BMA Registers 64 New Re/insurers In 2015
The Bermuda Monetary Authority registered 64 new re/insurers in 2015, compared with 65 registrations in 2014.
Of the new companies 22 are limited purpose insurers or captives [i.e., Classes 1, 2, 3, A and B re/insurers], up from the 16 new captives registered the previous year.
“Registration of captives is on the increase because they not only reduce insurance costs but are important components of the parent companies’ burgeoning risk management programmes,” said Shelby Weldon, Director, Licensing & Authorisations at the Authority.
“Captives registered between July and December 2015 cover a diverse range of risks, from oil and natural gas drilling in Canada to drivers’ insurance in Peru,” Mr. Weldon said.
“It is encouraging to see continuing registrations from Canada and Latin America, as these regions have been targeted by Bermuda’s business development efforts. However, the US remained by far the greatest source of Bermuda’s captive formations during the second half of 2015.”
Mr. Weldon notes that Bermuda’s captives remain out of scope of Solvency II supervisory requirements, which only apply to Bermuda’s commercial re/insurers and insurance groups.
In terms of new commercial general business re/insurers, the Authority registered 13 new Class 3A, 3B and 4 re/insurers in 2015, compared with 11 in 2014. Among the Q3- and Q4-2015 registrants is a new Class 4 insurer, Qatar Reinsurance Company Limited.
On the Long-Term [life] re/insurance side, nine new Class C, D and E commercial life re/insurers were registered, the same number as in 2014. Among the new life [re]insurer registrations is a company designed to reduce the cost of cancer treatment in China.
A total of 20 new special purpose insurers [SPIs] were registered during 2015 – compared with 28 in 2014.
In the asset management space, the Authority registered 83 new funds in 2015, slightly up from 80 in 2014. Included among the new 2015 funds were 32 Class A and Class B Exempt Funds [up from 25 the previous year].
The monthly Registration Stats follows below [PDF here]:
Niiiiiiice …..I wonder how many actually jobs were created out of all these new companies…. we need as much people as possible paying payroll tax.
This is only one half of the equation. Without sharing how many re/insurers have de-registered or have become inactive, then this data is useless as it does not allow for the net position for the year to be extracted.