Essent is taking a bit of the high-quality new business away from the legacy private mortgage insurers as it wrote over $21 billion of new insurance written in 2013.
The fourth largest MI by NIW, Genworth, did slightly over $22 billion last year.
In 4Q13, Essent wrote $4.5 billion, up from $4 billion one year prior. Genworth wrote $4.9 billion, down from $5.1 billion during the same time frame.
During the past year Essent was able to more than double its insurance-in-force to $32 billion from almost $14 billion as of Dec. 31, 2012. It still has quite a way to go to catch up to the industry leader,
Parent company Essent Group Ltd., Hamilton, Bermuda, had 4Q13 net income of $19 million.
