bonus estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period in which they are determined. 

Also included in other liabilities are accruals for income taxes payable, professional fees and other general expenses.

Non-controlling Interest

Non-controlling Interest

Non-controlling interest in joint venture on the consolidated balance sheets represents DME Advisors, LLC’s (‘‘DME”) share of assets in the joint venture whereby DME is a participant in the joint venture as disclosed in Note 13. DME’s share of investment income or loss is included in the consolidated statements of income as income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture.

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

The Company has no other comprehensive income or loss, other than the net income or loss disclosed in the consolidated statements of income.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Basic earnings per share are based on the weighted average number of common shares and participating securities outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share includes the dilutive effect of restricted stock units ("RSU") and additional potential common shares issuable when stock options are exercised and are determined using the treasury stock method. The Company treats its unvested restricted stock as participating securities in accordance with U.S. GAAP, which requires that unvested stock awards which contain non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents, whether paid or unpaid (referred to as "participating securities"), be included in the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per share calculations. In the event of a net loss, all RSUs, stock options outstanding and all participating securities are excluded from the calculation of both basic and diluted loss per share since their inclusion would be anti-dilutive.

Taxation

Taxation

Under current Cayman Islands law, no corporate entity, including GLRE and Greenlight Re, is obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. The Company has an undertaking from the Governor-in-Cabinet of the Cayman Islands, pursuant to the provisions of the Tax Concessions Law, as amended, that, in the event that the Cayman Islands enacts any legislation that imposes tax on profits, income, gains or appreciations, or any tax in the nature of estate duty or inheritance tax, such tax will not be applicable to GLRE, Greenlight Re nor their respective operations, or to the Class A or Class B ordinary shares or related obligations, until February 1, 2025.

Verdant is incorporated in Delaware and therefore is subject to taxes in accordance with the U.S. federal rates and regulations prescribed by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). Verdant’s taxable income is generally expected to be taxed at a rate of 35%.

GRIL is incorporated in Ireland and therefore is subject to the Irish corporation tax rate of 12.5% on its trading income, and 25% on its non-trading income, if any.

Any deferred tax asset is evaluated for recovery and a valuation allowance is recorded when it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset will not be realized in the future. The Company has not taken any income tax positions that are subject to significant uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact on the Company.

Segment Information

Segment Information

Under U.S. GAAP, operating segments are based on the internal information that management uses for allocating resources and assessing performance as the source of the Company's reportable segments.

The Company manages its business on the basis of one operating segment, Property and Casualty Reinsurance, in accordance with the qualitative and quantitative criteria established by U.S. GAAP. 

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

None.

XML

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Investments in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Equities – listed
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Unrealized gains	$ 247,109	$ 361,695
Unrealized losses	(103,015)	(53,386)
Exchange traded funds
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Unrealized gains	0	0
Unrealized losses	(22,378)	(24,674)
Corporate debt – U.S.
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Unrealized gains	5	0
Unrealized losses	(1,423)	(1,589)
Securities Sold, Not yet Purchased
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Proceeds	(1,076,200)	(1,021,536)
Unrealized gains	99,332	57,856
Unrealized losses	(113,863)	(148,010)
Fair value	(1,090,731)	(1,111,690)
Securities Sold, Not yet Purchased | Equities – listed
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Proceeds	(813,365)	(836,708)
Unrealized gains	91,690	57,854
Unrealized losses	(101,715)	(130,621)
Fair value	(823,390)	(909,475)
Securities Sold, Not yet Purchased | Exchange traded funds
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Proceeds	(9,180)	(6,318)
Unrealized gains	0	0
Unrealized losses	(1,658)	(1,330)
Fair value	(10,838)	(7,648)
Securities Sold, Not yet Purchased | Corporate debt – U.S.
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Proceeds	(7,066)	(8,135)
Unrealized gains	1,007	2
Unrealized losses	(5)	(235)
Fair value	(6,064)	(8,368)
Securities Sold, Not yet Purchased | Sovereign debt – Non U.S.
Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased [Line Items]
Proceeds	(246,589)	(170,375)
Unrealized gains	6,635	0
Unrealized losses	(10,485)	(15,824)
Fair value	$ (250,439)	$ (186,199)

XML

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Fixed Assets (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Cost	$ 3,178,000	$ 3,178,000
Accumulated depreciation	(1,685,000)	(1,249,000)
Net book value	1,493,000	1,929,000
Impairment of fixed assets	0	0	0
Computer software
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Cost	556,000	556,000
Accumulated depreciation	(277,000)	(206,000)
Net book value	279,000	350,000
Fixed asset estimated useful lives	5 years
Furniture and fixtures
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Cost	620,000	620,000
Accumulated depreciation	(442,000)	(340,000)
Net book value	178,000	280,000
Fixed asset estimated useful lives	5 years
Leasehold improvements
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Cost	2,002,000	2,002,000
Accumulated depreciation	(966,000)	(703,000)
Net book value	$ 1,036,000	$ 1,299,000

XML

FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]

Fair Value Measurements, Recurring and Nonrecurring

The following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2014:

	Fair value measurements as of December 31, 2014
Description	Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)			Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)		Total
Assets:	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	—		$	26,953		$	22,259	$	49,212
Listed equity securities	1,259,298			6,877			—		1,266,175
Commodities	96,872			—			—		96,872
Private and unlisted equity securities	—			—			18,719		18,719
Financial contracts receivable	2,463			44,708			—		47,171
	$	1,358,633		$	78,538		$	40,978	$	1,478,149
Liabilities:
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	$	(834,228	)	$	—		$	—	$	(834,228	)
Debt instruments, sold not yet purchased	—			(256,503		)	—		(256,503		)
Financial contracts payable	—			(44,592		)	—		(44,592		)
	$	(834,228	)	$	(301,095	)	$	—	$	(1,135,323	)

The following table presents the Company’s investments, categorized by the level of the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2013:

	Fair value measurements as of December 31, 2013
Description	Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)			Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)			Significant unobservable inputs (Level 3)		Total
Assets:	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments	$	—		$	3,785		$	527	$	4,312
Listed equity securities	1,274,920			7,236			—		1,282,156
Commodities	60,888			—			—		60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	—			—			46,323		46,323
Financial contracts receivable	4,500			99,548			—		104,048
	$	1,340,308		$	110,569		$	46,850	$	1,497,727
Liabilities:
Listed equity securities, sold not yet purchased	$	(917,123	)	$	—		$	—	$	(917,123	)
Debt instruments, sold not yet purchased	—			(194,567		)	—		(194,567		)
Financial contracts payable	—			(18,857		)	—		(18,857		)
	$	(917,123	)	$	(213,424	)	$	—	$	(1,130,547	)

Fair Value, Assets Measured on Recurring Basis, Unobservable Input Reconciliation

The following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the year ended December 31, 2014: 

2014	Fair Value Measurements Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	Debt instruments		Private and unlisted equity securities			Total
	($ in thousands)
Beginning balance	$	527	$	46,323		$	46,850
Purchases	21,561		3,958			25,519
Sales	—		(37,252		)	(37,252		)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	171		9,734			9,905
Transfers into Level 3	—		—			—
Transfers out of Level 3	—		(4,044		)	(4,044		)
Ending balance	$	22,259	$	18,719		$	40,978

The following table presents the reconciliation of the balances for all investments measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) for the year ended December 31, 2013:

2013	Fair Value Measurements Using Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3)
	Debt instruments			Private and unlisted equity securities			Total
	($ in thousands)
Beginning balance	$	260		$	38,801		$	39,061
Purchases	9,224			38,086			47,310
Sales	(9,224		)	(7,252		)	(16,476		)
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	267			1,269			1,536
Transfers into Level 3	—			—			—
Transfers out of Level 3	—			(24,581		)	(24,581		)
Ending balance	$	527		$	46,323		$	46,850

Investments Classified by Contractual Maturity Date

The maturity distribution for debt instruments held at December 31, 2014 and 2013, was as follows:

	2014				2013
	Cost/  amortized  cost		Fair  value		Cost/  amortized  cost		Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Within one year	$	—	$	—	$	—	$	—
From one to five years	21,922		21,923		—		—
From five to ten years	2,401		1,282		—		—
More than ten years	28,752		26,007		5,877		4,312
	$	53,075	$	49,212	$	5,877	$	4,312

Investment Holdings, Other than Securities

At December 31, 2014, the following securities were included in other investments:

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Commodities	$	95,815	$	1,057	$	—		$	96,872
Private and unlisted equity securities	17,238		3,451		(1,970		)	18,719
	$	113,053	$	4,508	$	(1,970	)	$	115,591

At December 31, 2013, the following securities were included in other investments: 

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Commodities	$	54,633	$	6,255	$	—		$	60,888
Private and unlisted equity securities	45,544		8,170		(7,391		)	46,323
	$	100,177	$	14,425	$	(7,391	)	$	107,211

Investments Sold, Not yet Purchased

At December 31, 2014, the following securities were included in investments in securities sold, not yet purchased:

	Proceeds			Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	(813,365	)	$	91,690	$	(101,715	)	$	(823,390	)
Exchange traded funds	(9,180		)	—		(1,658		)	(10,838		)
Corporate debt – U.S.	(7,066		)	1,007		(5		)	(6,064		)
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	(246,589		)	6,635		(10,485		)	(250,439		)
	$	(1,076,200	)	$	99,332	$	(113,863	)	$	(1,090,731	)

At December 31, 2013, the following securities were included in investments in securities sold, not yet purchased: 

	Proceeds			Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	(836,708	)	$	57,854	$	(130,621	)	$	(909,475	)
Exchange traded funds	(6,318		)	—		(1,330		)	(7,648		)
Corporate debt – U.S.	(8,135		)	2		(235		)	(8,368		)
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	(170,375		)	—		(15,824		)	(186,199		)
	$	(1,021,536	)	$	57,856	$	(148,010	)	$	(1,111,690	)

Schedule of Derivative Instruments

At December 31, 2014, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Futures	USD	13,204	$	3,461
Put options (2)	USD	299,907	22,349
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	43,355	18,898
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	8,054	2,463
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	47,171
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	221,198	$	(1,305	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(1,714		)
Forwards	KRW	20,563	(512		)
Futures	USD	33,625	(867		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/INR/RON/USD	122,667	(40,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(44,592	)

At December 31, 2013, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Forwards	JPY	71,162	$	383
Futures	JPY/USD	117,494	4,500
Interest rate options (3)	USD	391,559	26
Put options (2)	USD	217,359	12,923
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	178,988	83,325
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	5,237	2,891
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	104,048
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	273,877	$	(3,625	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(3,980		)
Forwards	KRW	32,100	(58		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD	36,983	(11,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(18,857	)

Schedule of Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) in Statement of Financial Performance

During the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the Company reported gains and losses on derivatives as follows:

Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Location of gains and losses on derivatives recognized in income	Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income
		Year ended December 31
		2014			2013			2012
		($ in thousands)
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	Net investment income (loss)	$	(345	)	$	(3,552	)	$	(7,342	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	Net investment income (loss)	(298		)	(1,087		)	(5,086		)
Forwards	Net investment income (loss)	(490		)	11,209			—
Futures	Net investment income (loss)	16,721			12,504			(13,064		)
Interest rate options	Net investment income (loss)	(26		)	(82		)	(2,127		)
Options, warrants, and rights	Net investment income (loss)	1,020			21,446			(8,988		)
Total return swaps – equities	Net investment income (loss)	13,142			85,638			(13,176		)
Weather derivative swap	Other income (expense), net	—			—			(263		)
Total		$	29,724		$	126,076		$	(50,046	)

Derivatives volume of activities

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company’s volume of derivative activities (based on notional amounts) was as follows:

2014	Year ended December 31
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Entered		Exited
	($ in thousands)
Forwards	$	—	$	82,688
Futures	308,178		356,216
Options, warrants and rights (1)	1,044,241		314,876
Total return swaps	121,125		160,065
Total	$	1,473,544	$	913,845

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company’s volume of derivative activities (based on notional amounts) was as follows:

2013	Year ended December 31
Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments	Entered		Exited
	($ in thousands)
Forwards	$	423,443	$	115,884
Futures	401,672		292,529
Interest rate options (1)	—		376,385
Options, warrants and rights (1)	930,410		965,991
Total return swaps	194,343		88,404
Total	$	1,949,868	$	1,839,193

Offsetting assets and liabilities

As of December 31, 2014, the gross and net amounts of derivative instruments and the cash collateral applicable to derivative instruments were as follows:

December 31, 2014	(i)			(ii)		(iii) = (i) - (ii)			(iv) Gross amounts not offset in the balance sheet						(v) = (iii) + (iv)
Description	Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)			Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet		Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet			Financial instruments available for offset			Cash collateral (received) pledged			Net amount of asset (liability)
	($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable	$	47,171		$	—	$	47,171		$	(24,265	)	$	(9,452	)	$	13,454
Financial contracts payable	(44,592		)	—		(44,592		)	24,265			20,327			—

As of December 31, 2013, the gross and net amounts of derivative instruments and the cash collateral applicable to derivative instruments were as follows:

December 31, 2013	(i)			(ii)		(iii) = (i) - (ii)			(iv) Gross amounts not offset in the balance sheet						(v) = (iii) + (iv)
Description	Gross amounts of recognized assets (liabilities)			Gross amounts offset in the balance sheet		Net amounts of assets (liabilities) presented in the balance sheet			Financial instruments available for offset			Cash collateral (received) pledged			Net amount of asset (liability)
	($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable	$	104,048		$	—	$	104,048		$	(18,857	)	$	(49,422	)	$	35,769
Financial contracts payable	(18,857		)	—		(18,857		)	18,857			—			—

Equities – listed

Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]

Trading Securities (and Certain Trading Assets)

At December 31, 2014, the following long positions were included in equity securities: 

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	1,079,955	$	247,109	$	(80,637	)	$	1,246,427
Exchange traded funds	42,126		—		(22,378		)	19,748
Total equity securities	$	1,122,081	$	247,109	$	(103,015	)	$	1,266,175

At December 31, 2013, the following long positions were included in equity securities:

	Cost		Unrealized gains		Unrealized losses			Fair value
	($ in thousands)
Equities – listed	$	923,594	$	361,695	$	(28,712	)	$	1,256,577
Exchange traded funds	50,253		—		(24,674		)	25,579
Total equity securities	$	973,847	$	361,695	$	(53,386	)	$	1,282,156

Debt instruments

Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]

Trading Securities (and Certain Trading Assets)

At December 31, 2014, the following investments were included in debt instruments:

	Cost/  amortized  cost		Unrealized  gains		Unrealized  losses			Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Corporate debt – U.S.	$	23,677	$	5	$	(1,423	)	$	22,259
Corporate debt – Non U.S.	5,870		49		(1,405		)	4,514
Municipal debt – U.S.	1,759		—		(6		)	1,753
Sovereign debt – Non U.S.	21,769		—		(1,083		)	20,686
Total debt instruments	$	53,075	$	54	$	(3,917	)	$	49,212

At December 31, 2013, the following investments were included in debt instruments:

	Cost/  amortized  cost		Unrealized  gains		Unrealized  losses			Fair  value
	($ in thousands)
Corporate debt – U.S.	$	2,116	$	—	$	(1,589	)	$	527
Corporate debt – Non U.S.	3,761		115		(91		)	3,785
Total debt instruments	$	5,877	$	115	$	(1,680	)	$	4,312

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CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Cash and Cash Equivalents [Abstract]

Schedule of Cash and Cash Equivalents

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash at banks	$	3,426	$	3,674
Cash held with brokers	8,604		48
Total cash and cash equivalents	$	12,030	$	3,722

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SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Use of Estimates

The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of income and expenses during the period. Actual results could differ from these estimates. 

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash and certain short-term, highly liquid investments with original maturity dates of three months or less.

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company is required to maintain certain cash in segregated accounts with prime brokers and derivative counterparties. The amount of restricted cash held by prime brokers is primarily used to support the liability created from securities sold, not yet purchased, and to collateralize the letters of credit issued under certain letter of credit facilities (see Notes 4 and 6). The amount of cash encumbered varies depending on the market value of the securities sold, not yet purchased, and letters of credit issued. In addition, derivative counterparties require cash collateral to support the current value of any amounts that may be due to the counterparty based on the value of the underlying financial instrument. 

Premium Revenue Recognition

The Company accounts for reinsurance contracts in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In the event that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient risk, deposit accounting is used and the contract is reported as a deposit liability.

The Company writes excess of loss contracts as well as quota share contracts. The Company estimates the ultimate premiums for the entire contract period. These estimates are based on information received from the ceding companies and estimates from actuarial pricing models used by the Company. For excess of loss contracts, the total ultimate estimated premiums are recorded as premiums written at the inception of the contract. For quota share contracts, the premiums are recorded as written based on cession statements from cedents which typically are received monthly or quarterly depending on terms specified in each contract. For any reporting lag, premiums written are estimated based on the portion of the ultimate estimated premiums relating to the risks underwritten during the lag period.

Premium estimates are reviewed by management at least quarterly. Such review includes a comparison of actual reported premiums to expected ultimate premiums along with a review of the aging and collection of premium estimates. Based on management’s review, the appropriateness of the premium estimates is evaluated, and any adjustments to these estimates are recorded in the period in which they are determined. Changes in premium estimates, including premium receivable on both excess of loss and quota share contracts, are expected and may result in significant adjustments in any period. A significant portion of amounts included in reinsurance balances receivable represent estimated premiums written, net of commissions and brokerage, and are not currently due based on the terms of the underlying contracts.

Certain contracts allow for reinstatement premiums in the event of a full limit loss prior to the expiry of a contract. A reinstatement premium is not due until there is a full limit loss event and therefore, in accordance with U.S. GAAP, the Company records a reinstatement premium as written only in the event that a client incurs a full limit loss on the contract and the contract allows for a reinstatement of coverage upon payment of an additional premium. For catastrophe contracts which contractually require the payment of a reinstatement premium equal to or greater than the original premium upon the occurrence of a full limit loss, the reinstatement premiums are earned over the original contract period. Reinstatement premiums that are contractually calculated on a pro-rata basis of the original premiums, are earned over the remaining coverage period.

Certain contracts provide for a penalty to be paid if the contract is terminated and cancelled prior to its expiration term. Cancellation penalties are recognized in the period the notice of cancellation is received and are recorded in the consolidated statements of income under other income (expense).

Premiums written are generally recognized as earned over the contract period in proportion to the period of risk covered. Unearned premiums consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance provided.

Reinsurance Premiums Ceded

The Company reduces the risk of future losses on business assumed by reinsuring certain risks and exposures with other reinsurers (retrocessionaires). The Company remains liable to the extent that any retrocessionaire fails to meet its obligations and to the extent the Company does not hold sufficient security for their unpaid obligations.

Ceded premiums are written during the period in which the risks incept and are expensed over the contract period in proportion to the period of protection. Unearned premiums ceded consist of the unexpired portion of reinsurance obtained.

Deferred Acquisition Costs

Policy acquisition costs, such as commission and brokerage costs, relate directly to, and vary with, the writing of reinsurance contracts. Acquisition costs relating solely to bound contracts are deferred subject to ultimate recoverability and are amortized over the related contract term. The Company evaluates the recoverability of deferred acquisition costs by determining if the sum of future earned premiums and anticipated investment income is greater than the expected future claims and expenses. If a loss is probable on the unexpired portion of policies in force, a premium deficiency loss is recognized. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, the deferred acquisition costs were considered fully recoverable and no premium deficiency loss was recorded. 

Acquisition costs also include profit commissions which are expensed when incurred. Profit commissions are calculated and accrued based on the expected loss experience for contracts and recorded when the current loss estimate indicates that a profit commission is probable under the contract terms. As of December 31, 2014, $11.0 million (2013: $10.5 million) of profit commission reserves were included in reinsurance balances payable on the consolidated balance sheets. For the year ended December 31, 2014, $2.7 million (2013: $3.7 million and 2012: $1.5 million) of net profit commission expense was included in acquisition costs, respectively, on the consolidated statements of income.

Funds Withheld

Funds withheld include reinsurance balances retained from retrocessionaires as security for a period of time in accordance with the contract terms. Any interest expense that the Company incurs during the period these funds are withheld, are included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves and Recoverable

The Company establishes reserves for contracts based on estimates of the ultimate cost of all losses including losses incurred but not reported ("IBNR"). These estimated ultimate reserves are based on the Company’s own actuarial estimates derived from reports received from ceding companies, industry data and historical experience. These estimates are reviewed by the Company periodically on a contract by contract basis and adjusted as necessary. Since reserves are estimates, the final settlement of losses may vary from the reserves established and any adjustments to the estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period they are determined.

Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable include the amounts due from retrocessionaires for unpaid loss and loss adjustment expenses on retrocession agreements. Ceded losses incurred but not reported are estimated based on the Company’s actuarial estimates. These estimates are reviewed periodically and adjusted when deemed necessary. The Company may not be able to ultimately recover the loss and loss adjustment expense recoverable amounts due to the retrocessionaires’ inability to pay. The Company regularly evaluates the financial condition of its retrocessionaires and records provisions for uncollectible reinsurance expenses recoverable when recovery is no longer probable.

Notes Receivable

Notes receivable include promissory notes receivable from third party entities. These notes are recorded at cost along with accrued interest, if any, which approximates the fair value. The Company regularly reviews all notes receivable individually for impairment and records provisions for uncollectible and non-performing notes. The Company places notes on non-accrual status when the value of the note is not considered impaired but there is uncertainty as to the collection of interest based on the terms of the note. The Company resumes accrual of interest on a note when none of the principal or interest remains past due, and the Company expects to collect the remaining contractual principal and interest. Interest collected on notes that are placed on non-accrual status is treated on a cash-basis and recorded as interest income when collected, provided that the recorded value of the note is deemed to be fully collectible. Where doubt exists as to the collectability of the remaining recorded value of the notes placed on non-accrual status, any payments received are applied to reduce the recorded value of the notes.

At December 31, 2014, there were no notes receivable placed on non-accrual status (2013: $10.5 million). During the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company had recorded an impairment charge of $6.0 million relating to the accrued interest and principal on a note placed on non-accrual status. During 2014, the Company sold this note receivable to a third party for a gain of $4.5 million. There were no other impairment charges for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012.

At December 31, 2014, the notes receivable earned interest at an annual interest rate of 13.5% and had a remaining maturity term of six months. Interest income and realized gains or losses on sale of notes receivable are included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income. Impairment charges are also included under net investment income in the consolidated statements of income.

At December 31, 2014, there was no accrued interest included in the notes receivable balance (2013: $0.1 million). Based on management’s assessment, the recorded values of the notes receivable, net of any impairment charges, at December 31, 2014 and 2013, were expected to be fully collectible and therefore no provision for uncollectible amounts was deemed necessary at December 31, 2014 and 2013.

Deposit Assets and Liabilities

In accordance with U.S. GAAP, deposit accounting is used in the event that a reinsurance contract does not transfer sufficient insurance risk, or a contract provides retroactive reinsurance. Any losses on such contracts are charged to earnings immediately. Any gains relating to such contracts are deferred and amortized over the estimated remaining settlement period. All such deferred gains are included in reinsurance balances payable in the consolidated balance sheets. Amortized gains are recorded in the consolidated statements of income as other income. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, there were no material deposit assets or deposit liabilities and no material gains or losses on deposit accounted contracts.

Fixed Assets

Fixed assets are included in other assets on the consolidated balance sheets and are recorded at cost when acquired. Fixed assets are comprised of computer software, furniture and fixtures and leasehold improvements and are depreciated, using the straight-line method, over their estimated useful lives, which are five years for both computer software, and furniture and fixtures.  Leasehold improvements are amortized over the lesser of the estimated useful lives of the assets or remaining lease term. The Company periodically reviews fixed assets that have finite lives, and that are not held for sale, for impairment by comparing the carrying value of the assets to their estimated future undiscounted cash flows. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, there were no impairments in fixed assets.

At December 31, 2014, the cost, accumulated depreciation and net book values of the fixed assets were as follows:

	Cost		Accumulated depreciation			Net book value
	($ in thousands)
Computer software	$	556	$	(277	)	$	279
Furniture and fixtures	620		(442		)	178
Leasehold improvements	2,002		(966		)	1,036
Total	$	3,178	$	(1,685	)	$	1,493

At December 31, 2013, the cost, accumulated depreciation and net book values of the fixed assets were as follows:

	Cost		Accumulated depreciation			Net book value
	($ in thousands)
Computer software	$	556	$	(206	)	$	350
Furniture and fixtures	620		(340		)	280
Leasehold improvements	2,002		(703		)	1,299
Total	$	3,178	$	(1,249	)	$	1,929

Financial Instruments

Investments in Securities and Investments in Securities Sold, Not Yet Purchased

The Company’s investments in debt instruments and equity securities that are classified as "trading securities" are carried at fair value. The fair values of the listed equity investments are derived based on quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets (Level 1 inputs). The fair values of listed equities that have restrictions on sale or transfer which expire within one year, are determined by adjusting the observed market price of the equity using a liquidity discount based on observable market inputs. The fair values of debt instruments are derived based on inputs that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as market maker or broker quotes reflecting recent transactions (Level 2 inputs), and are generally derived based on the average of multiple market maker or broker quotes which are considered to be binding. Where quotes are not available, debt instruments are valued using cash flow models using assumptions and estimates that may be subjective and non-observable (Level 3 inputs).

The Company’s "other investments" may include investments in private and unlisted equity securities, limited partnerships, and commodities, which are all carried at fair value. The fair values of commodities are determined based on quoted prices in active markets for identical assets (Level 1). The Company maximizes the use of observable direct or indirect inputs (Level 2 inputs) when deriving the fair values for "other investments". For limited partnerships and private and unlisted equity securities, where observable inputs are not available, the fair values are derived based on unobservable inputs (Level 3 inputs) such as management’s assumptions developed from available information using the services of the investment advisor, including the most recent net asset values obtained from the managers of those underlying investments.

For securities classified as "trading securities", and "other investments", any realized and unrealized gains or losses are determined on the basis of the specific identification method (by reference to cost or amortized cost, as appropriate) and included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

Dividend income and expense are recorded on the ex-dividend date. The ex-dividend date is the date as of when the underlying security must have been traded to be eligible for the dividend declared. Interest income and interest expense are recorded on an accrual basis.

Derivative Financial Instruments

U.S. GAAP requires that an entity recognize all derivatives in the balance sheet at fair value. It also requires that unrealized gains and losses resulting from changes in fair value be included in income or comprehensive income, depending on whether the instrument qualifies as a hedge transaction, and if so, the type of hedge transaction. The Company’s derivative financial instrument assets are included in financial contracts receivable. Derivative financial instrument liabilities are generally included in financial contracts payable. The Company's derivatives do not qualify as hedges for financial reporting purposes and are recorded in the consolidated balance sheets on a gross basis and not offset against any collateral pledged or received. Pursuant to the International Swaps and Derivatives Association ("ISDA") master agreements, securities lending agreements and other derivatives agreements, the Company and its counterparties typically have the ability to net certain payments owed to each other in specified circumstances. In addition, in the event a party to one of the ISDA master agreements, securities lending agreements or other derivatives agreements defaults, or a transaction is otherwise subject to termination, the non-defaulting party generally has the right to set off against payments owed to the defaulting party or collateral held by the non-defaulting party.

Financial Contracts

The Company enters into financial contracts with counterparties as part of its investment strategy. Financial contracts which include total return swaps, credit default swaps ("CDS"), futures, options, currency forwards and other derivative instruments are recorded at their fair value with any unrealized gains and losses included in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income. Financial contracts receivable represents derivative contracts whereby, based upon the contract's current fair value, the Company will be entitled to receive payments upon settlement of the contract. Financial contracts payable represents derivative contracts whereby, based upon the contract's current fair value, the Company will be obligated to make payments upon settlement of the contract.

Total return swap agreements, included on the consolidated balance sheets as financial contracts receivable and financial contracts payable, are derivative financial instruments whereby the Company is either entitled to receive or obligated to pay the product of a notional amount multiplied by the movement in an underlying security, which the Company may not own, over a specified time frame. In addition, the Company may also be obligated to pay or receive other payments based on interest rates, dividend payments and receipts, or foreign exchange movements during a specified period. The Company measures its rights or obligations to the counterparty based on the fair value movements of the underlying security together with any other payments due. These contracts are carried at fair value, based on observable inputs (Level 2 inputs) with the resultant unrealized gains and losses reflected in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income. Additionally, any changes in the value of amounts received or paid on swap contracts are reported as a gain or loss in net investment income (loss) in the consolidated statements of income.

Financial contracts may also include exchange traded futures or options contracts that are based on the movement of a particular index, equity security, commodity, currency or interest rate. Where such contracts are traded in an active market, the Company’s obligations or rights on these contracts are recorded at fair value based on the observable quoted prices of the same or similar financial contracts in an active market (Level 1) or on broker quotes which reflect market information based on actual transactions (Level 2). Amounts invested in exchange traded options and over the counter ("OTC") options are recorded either as an asset or liability at inception. Subsequent to initial recognition, unexpired exchange traded option contracts are recorded at fair value based on quoted prices in active markets (Level 1). For OTC options or exchange traded options where a quoted price in an active market is not available, fair values are derived based upon observable inputs (Level 2) such as multiple quotes from brokers and market makers, which are considered to be binding.

The Company purchases and sells CDS for strategic investment purposes. A CDS is a derivative instrument that provides protection against an investment loss due to specified credit or default events of a reference entity. The seller of a CDS guarantees to pay the buyer a specified amount if the reference entity defaults on its obligations or fails to perform. The buyer of a CDS pays a premium over time to the seller in exchange for obtaining this protection. A CDS trading in an active market is valued at fair value based on broker or market maker quotes for identical instruments in an active market (Level 2) or based on the current credit spreads on identical contracts (Level 2).

Share-Based Compensation

The Company has established a stock incentive plan for directors, employees and consultants.

U.S. GAAP requires the Company to recognize share-based compensation transactions using the fair value at the grant date of the award. The Company measures compensation for restricted shares and restricted stock units ("RSUs") based on the price of the Company’s common shares at the grant date and the expense is recognized on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

Determining the fair value of share purchase options at the grant date requires significant estimation and judgment. The Company uses an option-pricing model (Black-Scholes option pricing model) to assist in the calculation of fair value for share purchase options. The model requires estimation of various inputs such as estimated term, forfeiture and dividend rates and expected volatility. The Company uses the full life of the options, ten years, as the estimated term of the options, and has assumed no forfeitures and no dividends paid during the life of the options. Effective from 2014, the estimate of expected volatility is based on the daily historical trading data of the Company's Class A ordinary shares from the date that these shares commenced trading (May 24, 2007) to the grant date. Prior to 2014, the Company's share had not been publicly traded for a sufficient length of time to reasonably estimate the expected volatility. Therefore, for share purchase options granted prior to 2014, the Company determined the expected volatility based primarily on the historical volatility of similar entities. The Company considered factors such as an entity's industry, stage of life cycle, size and financial leverage when selecting similar entities. The Company used a sample peer group of companies in the reinsurance industry as well as the Company’s own historical volatility in determining the expected volatility. 

For share purchase options issued under the employee stock incentive plan, compensation cost is calculated and expensed over the vesting periods on a graded vesting basis (see Note 10). 

If actual results differ significantly from these estimates and assumptions, particularly in relation to the Company’s estimation of volatility which requires the most judgment, share-based compensation expense, primarily with respect to future share-based awards, could be materially impacted.

Foreign Exchange

The reporting and functional currency of the Company and all its subsidiaries is the U.S. dollar. Transactions in foreign currencies are recorded in U.S. dollars at the exchange rates in effect on the transaction date. Monetary assets and liabilities in foreign currencies at the balance sheet date are translated at the exchange rate in effect at the balance sheet date and translation exchange gains and losses, if any, are included in the consolidated statements of income. 

Other Assets

Other assets consist primarily of investment income receivable, prepaid expenses, fixed assets and deferred tax assets.

Other Liabilities

Other liabilities consist primarily of dividends payable on securities sold, not yet purchased, and employee bonus accruals. At December 31, 2014, other liabilities included accrued bonus of $7.6 million (2013: $4.8 million). Under the Company's bonus program, each employee’s target bonus consists of two components: a discretionary component based on a qualitative assessment of each employee’s performance and a quantitative component based on the return on deployed equity (‘‘RODE”) for each underwriting year relating to reinsurance operations. The qualitative portion of an employee’s annual bonus is accrued at each employee's target amount, which may differ significantly from the actual amount approved and awarded annually by the Compensation Committee. The quantitative portion of each employee’s annual bonus is accrued based on the expected RODE for each underwriting year and adjusted for changes in the expected RODE and actual investment return each quarter until all losses are settled and the underwriting year is declared closed. The quantitative bonus is calculated and paid, with the approval of the Compensation Committee, in annual installments between two to five years from the end of the fiscal year in which the business was underwritten. Any further changes are incorporated into the following open underwriting year. The expected RODE calculation utilizes proprietary models which require significant estimation and judgment. Actual RODE may vary significantly from the expected RODE and any adjustments to the quantitative bonus estimates, which may be material, are recorded in the period in which they are determined. 

Also included in other liabilities are accruals for income taxes payable, professional fees and other general expenses.

Non-controlling Interest

Non-controlling interest in joint venture on the consolidated balance sheets represents DME Advisors, LLC’s (‘‘DME”) share of assets in the joint venture whereby DME is a participant in the joint venture as disclosed in Note 13. DME’s share of investment income or loss is included in the consolidated statements of income as income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture.

Comprehensive Income (Loss)

The Company has no other comprehensive income or loss, other than the net income or loss disclosed in the consolidated statements of income.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

Basic earnings per share are based on the weighted average number of common shares and participating securities outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share includes the dilutive effect of restricted stock units ("RSU") and additional potential common shares issuable when stock options are exercised and are determined using the treasury stock method. The Company treats its unvested restricted stock as participating securities in accordance with U.S. GAAP, which requires that unvested stock awards which contain non-forfeitable rights to dividends or dividend equivalents, whether paid or unpaid (referred to as "participating securities"), be included in the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per share calculations. In the event of a net loss, all RSUs, stock options outstanding and all participating securities are excluded from the calculation of both basic and diluted loss per share since their inclusion would be anti-dilutive.

	Year ended December 31
	2014	2013	2012
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic	37,242,687	36,838,128	36,702,128
Effect of dilutive service provider share-based awards	8,498	144,726	147,036
Effect of dilutive employee and director share-based awards	623,202	602,313	512,174
Weighted average shares outstanding - diluted	37,874,387	37,585,167	37,361,338
Anti-dilutive stock options outstanding	—	218,197	180,000

Taxation

Under current Cayman Islands law, no corporate entity, including GLRE and Greenlight Re, is obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. The Company has an undertaking from the Governor-in-Cabinet of the Cayman Islands, pursuant to the provisions of the Tax Concessions Law, as amended, that, in the event that the Cayman Islands enacts any legislation that imposes tax on profits, income, gains or appreciations, or any tax in the nature of estate duty or inheritance tax, such tax will not be applicable to GLRE, Greenlight Re nor their respective operations, or to the Class A or Class B ordinary shares or related obligations, until February 1, 2025.

Verdant is incorporated in Delaware and therefore is subject to taxes in accordance with the U.S. federal rates and regulations prescribed by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service ("IRS"). Verdant’s taxable income is generally expected to be taxed at a rate of 35%.

GRIL is incorporated in Ireland and therefore is subject to the Irish corporation tax rate of 12.5% on its trading income, and 25% on its non-trading income, if any.

Any deferred tax asset is evaluated for recovery and a valuation allowance is recorded when it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset will not be realized in the future. The Company has not taken any income tax positions that are subject to significant uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact on the Company.

Segment Information

Under U.S. GAAP, operating segments are based on the internal information that management uses for allocating resources and assessing performance as the source of the Company's reportable segments.

The Company manages its business on the basis of one operating segment, Property and Casualty Reinsurance, in accordance with the qualitative and quantitative criteria established by U.S. GAAP. 

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

None.

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RESTRICTED CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Cash and Cash Equivalents [Abstract]

Schedule of Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash held by prime brokers relating to securities sold, not yet purchased	$	1,090,731	$	1,111,690
Cash collateral relating to letters of credit issued	134,981		202,248
Cash and cash equivalents held by swap counterparties	71,202		20,136
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	$	1,296,914	$	1,334,074

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SCHEDULE II Condensed Balance Sheets (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 12,030	$ 3,722	$ 21,890	$ 42,284
Notes receivable	1,566	16,049
Total assets	2,995,292	3,095,276
Liabilities
Total liabilities	1,801,251	2,008,972
Equity
Share capital	3,738	3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553	496,622
Retained earnings	660,860	551,268
Shareholders’ equity attributable to shareholders	1,165,151	1,051,595
Total liabilities and equity	2,995,292	3,095,276
Parent Company
Assets
Cash and cash equivalents	1	5	14	25
Investment in subsidiaries	1,148,308	1,035,423
Notes receivable	1,566	3,728
Due from subsidiaries	15,276	16,247
Total assets	1,165,151	1,055,403
Liabilities
Due to subsidiaries	0	3,808
Total liabilities	0	3,808
Equity
Share capital	3,738	3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553	496,622
Retained earnings	660,860	551,268
Shareholders’ equity attributable to shareholders	1,165,151	1,051,595
Total liabilities and equity	$ 1,165,151	$ 1,055,403

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QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS (UNAUDITED) (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]

Schedule of Quarterly Financial Information

The following table presents the quarterly financial results for each of the quarters ended during 2014:

	2014
	Quarter ended
	March 31			June 30			September 30			December 31
	($ in thousands, except per share amounts)
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	118,901		$	33,654		$	97,200		$	74,268
Gross premiums ceded	(5,940		)	(2,759		)	(2,706		)	(2,088		)
Net premiums written	112,961			30,895			94,494			72,180
Change in net unearned premium reserves	(1,272		)	56,960			(15,003		)	3,025
Net premiums earned	111,689			87,855			79,491			75,205
Net investment income (loss)	(10,150		)	113,932			(54,027		)	72,820
Other income (expense), net	441			(18		)	(22		)	12
Total revenues	101,980			201,769			25,442			148,037
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	67,363			56,644			53,028			57,951
Acquisition costs, net	37,796			25,570			22,478			21,821
General and administrative expenses	6,459			6,941			3,327			5,199
Total expenses	111,618			89,155			78,833			84,971
Income (loss) before income tax expense	(9,638		)	112,614			(53,391		)	63,066
Income tax (expense) benefit	560			14			254			(204		)
Net income (loss) including non-controlling interest	(9,078		)	112,628			(53,137		)	62,862
(Income) loss attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	197			(3,075		)	1,369			(2,174		)
Net income (loss)	$	(8,881	)	$	109,553		$	(51,768	)	$	60,688
Earnings per share
Basic	$	(0.24	)	$	2.94		$	(1.40	)	$	1.62
Diluted	$	(0.24	)	$	2.89		$	(1.40	)	$	1.60
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	36,808,386			37,246,922			36,984,650			37,356,187
Diluted	36,808,386			37,902,106			36,984,650			37,905,836

The following table presents the quarterly financial results for each of the quarters ended during 2013:

	2013
	Quarter ended
	March 31			June 30			September 30			December 31
	($ in thousands)
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	126,964		$	135,198		$	148,765		$	124,775
Gross premiums ceded	3,978			(2,514		)	(2,389		)	(1,855		)
Net premiums written	130,942			132,684			146,376			122,920
Change in net unearned premium reserves	(21,471		)	316			17,515			18,617
Net premiums earned	109,471			133,000			163,891			141,537
Net investment income	61,139			24,247			49,448			83,306
Other income (expense), net	389			(488		)	(1		)	(850		)
Total revenues	170,999			156,759			213,338			223,993
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	66,278			78,345			94,366			99,504
Acquisition costs, net	41,296			42,936			53,521			34,119
General and administrative expenses	3,760			5,943			7,085			4,930
Total expenses	111,334			127,224			154,972			138,553
Income before income tax expense	59,665			29,535			58,366			85,440
Income tax (expense) benefit	(308		)	(142		)	(90		)	2
Net income including non-controlling interest	59,357			29,393			58,276			85,442
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	(2,624		)	(893		)	(1,740		)	(1,512		)
Net income	$	56,733		$	28,500		$	56,536		$	83,930
Earnings per share
Basic	$	1.54		$	0.77		$	1.53		$	2.27
Diluted	$	1.52		$	0.76		$	1.50		$	2.22
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	36,730,315			36,830,046			36,875,716			36,908,919
Diluted	37,424,894			37,537,500			37,645,053			37,746,223

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Investments in Equity Securities, Trading (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	$ 53,075	$ 5,877
Equity securities, trading, at fair value	1,266,175	1,282,156
Common stocks, listed
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	1,079,955	923,594
Unrealized gains	247,109	361,695
Unrealized losses	(80,637)	(28,712)
Equity securities, trading, at fair value	1,246,427	1,256,577
Exchange traded funds
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	42,126	50,253
Unrealized gains	0	0
Unrealized losses	(22,378)	(24,674)
Equity securities, trading, at fair value	19,748	25,579
Equities – listed
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	1,122,081	973,847
Unrealized gains	247,109	361,695
Unrealized losses	$ (103,015)	$ (53,386)

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION Restricted Units (Details) (RSUs, USD $) In Millions, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
RSUs
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	$ 0.13	$ 0	$ 0
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Number of Shares [Roll Forward]
Number of non-vested shares, Balance at December 31, 2013	5,941	0
Number of non-vested restricted shares, Granted	9,668	5,941	0
Number of non-vested restricted shares, Vested	0	0
Number of non-vested restricted shares, Forfeited	0	0
Number of non-vested shares, Balance at December 31, 2014	15,609	5,941	0
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value [Abstract]
Weighted average grant date fair value, Balance at December 31, 2013	$ 24.41	$ 0
Weighted average grant date fair value, Granted	$ 32.60	$ 24.41
Weighted average grant date fair value, Vested	$ 0	$ 0
Weighted average grant date fair value, Forfeited	$ 0	$ 0
Weighted average grant date fair value, Balance at December 31, 2014	$ 29.72	$ 24.41	$ 0

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CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Investments
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	$ 49,212	$ 4,312
Equity securities, trading, at fair value	1,266,175	1,282,156
Other investments, at fair value	115,591	107,211
Total investments	1,430,978	1,393,679
Cash and cash equivalents	12,030	3,722
Restricted cash and cash equivalents	1,296,914	1,334,074
Financial contracts receivable, at fair value	47,171	104,048
Reinsurance balances receivable	151,185	167,340
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	11,523	16,829
Deferred acquisition costs, net	34,420	51,797
Unearned premiums ceded	4,027	3,173
Notes receivable	1,566	16,049
Other assets	5,478	4,565
Total assets	2,995,292	3,095,276
Liabilities
Securities sold, not yet purchased, at fair value	1,090,731	1,111,690
Financial contracts payable, at fair value	44,592	18,857
Due to prime brokers	211,070	314,702
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves	264,243	329,894
Unearned premium reserves	128,736	173,057
Reinsurance balances payable	40,372	38,789
Funds withheld	6,558	10,126
Other liabilities	14,949	11,857
Total liabilities	1,801,251	2,008,972
Equity
Preferred share capital (par value $0.10; authorized, 50,000,000; none issued)	0	0
Ordinary share capital (Class A: par value $0.10; authorized, 100,000,000; issued and outstanding, 31,129,648 (2013: 30,791,865): Class B: par value $0.10; authorized, 25,000,000; issued and outstanding, 6,254,895 (2013: 6,254,949))	3,738	3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553	496,622
Retained earnings	660,860	551,268
Shareholders’ equity attributable to shareholders	1,165,151	1,051,595
Non-controlling interest in joint venture	28,890	34,709
Total equity	1,194,041	1,086,304
Total liabilities and equity	$ 2,995,292	$ 3,095,276

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SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Earnings Per Share Reconciliation (Details)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Earnings Per Share, Diluted, by Common Class, Including Two Class Method [Line Items]
Weighted average shares outstanding - basic	37,356,187	36,984,650	37,246,922	36,808,386	36,908,919	36,875,716	36,830,046	36,730,315	37,242,687	36,838,128	36,702,128
Effect of dilutive service provider share-based awards									8,498	144,726	147,036
Effect of dilutive employee and director share-based awards									623,202	602,313	512,174
Weighted average shares outstanding - diluted	37,905,836	36,984,650	37,902,106	36,808,386	37,746,223	37,645,053	37,537,500	37,424,894	37,874,387	37,585,167	37,361,338
Stock Options
Earnings Per Share, Diluted, by Common Class, Including Two Class Method [Line Items]
Anti-dilutive stock options outstanding									0	218,197	180,000

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	$ 109,592	$ 225,699	$ 14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net change in unrealized gains and losses on investments and financial contracts	172,403	(154,792)	(67,307)
Net realized gains on investments and financial contracts	(353,264)	(141,976)	(60,762)
Foreign exchange (gains) losses on restricted cash and cash equivalents, net	1,684	(19,305)	(3,682)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	3,683	6,769	3,851
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,964	3,675	3,689
Depreciation expense	436	325	250
Net change in
Reinsurance balances receivable	16,155	5,881	(31,943)
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	5,306	17,622	(4,693)
Deferred acquisition costs, net	17,377	7,380	9,548
Unearned premiums ceded	(854)	443	23,617
Other assets	(1,349)	(291)	1,683
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves	(65,651)	(26,576)	115,191
Unearned premium reserves	(44,321)	(15,128)	(37,550)
Reinsurance balances payable	1,583	3,497	3,100
Funds withheld	(3,568)	(7,289)	(20,616)
Other liabilities	3,092	1,369	434
Net cash used in operating activities	(133,732)	(92,697)	(50,592)
Investing activities
Purchases of investments, trading	(1,603,856)	(931,036)	(830,515)
Sales of investments, trading	1,722,936	933,356	903,344
Purchases of financial contracts	(13,302)	(64,153)	(70,658)
Dispositions of financial contracts	113,011	90,282	39,417
Securities sold, not yet purchased	934,769	940,486	822,718
Dispositions of securities sold, not yet purchased	(952,843)	(766,680)	(645,225)
Change in due to prime brokers	(103,632)	(11,786)	66,129
Change in restricted cash and cash equivalents, net	35,476	(107,932)	(245,693)
Change in notes receivable, net	18,983	3,281	(1,893)
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	(9,502)	(10,762)	(7,744)
Fixed assets additions	0	(1,040)	0
Net cash provided by investing activities	142,040	74,016	29,880
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	0	513	318
Net cash provided by financing activities	0	513	318
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	8,308	(18,168)	(20,394)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period	3,722	21,890	42,284
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period	12,030	3,722	21,890
Supplementary information
Interest paid in cash	21,482	23,741	23,506
Interest received in cash	562	1,468	1,213
Income tax paid in cash	$ 0	$ 531	$ 216

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Reported Gains and Losses on Derivatives (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	$ 29,724	$ 126,076	$ (50,046)
Credit default swaps, purchased | Corporate Debt | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	(345)	(3,552)	(7,342)
Credit default swaps, purchased | Sovereign debt – Non U.S. | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	(298)	(1,087)	(5,086)
Forwards | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	(490)	11,209	0
Futures | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	16,721	12,504	(13,064)
Interest rate options | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	(26)	(82)	(2,127)
Options, warrants, and rights | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	1,020	21,446	(8,988)
Total return swaps – equities | Net investment income (loss)
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	13,142	85,638	(13,176)
Weather derivative swap | Other income (expense), net
Derivative Instruments, Gain (Loss) [Line Items]
Gain (loss) on derivatives recognized in income	$ 0	$ 0	$ (263)

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]

Schedule of Share-based Payment Award, Stock Options, Valuation Assumptions

The Company uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine the valuation of its options and has applied the assumptions set forth in the following table.

	2014		2013		2012
Risk free rate	2.47	%	2.85	%	1.50	%
Estimated volatility	34.3	%	35.0	%	35.0	%
Expected term (in years)	10		10		10
Dividend yield	0	%	0	%	0	%
Forfeiture rate	0	%	0	%	0	%

Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Stock Options, Activity

Employee and director stock option activity during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 was as follows: 

	Number of  options		Weighted  average  exercise  price		Weighted  average  grant date  fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	1,421,290		$	15.36	$	6.87
Granted	38,197		26.44		13.09
Exercised	(56,500	)	11.44		5.70
Forfeited	—		—		—
Expired	—		—		—
Balance at December 31, 2013	1,402,987		15.82		7.08
Granted	31,821		32.37		15.71
Exercised	(318,500	)	11.29		5.67
Forfeited	—		—		—
Expired	—		—		—
Balance at December 31, 2014	1,116,308		$	17.58	$	7.73

Restricted Stock

Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]

Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units Activity

The restricted share award activity during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 was as follows:

	Number of non-vested restricted  shares		Weighted  average grant date fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	308,406		$	24.93
Granted	147,605		24.59
Vested	(110,194	)	25.08
Forfeited	(16,826	)	24.55
Balance at December 31, 2013	328,991		24.74
Granted	155,246		32.58
Vested	(115,444	)	25.35
Forfeited	(38,706	)	27.43
Balance at December 31, 2014	330,087		$	27.90

RSUs

Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]

Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units Activity

	Number of non-vested RSUs	Weighted  average grant date fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	—	—
Granted	5,941	24.41
Vested	—	—
Forfeited	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2013	5,941	$	24.41
Granted	9,668	32.60
Vested	—	—
Forfeited	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2014	15,609	$	29.72

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LOSS AND LOSS ADJUSTMENT EXPENSE RESERVES (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Gross balance at January 1	$ 329,894,000	$ 356,470,000	$ 241,279,000
Less: Losses recoverable	(16,829,000)	(34,451,000)	(29,758,000)
Net balance at January 1	313,065,000	322,019,000	211,521,000
Incurred losses related to Current year	216,757,000	344,613,000	309,703,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	18,229,000	(6,120,000)	56,898,000
Incurred losses related to Total incurred	234,986,000	338,493,000	366,601,000
Paid losses related to Current year	(163,139,000)	(177,871,000)	(130,717,000)
Paid losses related to Prior years	(130,438,000)	(170,018,000)	(125,767,000)
Paid losses related to Total paid	(293,577,000)	(347,889,000)	(256,484,000)
Paid losses related to Foreign currency revaluation	(1,754,000)	442,000	381,000
Net balance at December 31	252,720,000	313,065,000	322,019,000
Add: Losses recoverable	(11,523,000)	(16,829,000)	(34,451,000)
Gross balance at December 31	264,243,000	329,894,000	356,470,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	18,229,000	(6,120,000)	56,898,000
Case reserves	117,049,000	137,825,000
IBNR	147,194,000	192,069,000
Total	264,243,000	329,894,000	356,470,000
Hurricane
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years		(15,000,000)
Incurred losses related to Prior years		(15,000,000)
Reinstatement (reversal) of premiums earned		(2,600,000)
Earthquake
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years			9,000,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years			9,000,000
Full limit loss under contract			10,000,000
General liability
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years	7,800,000	17,700,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	7,800,000	17,700,000
Commercial Automobile Business
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years		4,000,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years		4,000,000
Private Passenger Automobile Business
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years	(3,800,000)	3,000,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	(3,800,000)	3,000,000
Ceding commissions	2,200,000	2,300,000
Casualty Clash Contract
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years		4,000,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years		4,000,000
Reinstatement (reversal) of premiums earned		1,200,000
Commercial motor contracts in run-off since 2010
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years			18,800,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years			18,800,000
Commercial motor related to multi-line contracts
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years	7,100,000		21,900,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	7,100,000		21,900,000
Professional liability
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years	4,000,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	4,000,000
Ceding commissions	600,000
Homeowners' property contracts
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years		2,400,000	4,600,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years		2,400,000	4,600,000
Ceding commissions			(1,300,000)
Health
Liability for Unpaid Claims and Claims Adjustment Expense [Roll Forward]
Incurred losses related to Prior years	3,000,000
Incurred losses related to Prior years	$ 3,000,000

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QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS (UNAUDITED)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Quarterly Financial Information Disclosure [Abstract]

QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS (UNAUDITED)

QUARTERLY FINANCIAL RESULTS (UNAUDITED)

The following table presents the quarterly financial results for each of the quarters ended during 2014:

	2014
	Quarter ended
	March 31			June 30			September 30			December 31
	($ in thousands, except per share amounts)
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	118,901		$	33,654		$	97,200		$	74,268
Gross premiums ceded	(5,940		)	(2,759		)	(2,706		)	(2,088		)
Net premiums written	112,961			30,895			94,494			72,180
Change in net unearned premium reserves	(1,272		)	56,960			(15,003		)	3,025
Net premiums earned	111,689			87,855			79,491			75,205
Net investment income (loss)	(10,150		)	113,932			(54,027		)	72,820
Other income (expense), net	441			(18		)	(22		)	12
Total revenues	101,980			201,769			25,442			148,037
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	67,363			56,644			53,028			57,951
Acquisition costs, net	37,796			25,570			22,478			21,821
General and administrative expenses	6,459			6,941			3,327			5,199
Total expenses	111,618			89,155			78,833			84,971
Income (loss) before income tax expense	(9,638		)	112,614			(53,391		)	63,066
Income tax (expense) benefit	560			14			254			(204		)
Net income (loss) including non-controlling interest	(9,078		)	112,628			(53,137		)	62,862
(Income) loss attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	197			(3,075		)	1,369			(2,174		)
Net income (loss)	$	(8,881	)	$	109,553		$	(51,768	)	$	60,688
Earnings per share
Basic	$	(0.24	)	$	2.94		$	(1.40	)	$	1.62
Diluted	$	(0.24	)	$	2.89		$	(1.40	)	$	1.60
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	36,808,386			37,246,922			36,984,650			37,356,187
Diluted	36,808,386			37,902,106			36,984,650			37,905,836

The following table presents the quarterly financial results for each of the quarters ended during 2013:

	2013
	Quarter ended
	March 31			June 30			September 30			December 31
	($ in thousands)
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$	126,964		$	135,198		$	148,765		$	124,775
Gross premiums ceded	3,978			(2,514		)	(2,389		)	(1,855		)
Net premiums written	130,942			132,684			146,376			122,920
Change in net unearned premium reserves	(21,471		)	316			17,515			18,617
Net premiums earned	109,471			133,000			163,891			141,537
Net investment income	61,139			24,247			49,448			83,306
Other income (expense), net	389			(488		)	(1		)	(850		)
Total revenues	170,999			156,759			213,338			223,993
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	66,278			78,345			94,366			99,504
Acquisition costs, net	41,296			42,936			53,521			34,119
General and administrative expenses	3,760			5,943			7,085			4,930
Total expenses	111,334			127,224			154,972			138,553
Income before income tax expense	59,665			29,535			58,366			85,440
Income tax (expense) benefit	(308		)	(142		)	(90		)	2
Net income including non-controlling interest	59,357			29,393			58,276			85,442
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	(2,624		)	(893		)	(1,740		)	(1,512		)
Net income	$	56,733		$	28,500		$	56,536		$	83,930
Earnings per share
Basic	$	1.54		$	0.77		$	1.53		$	2.27
Diluted	$	1.52		$	0.76		$	1.50		$	2.22
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	36,730,315			36,830,046			36,875,716			36,908,919
Diluted	37,424,894			37,537,500			37,645,053			37,746,223

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NET INVESTMENT INCOME (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Net Investment Income [Abstract]

Net Investment Income (Loss)

A summary of net investment income for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 is as follows:

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Realized gains	$	353,264		$	141,976		$	60,762
Change in unrealized gains	(172,402		)	154,791			67,569
Investment related foreign exchange gains (losses)	(1,684		)	19,305			3,682
Interest and dividend income	31,422			22,265			21,131
Interest, dividend and other expenses	(38,892		)	(47,665		)	(38,545		)
Investment advisor compensation	(49,133		)	(72,532		)	(35,658		)
Net investment income	$	122,575		$	218,140		$	78,941

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SCHEDULE I

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties [Abstract]

SUMMARY OF INVESTMENTS - OTHER THAN INVESTMENTS IN RELATED PARTIES

SCHEDULE I

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

SUMMARY OF INVESTMENTS — OTHER THAN INVESTMENTS IN RELATED PARTIES

AS OF DECEMBER 31, 2014

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

Type of Investment	Cost		Fair Value		Balance Sheet Value
	($ in thousands)
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	$	53,075	$	49,212	$	49,212
Equity securities, trading, at fair value
Common stocks, listed	1,079,955		1,246,427		1,246,427
Exchange traded funds	42,126		19,748		19,748
Total equity securities, trading, at fair value	1,122,081		1,266,175		1,266,175
Total investments, trading	$	1,175,156	$	1,315,387	$	1,315,387
Other investments, at fair value
Private and unlisted equities securities	$	17,238	$	18,719	$	18,719
Commodities	95,815		96,872		96,872
Total other investments, at fair value	113,053		115,591		115,591
Total investments	$	1,288,209	$	1,430,978	$	1,430,978

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION Narrative (Details) (USD $) In Millions, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Sep. 21, 2004
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share purchase options granted	31,821	38,197
Expiration period after the grant date	10 years	10 years	10 years
Grant date fair value of the options	$ 15.71	$ 13.09	$ 11.04
Total compensation cost related to non-vested options not yet recognized	$ 0.4	$ 0.4	$ 0.5
Number of stock options exercised	318,500	56,500
Intrinsic value of options exercised	6.7	0.8
Weighted average remaining contractual term for options outstanding	3 years 0 months	3 years 4 months
Number of stock options exercisable	1,062,022	1,326,694
Weighted-average exercise price	$ 17.02	$ 15.35
Weighted-average remaining contractual term	2 years 8 months	3 years 0 months
Aggregate intrinsic value of options outstanding	16.8	25.1
Aggregate intrinsic value of options exercisable	16.6	24.4
Number of options vested	53,828	45,871	36,323
Weighted average grant date fair value of options vested	$ 11.76	$ 11.08	$ 10.55
General and Administrative Expense
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	4.00	3.80	3.70
Stock Options
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	0.50	0.60	0.60
Weighted average period for recognition	1 year 6 months	1 year 6 months	1 year 6 months
Restricted Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Cliff vesting period after date of issuance	3 years
Stock compensation expense relating to forfeited restricted shares reversed	0.4	0.2	0.2
Share-based compensation expense	3.30	3.20	3.10
Unrecognized compensation costs related to non-vested restricted shares	4.2	3.5	3.4
Weighted average period for recognition	1 year 9 months	1 year 8 months	1 year 8 months
Total fair value of restricted shares vested	2.9	2.8	3.3
Number of non-vested RSUs, Granted	155,246	147,605
RSUs
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Cliff vesting period after date of issuance	3 years
Share-based compensation expense	$ 0.13	$ 0	$ 0
Number of non-vested RSUs, Granted	9,668	5,941	0
Vesting on Grant Date
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage	25.00%	25.00%
Vesting In Year 1
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage	25.00%	25.00%
Vesting In Year 2
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage	25.00%	25.00%
Vesting In Year 3
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Vesting percentage	25.00%	25.00%
Director
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Cliff vesting period after date of issuance	1 year
Class A
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Share purchase options granted	31,821	38,197
Issuance of shares as a result of stock options exercised	207,328	52,173
Class A | Restricted Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Restricted shares issued pursuant to stock incentive plan	127,186	111,231	112,477
Restricted shares forfeited by employees who left the Company prior to the vesting period	38,706	16,826	7,492
Class A | Director | Restricted Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Restricted shares issued pursuant to stock incentive plan	28,060	36,374	35,994
Service Provider
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Exercise price of share purchase options				$ 10.00
Number of stock options exercised	20,000
Service Provider | Class A
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Number of share purchase options granted to service provider (shares)	300,000	300,000		400,000
Number of shares issued as a result of share purchase options exercised	13,861

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ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

ORGANIZATION AND BASIS OF PRESENTATION

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. ("GLRE") was incorporated as an exempted company under the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands on July 13, 2004. GLRE’s principal wholly-owned subsidiary, Greenlight Reinsurance, Ltd. ("Greenlight Re"), provides global specialty property and casualty reinsurance. Greenlight Re has a Class D insurer license issued in accordance with the terms of The Insurance Law, 2010 and underlying regulations thereto (the "Law") and is subject to regulation by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority ("CIMA"), in terms of the Law. Greenlight Re commenced underwriting in April 2006. Effective May 30, 2007, GLRE completed an initial public offering of 11,787,500 Class A ordinary shares at $19.00 per share. Concurrently, 2,631,579 Class B ordinary shares of GLRE were sold at $19.00 per share in a private placement offering. During 2008, Verdant Holding Company, Ltd. ("Verdant"), a wholly-owned subsidiary of GLRE, was incorporated in the state of Delaware. During 2010, GLRE established Greenlight Reinsurance Ireland, Ltd. ("GRIL"), a wholly-owned reinsurance subsidiary based in Dublin, Ireland. GRIL is authorized as a non-life reinsurance undertaking in accordance with the provisions of the European Communities (Reinsurance) Regulations 2006 ("Irish Regulations"). GRIL provides multi-line property and casualty reinsurance capacity to the European broker market and provides GLRE with an additional platform to serve clients located in Europe and North America.  As used herein, the "Company" refers collectively to GLRE and its consolidated subsidiaries.

The Class A ordinary shares of GLRE are listed on Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "GLRE".

These consolidated financial statements are prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("U.S. GAAP"). The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of GLRE and the consolidated financial statements of its wholly owned subsidiaries, Greenlight Re, GRIL and Verdant. All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated on consolidation.

Reclassifications

Certain prior period balances have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation. The reclassifications resulted in no changes to net income or retained earnings for any of the periods presented.

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CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Parenthetical) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Shareholders' equity
Preferred share capital, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 0.10	$ 0.10
Preferred share capital, authorized (in shares)	50,000,000	50,000,000
Preferred share capital, issued (in shares)	0	0
Class A
Shareholders' equity
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share	$ 0.10	$ 0.10
Ordinary share capital, authorized (in shares)	100,000,000	100,000,000
Ordinary share capital, issued (in shares)	31,129,648	30,791,865
Ordinary share capital, outstanding (in shares)	31,129,648	30,791,865
Class B
Shareholders' equity
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value Per Share	$ 0.10	$ 0.10
Ordinary share capital, authorized (in shares)	25,000,000	25,000,000
Ordinary share capital, issued (in shares)	6,254,895	6,254,949
Ordinary share capital, outstanding (in shares)	6,254,895	6,254,949

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NET INVESTMENT INCOME

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Net Investment Income [Abstract]

NET INVESTMENT INCOME

NET INVESTMENT INCOME

A summary of net investment income for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012 is as follows:

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Realized gains	$	353,264		$	141,976		$	60,762
Change in unrealized gains	(172,402		)	154,791			67,569
Investment related foreign exchange gains (losses)	(1,684		)	19,305			3,682
Interest and dividend income	31,422			22,265			21,131
Interest, dividend and other expenses	(38,892		)	(47,665		)	(38,545		)
Investment advisor compensation	(49,133		)	(72,532		)	(35,658		)
Net investment income	$	122,575		$	218,140		$	78,941

Interest and dividend income in the above table are net of any withholding taxes. Investment returns are calculated monthly and compounded to calculate the annual returns. The resulting actual investment income may vary depending on cash flows into or out of the investment account. For the year ended December 31, 2014, investment income, net of all fees and expenses, resulted in a gain of 8.7% on the investment portfolio. This compares to a gain of 19.6% and a gain of 7.1% reported for the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

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Document And Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Feb. 13, 2015
Document and Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.
Entity Central Index Key	0001385613
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2014
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2014
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Public Float		$ 976,961,597
Common Class A
Document and Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding			31,159,035
Common Class B
Document and Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding			6,254,895

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TAXATION

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]

TAXATION

TAXATION

The Company and Greenlight Re are each domiciled in the Cayman Islands and under current Cayman Islands law, no corporate entity, including the Company and Greenlight Re, is obligated to pay taxes in the Cayman Islands on either income or capital gains. Each of the Company and Greenlight Re intends to conduct all of its operations in a manner that will not cause it to be treated as engaging in a trade or business within the United States and will not cause it to be subject to current U.S. federal income taxation on its net income. However, because there are no definitive standards provided by the Internal Revenue Code, regulations or court decisions as to the specific activities that constitute being engaged in the conduct of a trade or business within the United States, and as any such determination is essentially factual in nature, there can be no assurance that the IRS will not successfully assert that the Company or Greenlight Re is engaged in a trade or business within the U.S.

Verdant is incorporated in Delaware, and therefore is subject to taxes in accordance with the U.S. federal rates and regulations prescribed by the IRS. Verdant’s taxable income is taxed at an effective tax rate of 35%. GRIL is incorporated in Ireland and, therefore, is subject to the Irish corporation tax. GRIL is taxed at a rate of 12.5% on its trading income.

At December 31, 2014, included in the consolidated balance sheet under other assets were taxes recoverable of $0.8 million (2013: taxes payable of $0.3 million) relating to both Verdant and GRIL, and a deferred tax asset of $0.03 million (2013: $0.05 million) primarily relating to Verdant resulting from the temporary differences in recognition of expenses. Based on the timing of the reversal of the temporary differences and likelihood of generating sufficient taxable income to realize the future tax benefit, management believes it is more likely than not that the deferred tax asset and taxes recoverable will be fully realized in the future and therefore no valuation allowance has been recorded.

At December 31, 2014, the Company had a net operating loss carryforward of $1.6 million relating to Verdant which can be carried forward for a period of 20 years and will expire in 2033. 

The following table sets forth our current and deferred income tax benefit (expense) on a consolidated basis for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012:

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Current tax (expense) benefit	$	638		$	(534	)	$	(246	)
Tax recovered	—			—			169			(1)
Deferred tax (expense) benefit	(14		)	(4		)	(9		)
Income tax (expense) benefit	$	624		$	(538	)	$	(86	)

⁽¹⁾ During the year ended December 31, 2012, $0.2 million of tax refunds were received by GRIL relating to its operating losses for the 2011 tax year which were carried back and applied against the taxes previously paid for the 2010 tax year.

The Company has not taken any tax positions that are subject to uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact to the Company, Greenlight Re, GRIL or Verdant.

Federal Excise Taxes

The United States also imposes an excise tax on reinsurance premiums paid to non-U.S. insurers or reinsurers with respect to risks located in the United States. The rate of tax, unless exempted or reduced by an applicable U.S. tax treaty, is 1.0% for all reinsurance premiums. The Company incurs federal excise taxes on certain of its reinsurance transactions, including amounts ceded through intercompany transactions. For the years ended 2014, 2013, and 2012, the Company incurred approximately $2.2 million, $3.5 million and $3.8 million, respectively, of federal excise taxes. These amounts are reflected as acquisition costs in the Company’s consolidated statements of income.

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SEGMENT REPORTING Geographic information (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014		Dec. 31, 2013		Dec. 31, 2012
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Gross premiums written	$ 74,268	$ 97,200	$ 33,654	$ 118,901	$ 124,775	$ 148,765	$ 135,198	$ 126,964	$ 324,023		$ 535,702		$ 427,844
Gross premiums by geographical area as a percentage of total gross premiums									100.00%		100.00%		100.00%
U.S. and Caribbean
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									275,402		496,949		399,410
Gross premiums by geographical area as a percentage of total gross premiums									85.00%		92.80%		93.40%
Worldwide (1)
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									31,106	[1]	9,821	[1]	11,134	[1]
Gross premiums by geographical area as a percentage of total gross premiums									9.60%	[1]	1.80%	[1]	2.60%	[1]
Europe
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									17,432		28,932		17,300
Gross premiums by geographical area as a percentage of total gross premiums									5.40%		5.40%		4.00%
Asia
Revenue from External Customer [Line Items]
Gross premiums written									$ 83		$ 0		$ 0
Gross premiums by geographical area as a percentage of total gross premiums									0.00%		0.00%		0.00%

[1] "Worldwide" is comprised of contracts that reinsure risks in more than one geographic area and do not specifically exclude the U.S.

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME (USD $) In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenues
Gross premiums written	$ 74,268	$ 97,200	$ 33,654	$ 118,901	$ 124,775	$ 148,765	$ 135,198	$ 126,964	$ 324,023	$ 535,702	$ 427,844
Gross premiums ceded	(2,088)	(2,706)	(2,759)	(5,940)	(1,855)	(2,389)	(2,514)	3,978	(13,493)	(2,780)	24,275
Net premiums written	72,180	94,494	30,895	112,961	122,920	146,376	132,684	130,942	310,530	532,922	452,119
Change in net unearned premium reserves	3,025	(15,003)	56,960	(1,272)	18,617	17,515	316	(21,471)	43,710	14,977	14,595
Net amount	75,205	79,491	87,855	111,689	141,537	163,891	133,000	109,471	354,240	547,899	466,714
Net investment income	72,820	(54,027)	113,932	(10,150)	83,306	49,448	24,247	61,139	122,575	218,140	78,941
Other income (expense), net	12	(22)	(18)	441	(850)	(1)	(488)	389	413	(950)	(259)
Total revenues	148,037	25,442	201,769	101,980	223,993	213,338	156,759	170,999	477,228	765,089	545,396
Expenses
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	57,951	53,028	56,644	67,363	99,504	94,366	78,345	66,278	234,986	338,493	366,601
Acquisition costs, net	21,821	22,478	25,570	37,796	34,119	53,521	42,936	41,296	107,665	171,872	142,721
General and administrative expenses	5,199	3,327	6,941	6,459	4,930	7,085	5,943	3,760	21,926	21,718	17,539
Total expenses	84,971	78,833	89,155	111,618	138,553	154,972	127,224	111,334	364,577	532,083	526,861
Income before income tax expense	63,066	(53,391)	112,614	(9,638)	85,440	58,366	29,535	59,665	112,651	233,006	18,535
Income tax (expense) benefit	(204)	254	14	560	2	(90)	(142)	(308)	624	(538)	(86)
Net income including non-controlling interest	62,862	(53,137)	112,628	(9,078)	85,442	58,276	29,393	59,357	113,275	232,468	18,449
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	(2,174)	1,369	(3,075)	197	(1,512)	(1,740)	(893)	(2,624)	(3,683)	(6,769)	(3,851)
Net income	$ 60,688	$ (51,768)	$ 109,553	$ (8,881)	$ 83,930	$ 56,536	$ 28,500	$ 56,733	$ 109,592	$ 225,699	$ 14,598
Earnings per share
Basic	$ 1.62	$ (1.40)	$ 2.94	$ (0.24)	$ 2.27	$ 1.53	$ 0.77	$ 1.54	$ 2.94	$ 6.13	$ 0.40
Diluted	$ 1.60	$ (1.40)	$ 2.89	$ (0.24)	$ 2.22	$ 1.50	$ 0.76	$ 1.52	$ 2.89	$ 6.01	$ 0.39
Weighted average number of ordinary shares used in the determination of earnings and loss per share
Basic	37,356,187	36,984,650	37,246,922	36,808,386	36,908,919	36,875,716	36,830,046	36,730,315	37,242,687	36,838,128	36,702,128
Diluted	37,905,836	36,984,650	37,902,106	36,808,386	37,746,223	37,645,053	37,537,500	37,424,894	37,874,387	37,585,167	37,361,338

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RESTRICTED CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents

Restricted Cash and Cash Equivalents Items [Line Items]

RESTRICTED CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

RESTRICTED CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

The Company is required to maintain certain cash in segregated accounts with prime brokers and swap counterparties. The amount of restricted cash held by prime brokers is primarily used to support the liability created from securities sold, not yet purchased, and for collateralizing the letters of credit issued under a certain letter of credit facility (see Notes 4 and 14). The amount of cash encumbered varies depending on the market value of the securities sold, not yet purchased and letters of credit issued. Swap counterparties require cash collateral to support the current value of any amounts that may be due to the counterparty based on the value of the underlying security.

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash held by prime brokers relating to securities sold, not yet purchased	$	1,090,731	$	1,111,690
Cash collateral relating to letters of credit issued	134,981		202,248
Cash and cash equivalents held by swap counterparties	71,202		20,136
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	$	1,296,914	$	1,334,074

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CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (Cash and Cash Equivalents)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash at banks	$	3,426	$	3,674
Cash held with brokers	8,604		48
Total cash and cash equivalents	$	12,030	$	3,722

Due to the short term nature of cash and cash equivalents, management believes the above noted carrying values approximate their fair value. Cash at banks include cash held at non-U.S. financial institutions which are not insured by the FDIC or any other deposit insurance programs.

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SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Subsequent Events [Abstract]

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

As described in Note 8 - Retrocession, the Company had previously successfully litigated and had been awarded a judgment to collect certain amounts owing to it from a third party retrocessionaire and an affiliate of the retrocessionaire. Subsequent to year end, the Company entered into a settlement agreement whereby scheduled payments would be made to the Company such that the Company would receive in full, with interest, all amounts owing.

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RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Related Party Transactions [Abstract]

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Investment Advisory Agreement

Prior to January 1, 2014, the Company and its reinsurance subsidiaries were party to an investment advisory agreement with DME Advisors (the "prior agreement") under which the Company, its reinsurance subsidiaries and DME Advisors created a joint venture for the purpose of managing certain jointly held assets. Effective January 1, 2014, the prior agreement was amended and restated to replace DME Advisors with DME Advisors, LLC ("DME") as the participant to the joint venture (the "venture agreement"). Simultaneously, the Company, its reinsurance subsidiaries and DME entered into a separate investment advisory agreement with DME Advisors (the "advisory agreement"). DME and DME Advisors are related to the Company and are an affiliate of David Einhorn, Chairman of the Company’s Board of Directors.

Pursuant to the venture agreement, performance allocation equal to 20% of the net investment income of the Company’s share of the account managed by DME Advisors is allocated, subject to a loss carry forward provision, to DME’s account. The loss carry forward provision allows DME to earn a reduced performance allocation of 10% on net investment income in any year subsequent to the year in which the investment account incurs a loss, until all the losses are recouped and an additional amount equal to 150% of the aggregate investment loss is earned. DME is not entitled to earn a performance allocation in a year in which the investment portfolio incurs a loss. For the year ended December 31, 2014, performance allocation of $28.5 million (2013: $54.2 million, 2012: $18.8 million) was netted against gross investment income.  

Pursuant to the advisory agreement, a monthly management fee, equal to 0.125% (1.5% on an annual basis) of the Company’s investment account managed by DME Advisors, is paid to DME Advisors. Included in the net investment income for the year ended December 31, 2014 were management fees of $20.6 million (2013: $18.3 million, 2012: $16.9 million). The management fees have been fully paid as of December 31, 2014.

Pursuant to the venture and advisory agreements, the Company has agreed to indemnify DME and DME Advisors for any expense, loss, liability, or damage arising out of any claim asserted or threatened in connection with DME Advisors serving as the Company’s investment advisor. The Company will reimburse DME and DME Advisors for reasonable costs and expenses of investigating and/or defending such claims provided such claims were not caused due to gross negligence, breach of contract or misrepresentation by DME or DME Advisors. For the year ended December 31, 2014, there were no indemnification payments made by the Company.

David Einhorn also serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Green Brick Partners Inc ("GRBK"), a publicly traded company. During the year end December 31, 2014, the Company, along with certain affiliates of DME Advisors, provided debt financing to GRBK and acquired equity shares of GRBK. As of December 31, 2014, $21.6 million of the GRBK debt and $18.4 million of listed equities were included on the Company's balance sheet as debt instruments, trading, at fair value and equity securities, trading, at fair value, respectively. The debt matures on October 27, 2019, and carries an annual interest rate of 9.0% until October 27, 2015, and 10.0% thereafter. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company's investment income included $0.4 million of interest relating to this debt.

Service Agreement

The Company has entered into a service agreement with DME Advisors, pursuant to which DME Advisors provides investor relations services to the Company for compensation of five thousand dollars per month (plus expenses). The agreement is automatically renewed annually until terminated by either the Company or DME Advisors for any reason with 30 days prior written notice to the other party.

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SCHEDULE II Condensed Statements of Income (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenues
Total revenues	$ 148,037	$ 25,442	$ 201,769	$ 101,980	$ 223,993	$ 213,338	$ 156,759	$ 170,999	$ 477,228	$ 765,089	$ 545,396
Expenses
General and administrative expenses	5,199	3,327	6,941	6,459	4,930	7,085	5,943	3,760	21,926	21,718	17,539
Income before income tax expense	63,066	(53,391)	112,614	(9,638)	85,440	58,366	29,535	59,665	112,651	233,006	18,535
Net income	60,688	(51,768)	109,553	(8,881)	83,930	56,536	28,500	56,733	109,592	225,699	14,598
Parent Company
Revenues
Investment income									671	1,100	810
Total revenues									671	1,100	810
Expenses
General and administrative expenses									3,806	3,735	3,603
Income before income tax expense									(3,135)	(2,635)	(2,793)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries									112,727	228,334	17,391
Net income									$ 109,592	$ 225,699	$ 14,598

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SHARE CAPITAL

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Equity [Abstract]

SHARE CAPITAL

SHARE CAPITAL

The holders of all ordinary shares are entitled to share equally in dividends declared by the Board of Directors. In the event of a winding-up or dissolution of the Company, the ordinary shareholders share equally and ratably in the assets of the Company, after payment of all debts and liabilities of the Company and after liquidation of any issued and outstanding preferred shares. At December 31, 2014, no preferred shares were issued or outstanding. The Board of Directors is authorized to establish the rights and restrictions for preferred shares as they deem appropriate.

The Third Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association as revised by special resolution on July 10, 2008 (the "Articles"), provide that the holders of Class A ordinary shares generally are entitled to one vote per share. However, except upon unanimous consent of the Board of Directors, no Class A shareholder is permitted to vote an amount of shares which would cause any United States person to own (directly, indirectly or constructively under applicable United States tax attribution and constructive ownership rules) 9.9% or more of the total voting power of all issued and outstanding ordinary shares. The Articles further provide that the holders of Class B ordinary shares generally are entitled to ten votes per share. However, holders of Class B ordinary shares, together with their affiliates, are limited to voting that number of Class B ordinary shares equal to 9.5% of the total voting power of the total issued and outstanding ordinary shares. 

Pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement, dated August 11, 2004, by and among the Company and certain of its shareholders, (the “Shareholders’ Agreement”) the holders of at least 50% of the outstanding Registrable Securities (as defined in the Shareholders' Agreement), may, subject to certain conditions, request to have all or part of their Registrable Securities to become registered. The Shareholders' Agreement requires, among other things, that the Company use its commercially reasonable best efforts to have a registration statement covering such Registrable Securities to be declared effective. The registration rights granted pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement are not deemed to be liabilities; therefore, there has been no recognition in the consolidated financial statements of the registration rights granted pursuant to the Shareholders' Agreement.

As of December 31, 2014, the Company had an unused Form S-3 registration statement, declared effective by the SEC on July 10, 2009, which was renewed in June 2012 and expires in June 2015 unless renewed, for an aggregate principal amount of $200 million in securities.

Shares authorized for issuance are comprised of 300,000 (2013: 300,000) Class A ordinary shares in relation to share purchase options granted to a service provider and 3,500,000 (2013: 3,500,000) Class A ordinary shares authorized for the Company’s stock incentive plan for eligible employees, directors and consultants. As of December 31, 2014, there were no (2013: 20,000) remaining Class A ordinary shares available for future issuance relating to share purchase options granted to the service provider, and 803,558 (2013: 961,587) Class A ordinary shares remained available for future issuance under the Company's stock incentive plan. The stock incentive plan is administered by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors. 

The Board has adopted a share repurchase plan. Under the share repurchase plan, the Board authorized the Company to purchase up to 2.0 million of its Class A ordinary shares from time to time. Class A ordinary shares or securities convertible into Class A ordinary shares, may be purchased in the open market or through privately negotiated transactions. The timing of such repurchases and actual number of shares repurchased will depend on a variety of factors including price, market conditions and applicable regulatory and corporate requirements. The share repurchase plan, which expires on June 30, 2015, does not require the Company to repurchase any specific number of shares and may be modified, suspended or terminated at any time without prior notice. As of December 31, 2014, 2.0 million shares remained available under the share repurchase plan. Under the Companies Law of the Cayman Islands, the Company cannot hold treasury shares; therefore, all ordinary shares repurchased are canceled immediately upon repurchase.

The following table is a summary of voting ordinary shares issued and outstanding:

	2014			2013		2012
	Class A	Class B		Class A	Class B	Class A	Class B
Balance – beginning of year	30,791,865	6,254,949		30,447,179	6,254,949	30,283,200	6,254,949
Issue of ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	337,729	—		344,686	—	163,979	—
Class B shares converted to Class A	54	(54	)	—	—	—	—
Balance – end of year	31,129,648	6,254,895		30,791,865	6,254,949	30,447,179	6,254,949

Greenlight Re is subject to the Cayman Islands' Insurance (Capital and Solvency) (Classes B, C, and D Insurers) Regulations, 2012 (the "Insurance Regulations"). The Insurance Regulations impose a Minimum Capital Requirement of US$50.0 million and a Prescribed Capital Requirement of $443.5 million on Greenlight Re as of December 31, 2014 (2013: $449.4 million). As of December 31, 2014, Greenlight Re's statutory capital and surplus of $1,102.4 million exceeded the Minimum Capital Requirement as well as the Prescribed Capital Requirement. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, Greenlight Re's net income was $113.3 million, $229.8 million, and $15.3 million, respectively.

Greenlight Re is not required to prepare separate statutory financial statements for filing with CIMA and there were no material differences between Greenlight Re's GAAP capital, surplus and net income, and its statutory capital, surplus and net income as of December 31, 2014 and 2013.

As of December 31, 2014, $660.9 million of the Company's retained earnings were restricted from payment of dividends to the Company's shareholders. However, since most of the Company's capital and retained earnings are invested in its subsidiaries, a dividend from one or more of the Company's subsidiaries would likely be required in order to fund a dividend to the Company's shareholders. Any dividends declared and paid from Greenlight Re to the Company would require approval of CIMA. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, $658.8 million and $539.3 million, respectively, of Greenlight Re's capital and surplus was available for distribution as dividends. The amount of dividends that GRIL is permitted to distribute is limited to its retained earnings and the Central Bank of Ireland has powers to intervene if a dividend payment were to lead to a breach of regulatory capital requirements. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, $2.7 million and $6.0 million, respectively, of GRIL's capital and surplus was available for distribution as dividends.

GRIL is obligated to maintain a minimum level of capital (the "Required Minimum Margin"). As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, GRIL met such requirements. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, GRIL's statutory capital and surplus was the same as its U.S. GAAP capital and surplus of $42.9 million and $46.1 million, respectively. The required solvency margin for GRIL as of December 31, 2014 and 2013 was $13.6 million and $13.6 million, respectively. GRIL's statutory net income (loss) was $(3.3) million, $3.6 million and $1.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, respectively.

Additional paid-in capital includes the premium per share paid by the subscribing shareholders for Class A and B ordinary shares which have a par value of $0.10 each. It also includes share-based awards earned not yet issued.

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Volume of Derivative Activities (Details) (Derivatives not designated as hedging instruments, USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014		Dec. 31, 2013
Derivative [Line Items]
Entered	$ 1,473,544		$ 1,949,868
Exited	913,845		1,839,193
Forwards
Derivative [Line Items]
Entered	0		423,443
Exited	82,688		115,884
Futures
Derivative [Line Items]
Entered	308,178		401,672
Exited	356,216		292,529
Interest rate options
Derivative [Line Items]
Entered			0
Exited			376,385
Options, warrants, and rights
Derivative [Line Items]
Entered	1,044,241		930,410
Exited	314,876	[1]	965,991	[1]
Total return swaps
Derivative [Line Items]
Entered	121,125		194,343
Exited	$ 160,065		$ 88,404

[1] Exited amount excludes options which expired or were exercised during the period.

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LOSS AND LOSS ADJUSTMENT EXPENSE RESERVES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Insurance Loss Reserves [Abstract]

LOSS AND LOSS ADJUSTMENT EXPENSE RESERVES

LOSS AND LOSS ADJUSTMENT EXPENSE RESERVES

A summary of changes in outstanding loss and loss adjustment expense reserves is as follows: 

	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Gross balance at January 1	$	329,894		$	356,470		$	241,279
Less: Losses recoverable	(16,829		)	(34,451		)	(29,758		)
Net balance at January 1	313,065			322,019			211,521
Incurred losses related to:
Current year	216,757			344,613			309,703
Prior years	18,229			(6,120		)	56,898
Total incurred	234,986			338,493			366,601
Paid losses related to:
Current year	(163,139		)	(177,871		)	(130,717		)
Prior years	(130,438		)	(170,018		)	(125,767		)
Total paid	(293,577		)	(347,889		)	(256,484		)
Foreign currency revaluation	(1,754		)	442			381
Net balance at December 31	252,720			313,065			322,019
Add: Losses recoverable	11,523			16,829			34,451
Gross balance at December 31	$	264,243		$	329,894		$	356,470

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the net losses incurred included $18.2 million related to net adverse loss development on reserves relating to prior years. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the loss development on prior year contracts primarily related to the following:

● $7.8 million of adverse loss development, relating to a general liability contract currently in run-off. Loss reserves were increased on this contract after a detailed actuarial review of existing claims data received from the client, which reported an increase in the number of open claims. The loss reserves were also increased to take into account the corresponding claims handling fees expected to be incurred to settle the open claims;

● $7.1 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, relating to commercial motor claims on a multi-line quota share contract currently in run-off. Loss reserves were increased on this contract after a detailed actuarial review of existing claims data received from the client, which reported significant increases in incurred losses on some claims as well as an increase in the number of open claims;

● $4.0 million of adverse loss development relating to a solicitors' professional indemnity contract as a result of a combination of large claims reported and increases in case reserves on several smaller claims. Loss reserves were increased on this contract after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the client, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrator and actuarial analysis based on all available information. The contract terms included sliding scale ceding commission rates and profit commissions. As a result, the increase in loss reserves was offset by a $0.6 million decrease in ceding commissions and profit commissions which were recorded as decreases to acquisition costs;

● $3.0 million of adverse loss development relating to the employer medical stop-loss business. Loss reserves were increased on these contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrators and actuarial analysis based on all available information; and

● $3.8 million of favorable loss development relating to private passenger automobile business, primarily as a result of better than expected loss development noted on our private passenger automobile contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files and actuarial analysis based on all available information. Since these contracts included sliding scale ceding commission rates, the decrease in loss reserves was offset by a $2.2 million increase in ceding commissions recorded as acquisition costs.

There were no other significant developments of prior period loss reserves during the year ended December 31, 2014.

For the year ended December 31, 2013, the net losses incurred included $6.1 million related to net favorable loss development on reserves relating to prior years. During the year ended December 31, 2013, the loss development on prior year contracts primarily related to the following:

● Elimination of $15.0 million of reserves relating to super-storm Sandy based on additional information received from the client which indicated that the losses would not exceed the threshold of coverage provided under the contract. As a result of the reversal of loss reserves, the Company also reversed reinstatement premiums earned of $2.6 million;

● $4.0 million of favorable loss development relating to commercial automobile business due to better than expected loss development on open claims and settling of claims at lower amounts than expected. Loss reserves were decreased on these contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrators and actuarial analysis based on all available information;

● $3.0 million favorable loss development relating to a private passenger automobile contract as a result of final settlement of losses upon commutation of the contract at an amount lower than originally reserved. However, because this contract included a sliding scale ceding commission rate, the decrease in loss reserves was offset by a $2.3 million increase in ceding commissions recorded as acquisition costs;

● $2.4 million favorable loss development relating to Florida homeowners' insurance business due to better than expected development on sinkhole claims, primarily as a result of legislative changes implemented in the State of Florida during 2012;

● $17.7 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, relating to general liability business. Loss reserves were increased on these contracts after a detailed review of existing claims data received from the clients, audits of claim files at the third party claims administrators and actuarial analysis based on all available information; and

● $4.0 million of adverse loss development on a 2007 casualty clash contract based on updated claims and loss information received from the client. The new information indicated that ground up losses under the contract estimated by the client had increased resulting in additional losses attaching to the Company's layer. As a result of this increase in loss reserves, the Company recorded reinstatement premiums of $1.2 million.

There were no other significant developments of prior period loss reserves during the year ended December 31, 2013.

For the year ended December 31, 2012, the net losses incurred included $56.9 million related to net adverse loss development on reserves relating to prior years. During the year ended December 31, 2012, the loss development on prior year contracts primarily related to the following:

● $18.8 million of adverse loss development on a commercial motor liability contract that has been in run-off since 2010. The increase in loss reserves was based on updated loss data received from the third party claims adjuster and the client, as well as the Company's quarterly analysis of the remaining open claims and the reserves required to settle and resolve all remaining claims and any new reported claims;

● $21.9 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, relating to commercial motor liability exposures that are currently in run-off on two multi-line quota share contracts. Since these contracts are less mature than the Company's other commercial motor liability contract, there is more uncertainty as to the ultimate losses to be paid. As a result, the Company has recorded loss reserves for the commercial motor portion of these contracts consistent with the loss ratio recorded for the more mature commercial motor contract. Loss reserves were increased on these contracts after extensive review of existing claims data, the Company's previous experience with commercial motor liability business and actuarial analysis based on data received from third party claims handlers and the client;

● $9.0 million of adverse loss development on a 2010 natural peril contract relating to the 2010 New Zealand earthquake. This adverse loss development resulted from revised estimated losses expected on the underlying policies by the ceding insurer, primarily due to complex engineering and structural requirements as well as building-code changes being implemented in New Zealand. The updated loss reserves resulted in a full limit loss of $10.0 million under this contract; and

● $4.6 million of adverse loss development, net of retrocession recoveries, on prior period Florida homeowners' contracts due to a combination of an increase in attritional losses as well as an increase in sinkhole losses based on updated information received from the ceding insurer during the period as well as a reassessment in connection with the Company's quarterly reserve analysis. These contracts contain sliding scale commission adjustments which offset some of the adverse loss development. Therefore, $4.6 million of adverse loss development was offset by a reduction of $1.3 million in commission expenses.

There were no other significant developments of prior period loss reserves during the year ended December 31, 2012.

At December 31, 2014 and 2013, loss and loss adjustment expense reserves were comprised of the following:

	2014		2013
	($ in thousands)
Case reserves	$	117,049	$	137,825
IBNR	147,194		192,069
Total	$	264,243	$	329,894

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RETROCESSION

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Reinsurance Disclosures [Abstract]

RETROCESSION

RETROCESSION

The Company, from time to time, purchases retrocessional coverage for one or more of the following reasons: to manage its overall exposure, to reduce its net liability on individual risks, to obtain additional underwriting capacity and to balance its underwriting portfolio. Additionally, retrocession can be used as a mechanism to share the risks and rewards of business written and therefore can be used as a tool to align the Company's interests with those of its counterparties. The Company currently has coverages that provide for recovery of a portion of loss and loss expenses incurred on certain contracts. Loss and loss adjustment expense recoverable from the retrocessionaires are recorded as assets.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred of $235.0 million (2013: $338.5 million and 2012: $366.6 million) reported on the consolidated statements of income are net of loss and loss expenses recovered and recoverable of $4.4 million (2013: $(10.2) million and 2012: $13.0 million). The negative loss and loss adjustment expenses recovered for the year ended December 31, 2013, were due to reversal of loss reserves on retrocession contracts that were novated during 2013.

Retrocession contracts do not relieve the Company from its obligations to the insureds. Failure of retrocessionaires to honor their obligations could result in losses to the Company. At December 31, 2014, the Company had losses receivable and loss reserves recoverable of $18.3 million (December 31, 2013: $16.8 million) with unrated retrocessionaires. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, $2.8 million and $4.0 million, respectively, of losses recoverable from unrated retrocessionaires were secured by cash collateral held by the Company, while $6.7 million and nil, respectively, were secured through a trust account and the remainder was secured by other collateral in the form of guarantees.

At December 31, 2014, the uncollateralized losses receivable and loss reserves recoverable of $8.9 million was related to an unrated retrocessionaire who is contractually obligated to post collateral for the entire balance but the retrocessionaire disputed its obligation and only provided partial collateral. During 2013, an arbitration panel ruled in favor of the Company. The retrocessionaire challenged the arbitration award, seeking to set it aside. A judge in the Grand Court in Grand Cayman subsequently ordered the retrocessionaire to post security in the amount of the arbitration award pending a hearing on the merits, whereupon the retrocessionaire challenged the posting of security. During 2014, the retrocession contract was novated to an affiliate of the retrocessionaire, which partially funded a trust account with collateral for the benefit of the Company. Additionally, at December 31, 2014, an affiliate of the retrocessionaire was also delinquent in its payment to the Company of $10.3 million (December 31, 2013: $12.0 million) relating to ceding commission adjustments which are included in reinsurance balances receivable. The Company initiated legal proceedings in order to enforce its contractual rights. By Opinion and Order dated July 28, 2014, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (the "Court") granted, in part, the Company's summary judgment motion. Subsequently, on October 15, 2014, the Court entered the judgment in the Company's favor. Subsequent to the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company entered into a settlement agreement with the retrocessionaire and its affiliate in order to collect the outstanding balances. See Note 17 - Subsequent Events for further details.

The Company regularly evaluates the financial condition of all its retrocessionaires to assess the ability of the retrocessionaires to honor their obligations. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, no provision for uncollectible losses recoverable was considered necessary.

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION

The Company has a stock incentive plan for directors, employees and consultants as detailed in Note 9 above.

Service Provider Share Purchase Options

On September 20, 2004, the Company granted share purchase options to a service provider to purchase 400,000 Class A ordinary shares at an exercise price of $10.00 per share. During 2014, the remaining 20,000 share purchase options outstanding were exercised, resulting in the net issuance of 13,861 Class A ordinary shares (net of shares surrendered as a result of the cashless exercise of stock options).

Employee and Director Restricted Shares

As part of its stock incentive plan, the Company issues restricted shares for which the fair value is equal to the price of the Company’s Class A ordinary shares on the grant date. Compensation based on the grant date fair market value of the shares is expensed on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 127,186 (2013: 111,231, 2012: 112,477) restricted Class A ordinary shares were issued to employees pursuant to the Company’s stock incentive plan. These shares contain certain restrictions relating to, among other things, vesting, forfeiture in the event of termination of employment and transferability. Each of these restricted shares will cliff vest after three years from the date of issuance, subject to the grantee’s continued service with the Company. During the vesting period, the holder of the restricted shares retains voting rights and is entitled to any dividends declared by the Company.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company also issued to non-employee directors an aggregate of 28,060 (2013: 36,374, 2012: 35,994) restricted Class A ordinary shares as part of their remuneration for services to the Company. Each of these restricted shares issued to non-employee directors contains similar restrictions to those issued to employees and will vest on the earlier of the first anniversary of the share issuance or the Company’s next annual general meeting, subject to the grantee’s continued service with the Company.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 38,706 (2013: 16,826, 2012: 7,492) restricted shares were forfeited by employees who left the Company prior to the expiration of the vesting period. For the year ended December 31, 2014, in accordance with U.S. GAAP, $0.4 million of stock compensation expense (2013: $0.2 million, 2012: $0.2 million) relating to the forfeited restricted shares was reversed.

The Company recorded $3.3 million of share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures, relating to restricted shares for the year ended December 31, 2014 (2013: $3.2 million, 2012: $3.1 million). As of December 31, 2014, there were $4.2 million (2013: $3.5 million, 2012: $3.4 million) of unrecognized compensation costs related to non-vested restricted shares which are expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.8 years (2013: 1.7 years, 2012: 1.7 years). For the year ended December 31, 2014, the total fair value of restricted shares vested was $2.9 million (2013: $2.8 million, 2012: $3.3 million).

The restricted share award activity during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 was as follows:

	Number of non-vested restricted  shares		Weighted  average grant date fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	308,406		$	24.93
Granted	147,605		24.59
Vested	(110,194	)	25.08
Forfeited	(16,826	)	24.55
Balance at December 31, 2013	328,991		24.74
Granted	155,246		32.58
Vested	(115,444	)	25.35
Forfeited	(38,706	)	27.43
Balance at December 31, 2014	330,087		$	27.90

Employee and Director Stock Options

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 31,821 Class A ordinary share purchase options were granted to the Company's Chief Executive Officer, pursuant to his employment contract (2013: 38,197). These options vest 25% on the date of the grant, and 25% each on the anniversary thereof in 2015, 2016 and 2017, and expire 10 years after the grant date. The grant date fair value of these options was $15.71 per share (2013: $13.09 per share), based on the Black-Scholes option pricing model.

The Company uses the Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine the valuation of its options and has applied the assumptions set forth in the following table.

	2014		2013		2012
Risk free rate	2.47	%	2.85	%	1.50	%
Estimated volatility	34.3	%	35.0	%	35.0	%
Expected term (in years)	10		10		10
Dividend yield	0	%	0	%	0	%
Forfeiture rate	0	%	0	%	0	%

At the present time, the Board of Directors does not anticipate that any dividends will be declared during the expected term of the options. The Company uses graded vesting for expensing employee stock options. The total compensation cost expensed for the year ended December 31, 2014 related to employee and director stock options was $0.5 million (2013: $0.6 million, 2012: $0.6 million). At December 31, 2014, the total compensation cost related to non-vested options not yet recognized was $0.4 million (2013: $0.4 million, 2012: $0.5 million) to be recognized over a weighted average period of 1.5 years (2013: 1.5 years, 2012: 1.5 years) assuming the employees complete their service period for vesting of the options.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 318,500 (2013: 56,500) stock options were exercised by directors and employees resulting in 207,328 Class A ordinary shares issued, net of shares surrendered as a result of the cashless exercise of stock options (2013: 52,173). When stock options are granted, the Company reduces the corresponding number from the shares authorized for issuance as part of the Company’s stock incentive plan. The intrinsic value of options exercised during the year ended December 31, 2014 was $6.7 million (2013: $0.8 million).

Employee and director stock option activity during the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 was as follows: 

	Number of  options		Weighted  average  exercise  price		Weighted  average  grant date  fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	1,421,290		$	15.36	$	6.87
Granted	38,197		26.44		13.09
Exercised	(56,500	)	11.44		5.70
Forfeited	—		—		—
Expired	—		—		—
Balance at December 31, 2013	1,402,987		15.82		7.08
Granted	31,821		32.37		15.71
Exercised	(318,500	)	11.29		5.67
Forfeited	—		—		—
Expired	—		—		—
Balance at December 31, 2014	1,116,308		$	17.58	$	7.73

At December 31, 2014, the weighted-average remaining contractual term for options outstanding was 3.0 years (2013: 3.3 years).

At December 31, 2014, 1,062,022 (2013: 1,326,694) stock options were exercisable. These options had a weighted-average exercise price of $17.02 (2013: $15.35) and a weighted-average remaining contractual term of 2.7 years (2013: 3.0 years).

The weighted average grant date fair value of options granted during the year ended December 31, 2014 was $15.71 (2013: $13.09, 2012: $11.04). The aggregate intrinsic value of options outstanding and options exercisable at December 31, 2014 was $16.8 million and $16.6 million, respectively (2013: $25.1 million and $24.4 million, respectively). During the year ended December 31, 2014, 53,828 (2013: 45,871, 2012: 36,323) options vested which had a weighted average grant date fair value of $11.76 (2013: $11.08, 2012: $10.55).

Employee Restricted Stock Units

The Company issues restricted stock units ("RSUs") to certain employees as part of the stock incentive plan. The grant date fair value of the RSUs is equal to the price of the Company’s Class A ordinary shares on the grant date. Compensation based on the grant date fair market value of the RSUs is expensed on a straight line basis over the vesting period.

For the year ended December 31, 2014, 9,668 (2013: 5,941, 2012: nil) RSUs were issued to employees pursuant to the Company’s stock incentive plan. These shares contain certain restrictions relating to, among other things, vesting, forfeiture in the event of termination of employment and transferability. Each of these RSUs will cliff vest after three years from the date of issuance, subject to the grantee’s continued service with the Company. On the vesting date, the Company converts each RSU into one Class A ordinary share and issues new Class A ordinary shares from the shares authorized for issuance as part of the Company’s stock incentive plan.

The Company recorded $0.13 million of share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures, relating to RSUs for the year ended December 31, 2014 (2013: $0.03 million, 2012: nil).

Employee RSU activity during the year ended December 31, 2014 was as follows:

	Number of non-vested RSUs	Weighted  average grant date fair value
Balance at December 31, 2012	—	—
Granted	5,941	24.41
Vested	—	—
Forfeited	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2013	5,941	$	24.41
Granted	9,668	32.60
Vested	—	—
Forfeited	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2014	15,609	$	29.72

For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013 and 2012, the general and administrative expenses included stock compensation expense (net of forfeitures) of $4.0 million, $3.8 million and $3.7 million, respectively, for the expensing of the fair value of stock options, restricted stocks and RSUs granted to employees and directors.

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RESTRICTED CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	$ 1,296,914	$ 1,334,074
Cash held by prime brokers relating to securities sold, not yet purchased
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	1,090,731	1,111,690
Cash collateral relating to letters of credit issued
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	134,981	202,248
Cash and cash equivalents held by swap counterparties
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total restricted cash and cash equivalents	$ 71,202	$ 20,136

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SCHEDULE II Condensed Statements of Cash Flows (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	$ 109,592	$ 225,699	$ 14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,964	3,675	3,689
Net change in
Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities	(133,732)	(92,697)	(50,592)
Investing activities
Change in notes receivable, net	18,983	3,281	(1,893)
Net cash provided by investing activities	142,040	74,016	29,880
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	0	513	318
Net cash provided by financing activities	0	513	318
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	8,308	(18,168)	(20,394)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period	3,722	21,890	42,284
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period	12,030	3,722	21,890
Parent Company
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	109,592	225,699	14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(112,727)	(228,334)	(17,391)
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,964	3,675	3,689
Net change in
Due from subsidiaries	971	(2,006)	(52)
Due to subsidiaries	(3,808)	2,438	587
Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities	(2,008)	1,472	1,431
Investing activities
Change in notes receivable, net	2,162	(2,053)	(1,675)
Contributed surplus to subsidiaries, net	158	(59)	85
Net cash provided by investing activities	2,004	(1,994)	(1,760)
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	0	513	318
Net cash provided by financing activities	0	513	318
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(4)	(9)	(11)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the period	5	14	25
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the period	$ 1	$ 5	$ 14

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RETROCESSION (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Loss and loss adjustment expenses incurred, net	$ 57,951,000	$ 53,028,000	$ 56,644,000	$ 67,363,000	$ 99,504,000	$ 94,366,000	$ 78,345,000	$ 66,278,000	$ 234,986,000	$ 338,493,000	$ 366,601,000
Loss and loss expenses recovered and recoverable									4,400,000	(10,200,000)	13,000,000
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	11,523,000				16,829,000				11,523,000	16,829,000	34,451,000	29,758,000
Losses recoverable	6,558,000				10,126,000				6,558,000	10,126,000
Provision for uncollectible losses recoverable	0				0				0	0
Unrated
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	18,300,000				16,800,000				18,300,000	16,800,000
Ceded Credit Risk, Secured
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Losses recoverable	2,800,000				4,000,000				2,800,000	4,000,000
Collateral Held in Trust	6,700,000				0				6,700,000	0
Ceded Credit Risk, Unsecured
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Loss and loss adjustment expenses recoverable	8,900,000								8,900,000
Premiums and Other Receivables, Net [Member] | Ceded Credit Risk, Unsecured
Ceded Credit Risk [Line Items]
Ceding commission adjustments	$ 10,300,000				$ 12,000,000				$ 10,300,000	$ 12,000,000

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CASH AND CASH EQUIVALENTS (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total cash and cash equivalents	$ 12,030	$ 3,722	$ 21,890	$ 42,284
Cash at banks
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total cash and cash equivalents	3,426	3,674
Cash held with brokers
Cash and Cash Equivalents [Line Items]
Total cash and cash equivalents	$ 8,604	$ 48

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SHARE CAPITAL (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Equity [Abstract]

Schedule of Common Stock Outstanding Roll Forward

The following table is a summary of voting ordinary shares issued and outstanding:

	2014			2013		2012
	Class A	Class B		Class A	Class B	Class A	Class B
Balance – beginning of year	30,791,865	6,254,949		30,447,179	6,254,949	30,283,200	6,254,949
Issue of ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	337,729	—		344,686	—	163,979	—
Class B shares converted to Class A	54	(54	)	—	—	—	—
Balance – end of year	31,129,648	6,254,895		30,791,865	6,254,949	30,447,179	6,254,949

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Investments Included in Debt Instruments (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	$ 53,075	$ 5,877
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	49,212	4,312
Corporate debt – U.S.
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	23,677	2,116
Unrealized gains	5	0
Unrealized losses	(1,423)	(1,589)
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	22,259	527
Corporate debt – Non U.S.
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	5,870	3,761
Unrealized gains	49	115
Unrealized losses	(1,405)	(91)
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	4,514	3,785
Municipal Bonds [Member]
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	1,759
Unrealized gains	0
Unrealized losses	(6)
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	1,753
Foreign Government Debt [Member]
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	21,769
Unrealized gains	0
Unrealized losses	(1,083)
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value	20,686
Debt instruments
Schedule of Trading Securities and Other Trading Assets [Line Items]
Cost/ amortized cost	53,075	5,877
Unrealized gains	54	115
Unrealized losses	$ (3,917)	$ (1,680)

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SEGMENT REPORTING

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Segment Reporting [Abstract]

SEGMENT REPORTING

SEGMENT REPORTING

The Company manages its business on the basis of one operating segment, Property & Casualty Reinsurance.

Substantially all of the business is sourced through reinsurance brokers. The following table sets forth the premiums sourced from brokers who each accounted for more than 10% of the Company's gross written premiums:  

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
Largest broker	$	161,405	49.8	%	$	282,337	52.7	%	$	242,665	56.7	%
2nd largest broker	61,809		19.1		119,117		22.2		63,044		14.7
3rd largest broker	40,773		12.6		—		—		48,497		11.3
	$	263,987	81.5	%	$	401,454	74.9	%	$	354,206	82.7	%

The following tables provide a breakdown of the Company's gross premiums written by line of business and by geographic area of risks insured for the periods indicated:

Gross Premiums Written by Line of Business

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013					2012
	($ in thousands)
Property
Aviation	$	391	0.1	%	$	168		—	%	$	—		—	%
Commercial	11,529		3.6		9,999			1.9		15,110			3.5
Energy	2,131		0.6		659			0.1		—			—
Motor physical damage	24,008		7.4		57,952			10.8		60,262			14.1
Personal	64,479		19.9		145,807			27.2		81,662			19.1
Total Property	102,538		31.6		214,585			40.0		157,034			36.7
Casualty
General liability (1)	11,639		3.6		(815		)	(0.2	)	22,462			5.3
Marine liability	5,120		1.6		1,956			0.4		2,240			0.5
Motor liability	127,858		39.5		253,698			47.4		178,204			41.7
Professional liability	27,009		8.4		29,901			5.6		17,301			4.0
Total Casualty	171,626		53.1		284,740			53.2		220,207			51.5
Specialty
Financial (1)	5,292		1.6		3,498			0.7		(256		)	(0.1	)
Health	43,837		13.5		37,094			6.9		33,874			7.9
Workers’ compensation (1)	730		0.2		(4,215		)	(0.8	)	16,985			4.0
Total Specialty	49,859		15.3		36,377			6.8		50,603			11.8
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702		100.0	%	$	427,844		100.0	%

(1)  The negative balance represents reversal of premiums due to premium adjustments, termination of contracts or premiums returned upon novation or commutation of contracts.

Gross Premiums Written by Geographic Area of Risks Insured

	Year ended December 31
	2014				2013				2012
	($ in thousands)
U.S. and Caribbean	$	275,402	85.0	%	$	496,949	92.8	%	$	399,410	93.4	%
Worldwide (1)	31,106		9.6		9,821		1.8		11,134		2.6
Europe	17,432		5.4		28,932		5.4		17,300		4.0
Asia	83		—		—		—		—		—
	$	324,023	100.0	%	$	535,702	100.0	%	$	427,844	100.0	%

(1) "Worldwide" is comprised of contracts that reinsure risks in more than one geographic area and do not specifically exclude the U.S.

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SCHEDULE III

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Supplementary Insurance Information [Abstract]

SUPPLEMENTARY INSURANCE INFORMATION

SCHEDULE III

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

SUPPLEMENTARY INSURANCE INFORMATION

AS OF AND FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2014, 2013 AND 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

Year	Segment	Deferred acquisition costs, net		Reserves for losses and loss adjustment expenses – gross		Unearned premiums – gross		Net premiums earned		Net investment income (loss)		Net losses, and loss adjustment expenses		Amortization of deferred acquisition costs		Other operating expenses		Gross premiums written
2014	Property & Casualty	$	34,420	$	264,243	$	128,736	$	354,240	$	122,575	$	234,986	$	107,665	$	21,926	$	324,023
2013	Property & Casualty	$	51,797	$	329,894	$	173,057	$	547,899	$	218,140	$	338,493	$	171,872	$	21,718	$	535,702
2012	Property & Casualty	$	59,177	$	356,470	$	188,185	$	466,714	$	78,941	$	366,601	$	142,721	$	17,539	$	427,844

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Fair Value Hierarchy Additional Information (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Transfers out of Level 3	$ 4,044,000	$ 24,581,000
Amount transferred from Level 2 to Level 1 due to lock-up period restriction expiration	14,400,000	2,400,000
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	9,905,000	1,536,000
Net investment income (loss)
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Total realized and unrealized gains included in earnings, net	13,500,000	700,000
Change in unrealized (losses) gains	1,400,000	(1,100,000)
Significant other observable inputs (Level 2)
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Transfers out of Level 3	4,000,000	5,000,000
Quoted prices in active markets (Level 1)
Fair Value, Assets and Liabilities Measured on Recurring and Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]
Transfers out of Level 3		$ 19,600,000

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SCHEDULE II (Tables) (Parent Company)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Parent Company

Condensed Financial Statements, Captions [Line Items]

Schedule of Condensed Balance Sheet

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED BALANCE SHEETS — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	December 31, 2014		December 31, 2013
	($ in thousands)
Cash and cash equivalents	$	1	$	5
Investment in subsidiaries	1,148,308		1,035,423
Note receivable	1,566		3,728
Due from subsidiaries	15,276		16,247
Total assets	$	1,165,151	$	1,055,403
Liabilities and shareholders’ equity
Liabilities
Due to subsidiaries	$	—	$	3,808
Total liabilities	—		3,808
Shareholders’ equity
Share capital	3,738		3,705
Additional paid-in capital	500,553		496,622
Retained earnings	660,860		551,268
Total shareholders’ equity	1,165,151		1,051,595
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity	$	1,165,151	$	1,055,403

Schedule of Condensed Income Statement

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF INCOME — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Year ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Revenue
Investment income	$	671		$	1,100		$	810
Total revenues	671			1,100			810
Expenses
General and administrative expenses	3,806			3,735			3,603
Net income (loss) before equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(3,135		)	(2,635		)	(2,793		)
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	112,727			228,334			17,391
Consolidated net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598

Schedule of Condensed Cash Flow Statement

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

CONDENSED FINANCIAL INFORMATION OF REGISTRANT

CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS — PARENT COMPANY ONLY

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

	Year Ended December 31
	2014			2013			2012
	($ in thousands)
Cash provided by (used in) operating activities
Net income	$	109,592		$	225,699		$	14,598
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to cash provided by operating activities
Equity in earnings of consolidated subsidiaries	(112,727		)	(228,334		)	(17,391		)
Share-based compensation expense	3,964			3,675			3,689
Change in
Due from subsidiaries	971			(2,006		)	(52		)
Due to subsidiaries	(3,808		)	2,438			587
Net cash (used in) provided by operating activities	(2,008		)	1,472			1,431
Investing activities
Change in note receivable	2,162			(2,053		)	(1,675		)
Contributed surplus to subsidiaries, net	(158		)	59			(85		)
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities	2,004			(1,994		)	(1,760		)
Financing activities
Net proceeds from exercise of stock options	—			513			318
Net cash provided by financing activities	—			513			318
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents	(4		)	(9		)	(11		)
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of the year	5			14			25
Cash and cash equivalents at end of the year	$	1		$	5		$	14

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CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Total	Ordinary share capital	Additional paid-in capital	Retained earnings	Shareholders' equity attributable to shareholders	Non-controlling interest in joint venture
Balance at Dec. 31, 2011	$ 845,698	$ 3,654	$ 488,478	$ 310,971	$ 803,103	$ 42,595
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Issue of Class A ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	332	16	316	0	332	0
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,675	0	3,675	0	3,675	0
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	(7,744)	0	0	0	0	(7,744)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	3,851	0	0	0	0	3,851
Net income	14,598	0	0	14,598	14,598	0
Balance at Dec. 31, 2012	860,410	3,670	492,469	325,569	821,708	38,702
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Issue of Class A ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	527	35	492	0	527	0
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,661	0	3,661	0	3,661	0
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	(10,762)	0	0	0	0	(10,762)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	6,769	0	0	0	0	6,769
Net income	225,699	0	0	225,699	225,699	0
Balance at Dec. 31, 2013	1,086,304	3,705	496,622	551,268	1,051,595	34,709
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Issue of Class A ordinary shares, net of forfeitures	33	33	0	0	33	0
Share-based compensation expense, net of forfeitures	3,931	0	3,931	0	3,931	0
Non-controlling interest withdrawal from joint venture, net	(9,502)	0	0	0	0	(9,502)
Income attributable to non-controlling interest in joint venture	3,683	0	0	0	0	3,683
Net income	109,592	0	0	109,592	109,592	0
Balance at Dec. 31, 2014	$ 1,194,041	$ 3,738	$ 500,553	$ 660,860	$ 1,165,151	$ 28,890

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DUE TO PRIME BROKERS

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Due to and from Broker-Dealers and Clearing Organizations [Abstract]

DUE TO PRIME BROKERS

DUE TO PRIME BROKERS

As of December 31, 2014, the amount due to prime brokers is comprised of margin-borrowing from prime brokers relating to investments purchased on margin as well as the margin-borrowing for providing collateral to support some of the Company’s outstanding letters of credit (see Notes 6 and 14). Under term margin agreements and certain letter of credit facility agreements, the Company pledges certain investment securities to borrow cash from the prime brokers. The borrowed cash is placed in a custodial account in the name of the Company and this custodial account provides collateral for any letters of credit issued. Since there is no legal right of offset, the Company’s liability for the cash borrowed from the prime brokers is included on the consolidated balance sheets as due to prime brokers while the cash held in the custodial account is included on the consolidated balance sheets as restricted cash and cash equivalents. At December 31, 2014, the amounts due to prime brokers included $135.0 million (2013: $202.2 million) of cash borrowed under the term margin agreements to provide collateral for letters of credit facilities and $76.1 million (2013: $112.5 million) of borrowing relating to investment purchases.

Greenlight Re's investment guidelines, among other stipulations in the guidelines, allow for up to 15% (GRIL: 5%) net margin leverage for extended periods of time and up to 30% (GRIL: 20%) net margin leverage for periods of less than 30 days.

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FINANCIAL INSTRUMENTS Schedule of Fair Values of Financial Contracts Outstanding (Details) (USD $)
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Derivative [Line Items]

Schedule of Derivative Instruments

At December 31, 2014, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Futures	USD	13,204	$	3,461
Put options (2)	USD	299,907	22,349
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	43,355	18,898
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	8,054	2,463
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	47,171
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	221,198	$	(1,305	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(1,714		)
Forwards	KRW	20,563	(512		)
Futures	USD	33,625	(867		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/INR/RON/USD	122,667	(40,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(44,592	)

At December 31, 2013, the fair values of financial contracts outstanding were as follows: 

Financial Contracts	Listing currency (1)	Notional amount of underlying instruments	Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts
		($ in thousands)
Financial contracts receivable
Forwards	JPY	71,162	$	383
Futures	JPY/USD	117,494	4,500
Interest rate options (3)	USD	391,559	26
Put options (2)	USD	217,359	12,923
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD/USD	178,988	83,325
Warrants and rights on listed equities	EUR	5,237	2,891
Total financial contracts receivable, at fair value			$	104,048
Financial contracts payable
Credit default swaps, purchased – corporate debt	USD	273,877	$	(3,625	)
Credit default swaps, purchased – sovereign debt	USD	251,467	(3,980		)
Forwards	KRW	32,100	(58		)
Total return swaps – equities	EUR/GBP/HKD	36,983	(11,194		)
Total financial contracts payable, at fair value			$	(18,857	)

Financial contracts receivable

$ 47,171

$ 104,048

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

(44,592)

(18,857)

Financial contracts receivable

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable

47,171

104,048

Financial contracts receivable | Forwards

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

71,162

Financial contracts receivable

383

Financial contracts receivable | Futures

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

13,204

117,494

Financial contracts receivable

3,461

4,500

Financial contracts receivable | Interest rate options

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

391,559

Financial contracts receivable

26

Financial contracts receivable | Put options (2)

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

299,907

217,359

Financial contracts receivable

22,349

12,923

Financial contracts receivable | Total return swaps – equities

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

43,355

178,988

Financial contracts receivable

18,898

83,325

Financial contracts receivable | Warrants and rights on listed equities

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts receivable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

8,054

5,237

Financial contracts receivable

2,463

2,891

Financial contracts payable

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

(44,592)

(18,857)

Financial contracts payable | Forwards

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts payable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

20,563

32,100

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

(512)

(58)

Financial contracts payable | Futures

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts payable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

33,625

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

(867)

Financial contracts payable | Total return swaps – equities

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts payable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

122,667

36,983

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

(40,194)

(11,194)

Financial contracts payable | Credit default swaps, purchased | Corporate Debt

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts payable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

221,198

273,877

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

(1,305)

(3,625)

Financial contracts payable | Credit default swaps, purchased | Sovereign debt – Non U.S.

Derivative [Line Items]

Financial contracts payable, Notional amount of underlying instruments

251,467

251,467

Financial contracts payable, Fair value of net assets (obligations) on financial contracts

$ (1,714)

$ (3,980)

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SCHEDULE I (Details) (USD $) In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	$ 1,288,209
Fair Value	1,430,978
Balance Sheet Value	1,430,978
Debt instruments, trading, at fair value
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	53,075
Fair Value	49,212
Balance Sheet Value	49,212
Common stocks, listed
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	1,079,955
Fair Value	1,246,427
Balance Sheet Value	1,246,427
Exchange traded funds
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	42,126
Fair Value	19,748
Balance Sheet Value	19,748
Total equity securities, trading, at fair value
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	1,122,081
Fair Value	1,266,175
Balance Sheet Value	1,266,175
Total investments, trading
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	1,175,156
Fair Value	1,315,387
Balance Sheet Value	1,315,387
Private and unlisted equities securities
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	17,238
Fair Value	18,719
Balance Sheet Value	18,719
Commodities
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	95,815
Fair Value	96,872
Balance Sheet Value	96,872
Total other investments, at fair value
Summary of Investments, Other than Investments in Related Parties, Reportable Data [Line Items]
Cost	113,053
Fair Value	115,591
Balance Sheet Value	$ 115,591

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SHARE-BASED COMPENSATION Restricted Shares (Details) (Restricted Stock, USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Restricted Stock
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Number of Shares [Roll Forward]
Number of non-vested shares, Balance at December 31, 2013	328,991	308,406
Number of non-vested RSUs, Granted	155,246	147,605
Number of non-vested RSU's, Vested	(115,444)	(110,194)
Number of non-vested RSU's, Forfeited	(38,706)	(16,826)
Number of non-vested shares, Balance at December 31, 2014	330,087	328,991
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Nonvested, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value [Abstract]
Weighted average grant date fair value, Balance at December 31, 2013	$ 24.74	$ 24.93
Weighted average grant date fair value, Granted	$ 32.58	$ 24.59
Weighted average grant date fair value, Vested	$ 25.35	$ 25.08
Weighted average grant date fair value, Forfeited	$ 27.43	$ 24.55
Weighted average grant date fair value, Balance at December 31, 2014	$ 27.90	$ 24.74

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SCHEDULE IV

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Supplemental Schedule of Reinsurance Premiums for Insurance Companies [Abstract]

SUPPLEMENTARY REINSURANCE INFORMATION

SCHEDULE IV

GREENLIGHT CAPITAL RE, LTD.

SUPPLEMENTARY REINSURANCE INFORMATION

AS OF AND FOR THE YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2014, 2013 AND 2012

(expressed in thousands of U.S. dollars)

Year	Segment	Direct gross  premiums		Premiums  ceded to  other companies			Premiums assumed from other companies		Net amount		Percentage of  amount assumed to net
2014	Property & Casualty	$	—	$	13,493		$	324,023	$	310,530	104	%
2013	Property & Casualty	$	—	$	2,780		$	535,702	$	532,922	101	%
2012	Property & Casualty	$	—	$	(24,275	)	$	427,844	$	452,119	95	%

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TAXATION (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Sep. 30, 2014	Jun. 30, 2014	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Sep. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2013	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Valuation allowance	$ 0				$ 0				$ 0	$ 0
Operating Loss Carryforwards	1,600,000								1,600,000
Current tax (expense) benefit									638,000	(534,000)	(246,000)
Tax recovered									0	0	(169,000)	[1]
Deferred tax (expense) benefit									(14,000)	(4,000)	(9,000)
Income tax (expense) benefit	(204,000)	254,000	14,000	560,000	2,000	(90,000)	(142,000)	(308,000)	624,000	(538,000)	(86,000)
Federal Excise Tax rate									1.00%
Federal Excise Taxes Incurred									2,200,000	3,500,000	3,800,000
Operating Loss Carryforwards, Expiration Date									Dec. 31, 2033
Other Assets
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Deferred tax asset	30,000				50,000				30,000	50,000
Other Liabilities
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Income Taxes Receivable	800,000								800,000
Current taxes payable					300,000					300,000
Verdant
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Tax rate for taxable income									35.00%
GRIL
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Tax refunds received											$ 200,000
GRIL | Ireland
Income Taxes [Line Items]
Tax rate for trading income									12.50%

[1] During the year ended December 31, 2012, $0.2 million of tax refunds were received by GRIL relating to its operating losses for the 2011 tax year which were carried back and applied against the taxes previously paid for the 2010 tax year. The Company has not taken any tax positions that are subject to uncertainty or that are reasonably likely to have a material impact to the Company, Greenlight Re, GRIL or Verdant. Federal Excise TaxesThe United States also imposes an excise tax on reinsurance premiums paid to non-U.S. insurers or reinsurers with respect to risks located in the United States. The rate of tax, unless exempted or reduced by an applicable U.S. tax treaty, is 1.0% for all reinsurance premiums. The Company incurs federal excise taxes on certain of its reinsurance transactions, including amounts ceded through intercompany transactions. For the years ended 2014, 2013, and 2012, the Company incurred approximately $2.2 million, $3.5 million and $3.8 million, respectively, of federal excise taxes. These amounts are reflected as acquisition costs in the Company’s consolidated statements of income.

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Schedule of Line of Credit Facilities

At December 31, 2014, the Company had the following letter of credit facilities, which automatically renew each year unless terminated by either party in accordance with the required notice period:

	Facility		Termination Date	Notice period required for termination
	($ in thousands)
Bank of America, N.A.	$	200,000	July 20, 2015	90 days prior to termination date
Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited	60,000		June 30, 2015	90 days prior to termination date
Citibank Europe plc	400,000		October 11, 2015	120 days prior to termination date
JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.	100,000		January 27, 2016	120 days prior to termination date
	$	760,000

Contractual Obligation, Fiscal Year Maturity Schedule

The following is a schedule of future minimum payments required under the above commitments: 

	2015		2016		2017		2018		2019		Thereafter		Total
	($ in thousands)
Operating lease obligations	$	557	$	500	$	466	$	233	$	—	$	—	$	1,756
Specialist service agreement	750		300		—		—		—		—		1,050
Private equity and limited partnerships (1)	8,929		—		—		—		—		—		8,929
	$	10,236	$	800	$	466	$	233	$	—	$	—	$	11,735

(1) Given the nature of these investments, the Company is unable to determine with any degree of accuracy when these commitments will be called. Therefore, for purposes of the above table, the Company has assumed that all commitments with no fixed payment schedules will be called during the year ended December 31, 2015.

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COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2014

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Letters of Credit

At December 31, 2014, the Company had the following letter of credit facilities, which automatically renew each year unless terminated by either party in accordance with the required notice period:

	Facility		Termination Date	Notice period required for termination
	($ in thousands)
Bank of America, N.A.	$	200,000	July 20, 2015	90 days prior to termination date
Butterfield Bank (Cayman) Limited	60,000		June 30, 2015	90 days prior to termination date
Citibank Europe plc	400,000		October 11, 2015	120 days prior to termination date
JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A.	100,000		January 27, 2016	120 days prior to termination date
	$	760,000

As of December 31, 2014, an aggregate amount of $273.7 million (2013: $379.1 million) in letters of credit were issued under the above facilities. Under the facilities, the Company provides collateral that may consist of equity securities and cash and cash equivalents. As of December 31, 2014, total equity securities, restricted cash, and cash and cash equivalents with a fair value in the aggregate of $302.6 million (2013: $410.3 million) were pledged as security against the letters of credit issued (also see Note 4). Each of the facilities contain customary events of default and restrictive covenants, including but not limited to, limitations on liens on collateral, transactions with affiliates, mergers and sales of assets, as well as solvency and maintenance of certain minimum pledged equity requirements, and restricts issuance of any debt without the consent of the letter of credit provider. Additionally, if an event of default exists, as defined in the letter of credit facilities, Greenlight Re will be prohibited from paying dividends to its parent company. The Company was in compliance with all the covenants of each of these facilities as of December 31, 2014 and 2013.

Operating Lease Obligations

Greenlight Re has entered into lease agreements for office space in the Cayman Islands. Under the terms of the lease agreements, Greenlight Re is committed to annual rent payments ranging from $0.3 million at inception to $0.5 million at lease termination. The leases expire on June 30, 2018 and Greenlight Re has the option to renew the leases for a further five year term. Included in the schedule below are the minimum lease payment obligations relating to these leases as of December 31, 2014.

GRIL has entered into a lease agreement for office space in Dublin, Ireland. Under the terms of this lease agreement, GRIL is committed to average annual rent payments denominated in Euros approximating €0.1 million until May 2016 (net of rent inducements), which shall be adjusted to the prevailing market rates for each of three subsequent five-year terms. GRIL has the option to terminate the lease agreement in 2016 and 2021. Included in the schedule below are the net minimum lease payment obligations relating to this lease as of December 31, 2014.

The total rent expense related to leased office space for the year ended December 31, 2014 was $0.5 million, (2013: $0.5 million, 2012: $0.4 million). 

Specialist Service Agreement

The Company has entered into a service agreement with a specialist service provider for the provision of administration and support in developing and maintaining business relationships, reviewing and recommending programs and managing risks relating to certain specialty lines of business. The specialist service provider does not have any authority to bind the Company to any reinsurance contracts. Under the terms of the agreement, the Company has committed to quarterly payments to the specialist service provider. If the agreement is terminated, the Company is obligated to make minimum payments for twelve months starting on September 1 of the year in which the agreement is terminated, to ensure contracts to which the Company is bound are adequately administered by the specialist service provider. Included in the schedule below are the minimum payment obligations relating to the agreement as of December 31, 2014.

Private Equity and Limited Partnerships

From time to time the Company makes investments in private equity vehicles. As part of the Company's participation in such private equity investments, the Company may make funding commitments. As of December 31, 2014, the Company had commitments to invest an additional $8.9 million (2013: $6.3 million) in private equity investments. Included in the schedule below are the minimum payment obligations relating to these investments as of December 31, 2014.

Schedule of Commitments and Contingencies

The following is a schedule of future minimum payments required under the above commitments: 

	2015		2016		2017		2018		2019		Thereafter		Total
	($ in thousands)
Operating lease obligations	$	557	$	500	$	466	$	233	$	—	$	—	$	1,756
Specialist service agreement	750		300		—		—		—		—		1,050
Private equity and limited partnerships (1)	8,929		—		—		—		—		—		8,929
	$	10,236	$	800	$	466	$	233	$	—	$	—	$	11,735

(1) Given the nature of these investments, the Company is unable to determine with any degree of accuracy when these commitments will be called. Therefore, for purposes of the above table, the Company has assumed that all commitments with no fixed payment schedules will be called during the year ended December 31, 2015.

Litigation

From time to time in the normal course of business, the Company may be involved in formal and informal dispute resolution procedures, which may include arbitration or litigation, the outcomes of which determine the rights and obligations under the Company's reinsurance contracts and other contractual agreements. In some disputes, the Company may seek to enforce its rights under an agreement or to collect funds owing to it. In other matters, the Company may resist attempts by others to collect funds or enforce alleged rights. While the final outcome of legal disputes cannot be predicted with certainty, the Company does not believe that any existing dispute, when finally resolved, will have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial condition or operating results.