At last month’s Kentucky Derby, 18 horses competed for a $2 million guaranteed purse, with an estimated $50 million in wagers being placed. But those values are dwarfed by the amount of insurance out on the track.

To put it into perspective, Ken Rice, Underwriting Director at Atain Insurance Companies, approximates the insured value. “Assuming a conservative earning potential for each horse of $10 million per year and extrapolating those earnings out for 10 years with an at-value insurance policy,”  Rice says, “you’re looking at about $1.8 billion of insurance value represented at the Derby.”

With so much money on the line the stakes are high in the niche bloodstock insurance market.