Bermuda delegation welcomed at RIMS

Bermuda’s Premier and Finance Minister David Burt has led Bermuda’s delegation at the Risk & Insurance Management Society (RIMS) annual conference and exhibition 2018 in Texas, where he helped to showcase the island’s expertise as the “World’s Risk Capital.”

The Premier was welcomed at RIMS by chief executive officer Mary Roth and 2018 RIMS president Robert Cartwright, before touring the exhibition hall and key industry booths, including those of numerous Bermuda-based stakeholder companies.

Burt was accompanied by Junior Finance Minister the Hon Wayne Furbert, along with representatives from the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA), Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR), Bermuda Business Development Agency (BDA), and industry executives.

“The size and seniority of the Bermuda delegation underscores the commitment and equity invested into the ‘Team Bermuda’ approach driven by the BDA,” said BDA CEO Ross Webber. “The private sector dedicates significant resources and time to represent the island as a unified collaboration. This is strengthened considerably by such a prominent government and regulator presence.

“The Bermuda presence at RIMS, coupled with associated BDA-led business and civic meetings, reminds influencers of our unique, elite marketplace and the value Bermuda adds to our US and global stakeholders,” Webber added. “The BDA inaugural RIMS Executive Forum was a marked success and looks like it will become another staple in our roster of BDA events. Our whole Bermuda delegation should feel incredibly proud and motivated by the clear partnership we have all forged.”

RIMS 2018 also saw the Premier open a BDA-hosted morning executive forum that featured two panels of senior industry and regulatory leaders from the island discussing the strengths of both the Bermuda market’s world-leading captive insurance sector and its re/insurance hub.

The first panel discussion, “Bermuda’s Captive Insurance Solution,” examined Bermuda’s leading role in the innovative industry that helps global businesses manage complex risks through self-insurance. Moderated by Brian Quinn, managing director of Granite Management, the panel included David Gibbons, partner, PwC; Al Gier, president, General International; Sophia Greaves, director, Conyers Dill & Pearman; and Shanna Lespere, chief operating officer of the BMA.

The second, titled “Bermuda: The World’s Risk Capital,” focused on trends and issues impacting global insurance and reinsurance companies in Bermuda, as well as the industry’s outlook for the rest of 2018. Moderated by BDA chair Paul Scope, chairman, Willis Bermuda, the panel included Cathy Duffy, senior vice president, underwriting manager, XL Catlin; Judy Gonsalves, chief underwriting officer, Chubb Bermuda; John Huff, ABIR president & chief executive; and the BMA’s Lespere.