Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies

What Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies does

Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies (founded 2013) is a multidisciplinary research centre within Cambridge Judge Business School at the University of Cambridge, based in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It conducts quantitative research and scenario modeling on systemic economic and societal risks, with documented focus areas including pandemic economic loss estimation, climate-related catastrophe risk, and geopolitical disruption. The Centre operates as an academic unit rather than a commercial entity, producing research outputs such as the 2024 pandemic loss analysis conducted with Lloyd's of London, which modeled five-year global economic losses ranging from $7.3 trillion to $41.7 trillion (most likely $13.6 trillion, 1.8% GDP reduction).

The Centre's primary stakeholders are insurance industry partners (notably Lloyd's of London under a 2024 strategic partnership), research institutions, and policy-oriented audiences, with research distributed through academic publications, working papers, and media outlets including Reuters and Newsweek. Its value proposition combines academic rigor with practical industry application, leveraging the University of Cambridge's research infrastructure and wider Cambridge innovation ecosystem. The named public representative is Andrew Coburn, identified as an Expert at the Centre.

The business model is not commercial in the conventional sense: the Centre publishes research reports and analysis rather than selling products or services, and no pricing model, revenue, or product portfolio is disclosed. Funding appears to derive from institutional sources within the University of Cambridge and industry partnerships such as the Lloyd's collaboration. The Centre has 11-50 employees and reports no subsidiaries, acquisitions, or funding rounds.

Name

Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies

Legal name

Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies

Website

https://jbs.cam.ac.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies is a University of Cambridge research centre that conducts quantitative scenario modeling on systemic risks including pandemics, climate, and geopolitical disruption, primarily serving the insurance industry and policy research audiences.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Risk Management Research

NAICS

Environmental Consulting Services (541620)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Catastrophe Risk Modeling & Analytics Services (FSAOACAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Climate Hazard & Catastrophe Modeling (Flood, Wind, Wildfire, Heat, Sea-Level Rise) (EUABALAA), Risk Quantification, Modeling & Stress Testing (BPAHAFAH), Sustainability Risk & Scenario Analysis (Climate Risk, Stress Testing, Portfolio Alignment) (FSAAALAM)

Keywords

• Risk management research
• Catastrophe risk modeling
• Scenario analysis research
• Systemic risk studies
• Economic loss estimation

Headquarters

HQ city

Cambridge

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Core offering

The Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies is a multidisciplinary research centre that conducts quantitative analysis of economic and societal systemic risks, including pandemics, climate change, geopolitical disruptions, and economic shocks. It produces scenario-based risk models and loss estimations in collaboration with industry partners such as Lloyd's of London to support catastrophe risk assessment, insurance product development, and policy planning.

Product overview

Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies is a research center within Cambridge Judge Business School, University of Cambridge. It focuses on risk management research and analysis. The source material does not provide specific product or service offerings, modules, or named products for the Centre.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Pandemic scenario analysis: Most likely economic loss of $13.6 trillion over 5-year period (1.8% GDP reduction), ranging from $7.3 trillion (least severe) to $41.7 trillion (most severe) equivalent to 1.1%-6.4% GDP reduction

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Lloyd's of LondoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 December 2024Lloyd's of London partnered with Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies to conduct pandemic risk analysis. The analysis examined economic losses from potential future pandemics, with scenarios ranging from $7.3 trillion to $41.7 trillion over a five-year period. The partnership produced detailed quantitative risk scenarios that the insurance industry uses to develop coverage for pandemic-related disruptions including local lockdowns, travel restrictions, and vaccine development costs.

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Munich Re: Munich Re is one of the world's largest reinsurers with extensive in-house risk research capabilities, including NatCatSERVICE for natural catastrophe data. Its research output on climate, pandemic, and emerging systemic risks overlaps with the Centre's portfolio, though it is embedded within a much larger commercial enterprise.
• Swiss Re Institute: Swiss Re Institute is the research arm of one of the world's largest reinsurers, producing flagship risk reports on pandemics, climate, and economic shocks. While embedded within a commercial reinsurer, it is comparable to the Centre for Risk Studies in producing high-impact, scenario-driven systemic risk analysis for the insurance industry.
• Willis Research Network (WTW): Willis Research Network, part of WTW, is an industry-academic collaboration model producing academically-rigorous insurance and risk research. Its structure of partnering with universities to deliver catastrophe and climate research is closely comparable to the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies' approach with Lloyd's of London.

Emerging players

• Oxford Martin School: Oxford Martin School is a research-focused entity at the University of Oxford studying systemic global risks including pandemics, climate change, and resource scarcity. It is a peer academic institution with overlapping research scope on risk and resilience, though with broader thematic coverage than the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies.
• NYU Stern Volatility and Risk Institute: NYU Stern's Volatility and Risk Institute is an academic research center focused on systemic risk, financial volatility, and risk measurement. Its university-based, multi-disciplinary structure and emphasis on quantitative risk research closely parallel the Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies' operating model.

Direct peers

• Moody's RMS: Moody's RMS is a leading commercial catastrophe risk modeling platform serving the global insurance and reinsurance industry. It is the most direct comparable to Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies, offering proprietary models for natural catastrophe, pandemic, and climate risk with similar scenario-based quantification approaches.
• Aon Impact Forecasting: Aon's Impact Forecasting team develops and licenses catastrophe models for the insurance industry, including pandemic and climate risk. Its open-source approach and academic partnerships closely mirror the Centre's research-collaboration model with the Lloyd's market.
• CoreLogic (risk analytics): CoreLogic provides property-level risk analytics and natural hazard modeling services to insurers and lenders. Its focus on quantification of catastrophe-driven property losses is comparable to the Centre's scenario loss estimation work, particularly for climate and weather hazards.
• Verisk (AIR Worldwide): Verisk's AIR Worldwide is a major catastrophe risk modeling provider serving insurers with proprietary hazard and loss models. It directly competes with the Centre's pandemic and natural catastrophe scenario work, and its academic-collaborative model (e.g., the Touchstone platform) parallels the Centre's research-to-industry pipeline.

Others

• Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance: Also housed within Cambridge Judge Business School, the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance is a peer research center operating at the intersection of academia and industry. While its focus is on financial innovation rather than risk modeling, it shares the same institutional structure, parent organization, and partnership-driven operating model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/school/cambridge-judge-business-school
• Instagraminstagram.com/cambridgejudge
• Xx.com/risk_cambridge

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Cambridge Centre for Risk Studies