“2023 reflected a strong year for captive insurance in Vermont, and the new year already is off to an even stronger start”, according to The Vermont Department of Economic Development. The department has already licensed nine new captives this year. Besides earning global recognition as the leading domicile for captive insurance, Vermont licensed a total of 38 new captive insurance companies in 2023. This took the state to 659 licensed captives, consisting of 632 active and 27 dormant captives. Vermont has licensed a total of 1,330 captive insurance companies to date. The growth in captive formations in 2023 is among the top 10 highest since Vermont licensed its first captive in 1981. The new captives were licensed in 13 different industries, the top three industries being manufacturing, insurance, and real estate, in which seven, six and six captives were licensed, respectively. The formation types were 24 pure, six sponsored, one agency, two association, three special purpose finance insurers and three risk retention groups. Cell formations are keeping pace with growth in licensed captives, says the department. In addition to the number of newly licensed captive insurance companies, Vermont’s 62 sponsored captive insurance companies continue to experience growth in the number of new protected cells, with over 30 additions in 2023. Sponsored captive insurance companies provide a licensed insurance vehicle with an established structure for companies to participate in their own risks via protected cells. At least seven of Vermont’s new captives in 2023 are from Canada, Chile, Germany and the UK. In March 2023, a Vermont delegation collaborated with the Vermont Captive Insurance Association (VCIA) to host an educational event and trade mission in Mexico City to connect with the region about captive insurance. Sandy Bigglestone, Vermont’s deputy commissioner of captive insurance, comments: “I am grateful for the entire captive insurance division staff, for their consistent great work and dedication to quality regulatory standards, involving licensing, analysis, and examinations, and those who quietly excel in their daily tasks to make the workplace function smoothly.” President of the VCIA Kevin Mead says: “We’d heard consistently that the Latin American market needed more captive insurance education. When we went to Mexico, we found that there was indeed great interest in captive insurance as a risk financing tool and we plan to continue our efforts in the region in the year ahead.”
