Guernsey licensed 52 international insurance entities in the first five months of 2012.
Figures from the Guernsey Financial Services Commission (GFSC) show that 739 international insurance entities had licences at the end of May 2012—there were 687 at the end of December 2011.
According to the figures, 63 new licences were issued and 11 were surrendered, representing net growth of 52 entities domiciled on the island.
As of 31 May 2012, there were 344 international insurers in Guernsey: 254 companies, 68 Protected Cell Companies (PCCs), 5 Incorporated Cell Companies (ICCs) and 17 ICC cells, as well as 395 PCC cells.
Fiona Le Poidevin, the chief executive of Guernsey Finance, said: “Figures from the GFSC showed that the number of new licences being issued really accelerated as we moved through last year and I am delighted to see that this trend has continued during the early months of 2012.”
“We are seeing new licences issued across the different types of structures available but there has been especially strong growth in the number of cell companies being formed. A significant proportion of these relate to a PCC managed by JLT on behalf of the NewBuy scheme and where there are even more licence applications in the pipeline but we are also hearing from the industry that there are a number of other opportunities coming through as well.”
JLT Insurance Management has reported that, as of 2 July 2012, 45 cells were licensed under a PCC that it has established as part of the UK’s NewBuy scheme.
The UK government, in conjunction with the Home Builders Federation (HBF) and the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML), launched the NewBuy scheme in March. The aim of NewBuy is to offer prospective home owners newly built properties with 95 percent mortgages that are underwritten by house builders and the UK government.
The HBF PCC in Guernsey provides insurance to lenders under NewBuy. It also acts as the conduit for the UK government’s guarantee.
Nick Wild, the managing director of JLT Insurance Management in Guernsey, said: “We are delighted that JLT Insurance Management in Guernsey has been able to play a key role in the launch of the NewBuy scheme.”
“We have broken new ground with many aspects in the design of this insurance coverage and the PCC structure. Guernsey PCC legislation has once again proved its flexibility and the GFSC has done a great job processing the large number of cell applications.”
