Recently (October 10), the Minister of Finance, the Hon. Curtis L. Dickinson, JP, MP, spoke at the ILS Convergence 2019 Conference. Bermuda is the leading jurisdiction for ILS and this is the seventh year in Bermuda for this two day conference.
Speaking at the conference, Minister Dickinson said: “Celebrating seven years, the Insurance-Linked Securities Convergence Conference serves as a unique opportunity for you to connect with industry leaders from the alternative reinsurance, convergence and ILS marketplace. I am quite pleased to be here today for Convergence 2019. It is no secret that Bermuda is referred to as the ‘World’s Risk Capital’, and over the years we have become the preferred domicile for ILS structuring and support.
“Currently, the Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) has over 380 ILS-related structures listed with $34.5 billion in aggregate market capital outstanding. This represents over 85% of the global outstanding ILS market cap.
“Behind the history of Bermuda's insurance industry is innovation—a willingness to lead and develop new products— and a sophisticated and well-respected regulatory framework. Our insurance market demonstrates resilience and industry leadership; a well-regulated jurisdiction that has met every international standard over many years. Evidence of this innovation was provided by way of the passage of the Insurance Amendment Act 2019 in August 2019 which established two new classes of Limited Purpose Insurers (LPI) - a fully collateralized insurer class known as “Collateralized Insurers” and an innovation class known as general business innovative insurers or (Class IIGB)). The Collateralised Insurer framework was specifically tailored to cater to the innovations and the continuing transformation of the Insurance-Linked Security structures.
“We know that there is intense competition from other jurisdictions who would like to enjoy our position as a leader in this space and to be the centre of excellence that Bermuda is. We have a sterling reputation, a solid infrastructure, accessible location between capital markets, stability, top-tier talent, capital optimisation and flexibility, and speed to market thanks to public-private collaboration.
“The Bermuda Government looks forward to supporting the growth of this segment and we will do all that we can to ensure that Bermuda is not only a great place to live and work but an even better place for businesses to flourish.”
The ILS Convergence Conference was held from October 9 – 11, 2019.
