Vermont Captive Insurance Association
John Savage speaks to Kevin Mead about the recent delegation of government, regulatory and industry representatives sent to Mexico
What motivated the Vermont Captive Insurance Association to organise a trade mission to Mexico?
The trade mission was originally planned for 2020, and then the COVID-19 pandemic came along. However, at inception, and eventual execution, the decision was driven by a number of factors.
There are already many Mexican companies with captives and some of these have domiciled in Vermont. The Mexican economy ranks 15th in the world for captive insurance, ahead of countries such as the Netherlands and Switzerland. Combined with this, Mexico is a strong bilateral trading partner with the US.
There were two primary goals: to raise awareness of captive insurance and Vermont as a domicile — specifically with the business community in Mexico — and to meet with trade and industry groups to ascertain the level of interest in captive insurance. We wanted to reach major sectors of the Mexican economy and governmental regulators.
What specific industries or sectors did the trade mission target in Mexico?
We had meaningful meetings with insurance associations, trade associations (especially in the Maquiladora sector), accountants and government regulators.
Each of these meetings provided new information and made us aware of the opportunities available within the market.
How did the association go about selecting the companies and organisations that participated in the trade mission?
For this event, the Vermont-based participants came from the Vermont Department of Financial Regulation and the Department of Economic Development.
We then partnered in the country with our sponsors, AIG and Marsh, who were able to provide content from a Mexican perspective.
What were some of the key outcomes or achievements of the trade mission?
We were not expecting to walk out of all the events in Mexico with an ‘order book’.
However, we managed to develop a desire to explore and potentially licence captives from Mexican companies.
There was a lot of interest in the nature and operation of captives domiciled in Vermont.
What challenges or obstacles did the trade mission face during its time in Mexico?
Realistically, just the altitude! Our partnership with the Vermont Department of Economic Development and the US Department of Commerce meant that the arrangements for the trade mission were exceptionally well handled, and we received a great reception both at our roadshow and at the meetings that were arranged.
How does the Vermont Captive Insurance Association plan to build on the success of the trade mission?
We are already doing it! There are already multiple follow-up meetings set in the diary. These include one-on-one meetings concerning licensure, as well as meetings about appearances at future seminars and conferences in the country.
Are there any plans to organise similar trade missions to other countries in the future?
We are certainly exploring this, but first we must ensure that we properly address all of the needs expressed to us in Mexico. Despite being the largest state-based association for captive insurance, and having the strongest regulatory and economic development team globally for captives, we are still a small group of individuals operating in a foreign country where we have much to learn. While there are markets with a growing sophistication that could be receptive to learning about the opportunities presented by captive insurance, we are mindful not to spread ourselves too thin.
