Learning lessons from the past

There may not be as many as in some previous years, but the new class of Bermuda reinsurers is shaking up the startup model. An Intelligent Insurer panel discussed what they have to teach the industry.

Despite the challenges of the last two years—or perhaps because of them—re/insurance registrations in Bermuda over the last two years have been strong. Last year the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA) issued 64 new licences. In 2020, it was 67—a significant acceleration from the 58 in 2019.

However, the number of new class 4 re/insurers was relatively low—just a handful in the last couple of years and what might make the new class of 2020/21 stand out is not the number of them but how long they last.

Intelligent Insurer caught up with some of the new players, as well as others in the industry, to discuss the Bermuda market and where it’s going. The panel comprised Brad Adderley, Bermuda office managing partner and the re/insurance global sector leader at law firm Appleby; Adam Champion, executive vice president capital markets and reinsurance at global reinsurance, wholesale and specialty broker Ed Broking—one of several intermediaries launched in recent years, including 14 registered in Bermuda in 2021; Prashanth Gangu, chief operating officer and president of Insurance and Services at SiriusPoint, which launched in February 2021, but with a legacy going back decades (and £3 billion in initial capital) as a result of its formation through the merger of Third Point Reinsurance and Sirius International Insurance Group; Peter Horrobin, co-founder and co-CEO of the D&O specialist managing general agent (MGA) Banyan Risk, launched in July 2020; and Peta White, president of class 4 reinsurer Vantage Risk, launched in 2020, and having completed its second renewals in January 2022.