Peter Strauss, managing member of the Strauss Law Firm, recently claimed that the Bahamas has “risen from captive insurance extinction”.
Speaking at an industry briefing in the Bahamas hosted by the Insurance Commission and Bahamas Financial Services Board, Strauss said: "The main message was really about awareness, and the fact that the captive industry in the Bahamas is alive and well, vibrant you might say, and close—if not already ready—to compete on a global stage and be a pre-eminent jurisdiction for captive business."
"It can be as big as they want it to be. If you get good support from the business community, and as long as the regulations are appropriate and the laws competitive with those in other jurisdictions, I don't see any reason why the Bahamas can't keep on growing at the rate it is."
Martin Eveleigh, chairman of Atlas Insurance Management explained that there has been a huge change in the Bahamas.
“Recently, the public and private sectors have co-operated, largely co-ordinated through the Bahamas Financial Services Board, with the result that new legislation was introduced in 2009. The new captive insurance legislation was welcome and helped to persuade us that we should be forming captives in the Bahamas again.”
“It was very difficult at one time (2002-2003) to get anything done and the key really has been the change in the regulatory structure by forming the Insurance Commission of the Bahamas.”
Eveleigh added that removing the regulation of insurance companies from ministerial control has empowered the regulator and allowed captive managers to feel confident that things will get done.
“We now enjoy a cordial, open and productive relationship with the staff at the Insurance Commission of the Bahamas, who are showing an ever increasing understanding of captives.”
“To date, the focus has been on micro captives taking the 831(b) election, but we are ready to form larger captives in the Bahamas, which, after all does have a sophisticated, proven financial services infrastructure and excellent professional service providers.”
