Top Speakers Slated For Captive Conference
Premier Michael Dunkley will open next month’s annual Bermuda Captive Conference, which features a wealth of top industry and regulatory leaders discussing global market trends and other hot topics.
Kicking off the event that’s expected to attract more than 700 delegates to the Fairmont Southampton from June 13–15, the Premier will deliver opening remarks on the Monday afternoon. He will also announce this year’s inductees to the Bermuda Captive Hall of Fame, an honour awarded to companies that have committed at least 25 years to the island’s market.
Among the key figures participating in panels and roundtables over the three-day conference are Bermuda Monetary Authority’s Craig Swan, Managing Director, Supervision; BDA CEO Ross Webber; Patrick Tannock, President, XL Insurance [Bermuda]; John Berger, Chairman & CEO, Third Point Reinsurance; Jill Husbands, Chair, Marsh IAS Bermuda; Joe Rego, President & CEO, Aon [Bermuda]; Grainne Richmond, president of the Bermuda Insurance Management Association; and Alan Gier, Global Director of Risk Management & Insurance at General Motors, and President of the Bermuda Captive Owners Association [BCOA].
Top industry panellists and speakers at this year’s Bermuda Captive Conference include: [top, from left] Patrick Tannock, Grainne Richmond, Ross Webber; [bottom] Jill Husbands, Craig Swan, Alan Gier
“This year’s conference promises to be bigger and better than ever, and I’m looking forward to joining colleagues and highlighting Bermuda’s value for delegates from a jurisdictional point of view,” said Mr Webber, who will speak in the conference’s first roundtable, an overview of captive market and business trends worldwide, along with Swan, Husbands, Gier and Richmond, who will moderate.
“We are in an era of increasing global regulatory pressure and politicized or misinformed beliefs about offshore financial centres, yet Bermuda’s top-tier reputation and high levels of regulatory compliance serve to differentiate our market. Raising awareness is key.”
More than 700 delegates, from both local and overseas markets, are expected to attend this year’s event, marking its 12th year, at the Fairmont Southampton Resort.
The schedule features three days of moderated roundtables and panel discussions with sessions blending emerging topics of high interest like cyber risk, ILS and healthcare, to nuts-and-bolts sessions educating delegates on electronic filing and creating a captive insurer. Included is a heightened focus on the role of reinsurance—and the Bermuda market’s beneficial access to its capital.
“Properly managed captives are an important risk-management tool for any risk manager, and captive conferences offer the opportunity to stay current with the industry and learn from colleagues and business partners about key trends as you develop your captive strategy and business plan,” noted Mr Gier of the BCOA.
“Bermuda should be on everyone’s list of preferred captive domiciles owing to its excellent reputation for transparency, regulatory environment and ease of doing business. I am excited to be on a panel with leaders of the Bermuda business community and look forward to sharing my thoughts about current issues affecting the global economy.”
Another key session on the Monday with be a review of Bermuda’s commercial insurance and reinsurance market in relation to the global economy.
The session, moderated by Aon’s Rego, will examine how globalisation, regulation, big data, distribution and alternative capital are impacting the relevance the Bermuda market. Panellists include Judy Gonsalves, Chief Underwriting Officer, Chubb Bermuda; Patrick Tannock, President, XL Insurance [Bermuda]; and John Berger, Chairman & CEO, Third Point Reinsurance.
ILS and other innovations impacting the captive market will be explored throughout the conference, including during a Tuesday morning session moderated by Steve Britton, Managing Director, Head of ILS, Aon Capital and Insurance Management.
Panellists for this session include Gavin Woods, Counsel, Appleby [Bermuda]; Dan Malloy, Executive Vice President, Third Point Reinsurance Company; and Rhodri Lane, Vice President, GC Securities.
The banking sector also gets the spotlight on Tuesday, with a session featuring Ryan Wang, US Economist, HSBC Securities, and Henk Potts, Director of Global Investment Strategy, Barclays Wealth. Both have been popular guest speakers in past editions of the conference, and this year will share their opinions on the global financial and economic outlook.
“The Bermuda Captive Conference is very important to our clients and colleagues—it’s an opportunity for them to keep current with trends and issues affecting their Bermuda captives, and also provides a dynamic networking opportunity,” said Ms Husbands, of Marsh.
“The conference allows overseas attendees to learn more about the Bermuda market by meeting industry experts and experiencing the island first-hand. This year, of course, one of the hot topics will definitely be Bermuda’s award of Solvency II equivalence in Europe—it’s a win-win for our jurisdiction, given the vote of confidence it bestows and the fact it doesn’t impact our captive sector.”
Tuesday’s lunch will feature the conference keynote speaker Joe Flower, a leading international expert in healthcare, genomics and biotech, who will explore the future of healthcare and the impact of technology, pharmaceuticals and diagnostic techniques.
Outside of business, the conference itinerary includes an engaging menu of leisure activities, kicking off June 13 with a morning golf tournament at the Port Royal Golf Club, and a two-hour nature walk led by Bermudian industry veterans Roger Gillett and Raymond Madeiros. Other recreational activities slated are an evening rum-tasting June 14, welcome cocktails, and a closing al fresco dinner June 15 on the resort’s South Shore beachside terrace with fireworks.
Bermuda is the top global captive jurisdiction, home to nearly 800 captive insurance companies, supporting primarily Fortune 500 corporations in the US, and generating over $48 billion in annual gross written premiums.
For more information on the Bermuda Captive Conference, call +1-441/295-2626, email info@bermudacaptive.bm or go to bermudacaptiveconference.com
