Bermuda insurers' capital and surplus rises 6.3% in 2022

Bermuda re/insurance companies paid almost $61 million in licensing fees to the Bermuda Monetary Authority, up from $59 million in 2021.

The BMA's annual report was tabled in Bermuda's House of Assembly on Friday, and also reported that the number of insurance companies registered in Bermuda rose to 1,196 from 1,158 in 2021. Eighty insurers registered in 2022 compared to 64 in 2021.

David Burt (pictured), the Premier and finance minister, said according to 2021 year-end information, total capital and surplus was $371 billion in 2021, up from $349 billion in 2020) and gross premiums written were $268 billion,down from $294 billion a year earlier.

Burt said the movement between 2021 and 2022 gross premiums written was explained by the "lumpy nature of long-term business" where insurers write significantly large blocks of business in a particular year and then run them off through the life of the contract. The numbers were largely driven by a few large insurers, he said.

He said total assets were $1.6 trillion in 2021, up from $1.4 trillion in 2020).

He said: "The main increase of $175 billion is due to new insurers entering the market and increased business from a select group of companies."
Total licensing fees were $71 million at year-end compared with $68 million, of which $60.9 million was paid by the insurance sector, compared to $59 million in 2021.

Overall, the BMA's net income fell by more than $7.8 million to $5.45 million in 2022, largely due to an increase in staffing costs of $8.75 million over 2021.