ROUNDTABLE: LIFE RE
Q5: WHAT DOES THE FUTURE LOOK LIKE FOR YOU AND YOUR SECTOR IN BERMUDA?
“We anticipate continued expansion of our headcount.”
Kevin Hovi
Hovi: As we expand in the US, our reinsurance business grows alongside it. In 2018, I was the first employee in Bermuda and we’ve now expanded to eight people.
Is it possible that we will ever have 150 people? Probably not. But as deals proceed, we anticipate continued expansion of our headcount here.
One of the most significant uncertainties is taxation in light of the discussion around minimum taxes. The majority of the market is keeping a careful eye on that.
And that extends beyond Bermuda and beyond just the life insurance sector, in terms of its importance.
“It’s going to create challenges and opportunities.”
Faisal Haddad
Haddad: Given the trends that we discussed earlier with persistently low interest rates, and the capital supply in the life sector in Bermuda, we will see growth, which will require more people on the ground.
Also, a major focus is the combination of the life business with the capital markets. We see that a lot on the P&C side, but we’re starting to get a taste of that on the life side.
That could bring additional capital and different types of talent and resources to the Island. And it’s going to create challenges and opportunities for companies.
“There will be time for Bermuda companies to react.”
Allison Pedro
Pedro: We are thrilled about the global high-net-worth business. For a long time, we’ve had a significant presence in Bermuda. We now have over 60 individuals in Bermuda involved in underwriting, operations, claims, client due diligence compliance, reinsurance, risk, and internal audit.
We process thousands of transactions in the life business every year.
Tax changes are a concern—for example the global minimum tax will impact companies who do business in Bermuda. But Bermuda was able to manage such pressures in the past. And given the number of countries involved in the amount of legislation required, there will be time for Bermuda companies to react.
Bermuda has taken an active role by joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Inclusive Framework on global tax and continues to actively participate in discussions internationally. It’s impressive to see a small country take such an active role globally.
“We’ve been steadily increasing the size of our senior staff.”
Kai Talarek
Talarek: We are witnessing enormous growth, which means expansion in Bermuda to handle the domestic growth.
However, Bermuda is an excellent place for doing business worldwide, rather than only in North America or Europe. As a result, we’ve been steadily increasing the size of our senior staff in Bermuda.
We recently hired a new chief financial officer for the local entity, so we’re extremely optimistic about expanding our footprint and examining our strategy beyond where we are now as we execute our growth strategy.
Image courtesy of Shutterstock / underworld
