Bermuda Insurance Management Association
Robert Paton, president of the BIMA, outlines the continuing strengths of Bermuda as a captive domicile and its continuing successful efforts to maintain its position as the leading global captive jurisdiction.
ermuda’s captive insurance market remains a vibrant source of innovation, creativity and development. As the world’s premier captive domicile, Bermuda not only leads the way in captive numbers, premiums written and assets under management but also in new opportunities for existing captives, formations, alternative risk transfer solutions and penetration into new geographical markets.
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In 2013, Bermuda experienced signifi cant growth in insurance incorporations across all sectors and classes of licences, with double the number of new captive formations compared with 2012. In addition, we saw signifi cant activity within the segregated account companies (SACs) space.
It is reasonable to assume that many of the cells within the SACs would have been standalone captives in earlier years. Many of these cells have been established as a means to quickly enter the alternative risk transfer space and may therefore exit equally rapidly, but we expect many also to grow and develop, potentially into standalone captives in the future. Indeed, the cost-effi ciencies of SAC vehicles provides mid-sized and smaller captive owners an ease of access into the alternative risk transfer arena, and conceptually, the reduced frictional costs of entry and speed to market of the SAC concept is clearly an opportunity that we expect to see develop further in the future.
While all captive domiciles take great pride in the number of registered captives, and I will not be shy about stating that Bermuda’s 800-plus captives make it still the market leader, it is the breadth of experience and expertise that this number brings to the captive managers that allows Bermuda to remain at the forefront of captive insurance.
The Bermuda Insurance Management Association (BIMA) has 42 full members and 11 affi liated members and through the association we are able to identify new trends, areas of regulatory concern and opportunities. The range of structures in place in Bermuda and variety of lines of business written really do make Bermuda a unique captive domicile.
It is worth noting some of the reasons besides size that make Bermuda the logical choice for new captives. We have a strong, yet pragmatic, regulator and a measured, collaborative approach to supervision that allows for consultation and discussion prior to any new regulatory changes. This allows practical steps and timetables to be established for change while ensuring that the regulator can fulfi l obligations to all stakeholders, including policyholders, and the protection of Bermuda’s reputation.
The unique combination of captive, insurance and reinsurance markets allows for one-stop shopping, providing an administrative convenience to client travel and organisational plans when considering captive
47 Bermuda Finance | 2014
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