BILTIR Appoints Suzanne Williams-Charles
Bermuda International Long Term Insurers and Reinsurers [BILTIR] has announced a series of leadership changes, including the appointment of Suzanne Williams-Charles to the newly-created position of Chief Executive Officer.
A spokesperson said, “Suzanne will join BILTIR in April. She brings more than 25 years of experience in the insurance sector, including 15 years with a regulatory focus.
“Her most recent role was Director of Policy and Regulation, Corporate Secretary and Data Privacy Officer, at the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers [ABIR], leading ABIR’s Bermuda office and responsible for leading its public outreach agenda.
“Prior to joining ABIR, Suzanne served as the Deputy Director of Insurance Supervision at the Bermuda Monetary Authority. In this role, she directed both group and solo entity level supervision, undertaking risk-based supervision of all commercial regulated entities in the insurance sector. Suzanne also represented the BMA at working groups of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors [IAIS].
“Current Executive Director Christine Patton will assist BILTIR with the leadership transition in the next few months before stepping down in April. As CEO, Suzanne will lead BILTIR through its local and global advocacy initiatives for the long-term sector.”
Commenting on her appointment, Ms Williams-Charles said: “I am delighted to take up the new position as CEO of BILTIR. The industry is at an exciting and pivotal stage, and I look forward to working with BILTIR members to ensure that they are effectively represented in all areas of development.”
A spokesperson said, “BILTIR also announced that Curtis Dickinson is stepping down as Executive Advisor, but he will continue to assist BILTIR on an ad hoc basis. BILTIR has contracted with David Altmaier to serve as Executive Advisor. David is the former Commissioner of Insurance for Florida who was appointed to serve as the Florida Insurance Commissioner by the Financial Services Commission in 2016, a role he held until 2022. In his capacity as commissioner, he led the Office of Insurance Regulation and had oversight over one of the largest insurance markets in the world.
“Throughout his tenure as commissioner, David was also heavily involved in national and international insurance regulatory policy. He served as the President of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners [NAIC] in 2021, after serving as the President-elect in 2020 and Vice President in 2019. David also served as a Vice Chair of the Executive Committee for the International Association of Insurance Supervisors [IAIS], representing insurance regulators and supervisors of more than 200 jurisdictions worldwide.”
Chair of BILTIR, Natasha Scotland Courcy, said: “We are excited to have Suzanne and David come on board. With recent global and local regulatory changes impacting the long-term sector, their experience in the regulatory environment will allow us to strengthen our position as we navigate through changes and advocate on behalf of our members.”
She added, “I would like to thank Christine Patton for her support over the last year in helping to continue to build on BILTIR’s advocacy infrastructure both locally and internationally, alongside our members. I’d also like to thank Curtis Dickinson for all of the work he’s done with us over the last year to help bolster our advocacy efforts on behalf of our members.”
BILTIR represents 58 life re/insurers and 17 associate members in Bermuda who provide life and annuity products and employ more than 1000 people on the island.
