Location is one asset that weighs heavily in The Bahamas’ favour as a hub for captive business, said the chief executive of the Bahamas Financial Services Board.
At the board's introductory session on captive insurance, BFSB chief executive Aliya Allen, praised the level of collaboration with the Insurance Commission of the Bahamas and the Ministry of Financial Services. According to a report on the BFSB website, she emphasised the importance of repositioning this nation as a captive insurance domicile.
Allen noted that captives allow companies to obtain insurance coverage that is not available on the commercial market, and is specifically designed for the type of risk they face in their line of business. It is estimated that over 40 percent of major corporations in the US have a captive vehicle. Allen said: “We need to ensure our place in the captive space. Location is only one asset that weighs heavily in The Bahamas’ favour as a hub for this type of business.”
Marcy Waterfall, senior vice president of Marsh’s captive solutions group in Vermont, held a seminar at the event on captive insurance basics. Waterfall began the presentation with a broad look at risk management concepts for individuals and corporations, and explained why captives are considered risk limiting.
Waterfall said: “Supporting development of the industry is the country’s highly experienced and diversified asset and wealth management industry. The fact that the foundation of the country’s financial services industry is in the latter, and that the Bahamas has recognised leadership in these areas, has enabled the jurisdiction to pinpoint the synergies this sector has with the insurance market.”
