Captive International
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Cayman licenses 33 insurers in 2017
THE CAYMAN ISLANDS licensed 33
new insurers in 2017, including 27 new
class B insurers (captives and other
commercial re/insurers) and six class
C insurers (special purpose insurers).
Compared with previous years,
Cayman licensed 39 new insurers in
2016 and 22 in 2015.
The domicile did see a few surrenders
and cancellations of insurance licences,
largely due to consolidation in the
healthcare sector, maturing programmes
and catastrophe bonds.
Altogether there was a total of 696 class
B, class C and class D (reinsurers) licences
at the end of the year. Pure captives and
group captives represent the two main
categories in the domicile, with 317 and
121 companies, respectively.
The total premiums of Cayman’s
insurance industry were $12.4 billion as
of December 31, and total assets were
reported at $61 billion.
The Cayman Islands continues to be
the leading jurisdiction for healthcare
captives in 2017, with this sector
representing more than half of all
captives domiciled there.
Medical malpractice liability is the
largest primary line of business in
the jurisdiction, with approximately
32 percent of companies re/insuring
this risk. This is followed by workers’
compensation, with 21 percent of
companies assuming the risk.
“The expertise is hard to match; every
time healthcare is mentioned Cayman
comes to mind,” said Ruwan Jayasekera,
head of the insurance supervision
division at the Cayman Islands Monetary
Authority (CIMA).
“We have some healthcare captives
that were licensed 30 or 40 years ago.
Some of the larger healthcare systems
in the US will also have a connection to
Cayman.”
Jayasekera added that while the
number of new licences in 2017 is down
from the previous year, the programmes
CIMA is seeing coming in now are much
broader in scope and operations.
This includes formations of more
captives with liability lines and brokers
setting up companies to write for
their clients as well as commercial
reinsurance operations. l
Two senior BMA members to serve as IAIS co-vice chairs
TWO MEMBERS of the Bermuda
Monetary Authority’s (BMA) senior
management team, Craig Swan and
Marcelo Ramella, will serve as co-vice
chairs—the first time at a committee
level—for the International Association
of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), a global
standard-setting body which promotes
effective and globally consistent
supervision of the insurance industry.
Swan, who is BMA managing
director of the insurance supervision
division, will co-vice chair the new
Policy Development Committee (PDC),
chaired by Elise Liebers from the US
National Association of Insurance
Commissioners with fellow co-vice
chair Paoli Cadoni from the UK
Prudential Regulation Authority.
The responsibilities of the PDC
include providing standard-setting
responses to developments within
industry structures, financial markets
and business practices, as well as to
policyholders’ needs.
Ramella, who is BMA deputy director
of financial stability, will co-vice chair
the new Macroprudential Committee
(MPC), chaired by Alberto Corinti from
the Italian Insurance Supervisory
Authority with fellow co-vice chair
Steven Seitz from the US Federal
Insurance Office.
MPC will focus on pursuing the
IAIS’ goal to steer and oversee
financial stability work, including
macroprudential assessment, and
the mitigation of systemic risk in the
istockphoto / undefined
insurance sector and potential policy
measures.
The committees were created as part
of a broad IAIS restructure aimed at
adapting to emerging needs in global
regulation and supervision.
“Craig and Marcelo’s contributions
in working with the IAIS over the
years have enabled the BMA to
strengthen relationships with
insurance supervisors from other
countries, and maintain Bermuda’s
active and ever critical participation in
the development of global insurance
standards,” said BMA CEO Jeremy Cox.
“Their contributions are highly
valued, and I commend them for their
efforts and on their new appointments
serving on top-level committees.” l