Flagstone CEO Optimistic About BDA’s Future
Flagstone Re CEO David Brown says Bermuda retains its competitive edge as the world’s leading off-shore catastrophe reinsurance domicile, boasting a business-friendly infrastructure and a world-class regulatory system.
In an exclusive interview with industry journal “Reactions”, Mr. Brown said he remained bullish about Bermuda’s longterm prospects despite concerns in some quarters about increasing re/insurance competition from Europe.
Switzerland, in particular, has been said to be well-positioned to challenge Bermuda’s global preeminence in the coming years.
Mr. Brown said the island made the transition from a leading reinsurance domicile to a leading market following the September, 2001 al-Quaeda terror attacks and, later, after Hurricane Katrina becoming the US’ costliest natural disaster in 2005.
“Within the period since Katrina I think we have also seen quite a transformation in Bermuda itself,” he said. “In the late 1980s and early 1990s there were many firms domiciled in Bermuda but not much of a market, by which I mean there were not many brokers and clients flying to Bermuda to place business.
“After 9/11 and definitely in the period after Katrina, the critical mass of underwriters in Bermuda has reached a point when the aircraft landing on the island are full of brokers and clients placing programmes.”
Mr. Brown said Bermuda is now a market where global re/insurers come to place business – mainly in the reinsurance field.
“For start-up companies, a great advantage Bermuda still has is that it is still very fast to get a company formed,” he said . “It has always been a very pro-business place. The system is geared for the rapid formation of a company.
“The regulators are very experienced in reinsurance business, very focused on it and they understand the business completely. So do the service providers. Trying to do the same things with a start-up in Switzerland would take longer and be more difficult.”
Flagstone, which recently marked its fifth anniversary, was established in Bermuda in the wake of the catastrophic 2005 Atlantic hurricane season when the US Gulf Coast was ravaged not only by Katrina but also tropical storms Rita and Wilma.
The full interview with Mr. Brown can be read at the ”Reactions” subscription website.
Brown should better spend his time looking after Flagstone’s bottom line rather then running his mouth about the Bermuda Reinsurance cat market^^
Graeme, you are obviously a bitter man. Are you afraid of a positive article regarding the reinsurance marketplace in Bermuda? Don’t you think that publicly stating support for the reinsurance marketplace in Bermuda directly affects the stability of Flagstone and its peers locally, and allows the shareholders a small sigh of relief? I’d hardly say that he was “running his mouth” here – but you sure are.