Bermuda re/insurance registrations rise in 2018, SPI formation up again

The Bermuda insurance and reinsurance market saw an increased number of company registrations in 2018, with special purpose insurers’ (SPI’s) for ILS and collateralized structures up again.

The registration of insurance-linked securities (ILS) and catastrophe bond vehicles continues apace in Bermuda, with 28 new SPI’s registered in 2018, up from 24 in the prior year.

Overall Bermuda is booming for insurance and reinsurance entity formation it seems, with 75 new registrations reported by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) for 2018, up considerably from the 58 registered in 2017.

The commercial re/insurance sector led the way, with formations of Class 3A, 3B, 4 general business and Class C, D, E long-term (re)insurers rising to 28 for the year 2018, up from 17 in 2017.

The captive market also saw accelerated activity in 2018 as well, with 19 new captives, (so Class 1, 2, 3 general business and Class A, B long-term (re)insurers) registered in 2018, compared to 17 in 2017.

Four new insurance and reinsurance intermediaries were also registered in 2018, two agents and two brokers, which was down from 11 in 2017.

Craig Swan, Managing Director, Supervision (Insurance) commented, “The BMA’s 2018 (re)insurance registrations tell a very positive story about the health of Bermuda’s (re)insurance market.

“We have seen growth in the long-term (re)insurance space. The BMA registered 15 new long- term (re)insurers in 2018, compared to six registered in 2017. Bermuda also remained the leading jurisdiction for the issuance of insurance linked securities in 2018. So it was not a surprise that registrations of Special Purpose Insurers increased year-on-year; from 24 in 2017 to 28 in 2018.”

As we reported previously, Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) listings of ILS and cat bonds also increased during the year, surpassing $30 billion of ILS listings for the first time at the end of 2018.