Insurance Risk & Capital Bermuda 2023

25 October 2023, Bermuda

Rosewood Bermuda • 60 Tuckers Point Drive, Hamilton Parish HS 02, Bermuda

Agenda

09:00

PANEL DISCUSSION: SUPERVISORS IN CONVERSATION: KEY AREAS OF REGULATORY FOCUS ON THE HORIZON

Moderator:
Chris Cundy, Managing Editor, InsuranceERM

Panellists:
Andrew Mais, President-Elect NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners)
Gary Anderson, Vice Chair, IAIS Executive Committee, Commissioner, Massachusetts Division of Insurance
Ricardo Garcia,Managing Director, Bermuda Monetary Authority
Suzanne Williams-Charles, Director of Policy and Regulation, Corporate Secretary and Data Privacy Officer, Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers

09:45

SECURITIZED TECHNICALS CREATE OPPORTUNITY FOR INSURERS RELATIVE TO CORPORATES

  • The Fed and Banks have stepped back from securitized markets due to the sharp rise in interest rates, creating a technically-driven dislocation in agency MBS and securitized credit
  • We believe the fundamentals underlying the US consumer and home prices are robust, particularly when compared to corporates in the face of an uncertain economic environment
  • Weak technicals but strong fundamentals have provided an attractive entry point for insurers to allocate to sectors exposed to the consumer and home prices
  • Due to the shorter nature of securitized assets, the sector has already absorbed a significant portion of the "maturity wall" and adjusted accordingly relative to corporates
  • Insurers are uniquely positioned to provide liquidity to the deeper value portion of the market due to longer investment horizons and reduced need for liquidity

Speaker:
Alessandro Pagani, Portfolio Manager, Head of Mortgage and Structured Finance Team, Loomis Sayles & Company

10:05

PANEL DISCUSSION: CONTINUING THE BERMUDA SUCCESS STORY –MAINTAINING BERMUDA’S PLACE IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

  • Risk factors threatening to hamper growth prospects for Bermuda
  • Global minimum tax
  • S&P ratings change
  • BMA's regulatory reform agenda: What challenges and opportunities does this create for the island?
  • Can Bermuda maintain nimbleness and keep a competitive edge post regulatory reform?
  • Outlook for the competitive environment - Can we expect consolidation? Will the bar for entry be too high? What kind of impact on rates of new entrants and start-ups to the island can we expect?
  • Is flight risk a valid concern?
  • What measures will need to be put in place to ensure the Bermuda remains competitive and an attractive proposition/place to do business
  • How do we ensure that these changes don't diminish the viability of the business model in Bermuda?
  • Key factors in ensuring that Bermuda maintains Solvency equivalence/pathway to maintaining Solvency equivalence
  • Where are the key opportunities for growth?
    • Funded reinsurance
    • Parametric insurance

Moderator:
Chris Cundy, Managing Editor, InsuranceERM

Panellists:
Chantal Cardinez, Chief Executive Officer, Hannover Re
John Huff, CEO, Assoc of Bermuda Insurers & Reinsurers (ABIR)
Steve Hales, CEO, Resolution Re

10:50

COFFEE BREAK

11:15

CRO PANEL –NAVIGATING UNCERTAINTY AND MANAGING A VOLATILE ENVIRONMENT

  • Headwinds for the industry – which key risk factors are top of mind right now?
  • Is there such a thing as 'emerging risks' anymore or are we functioning in a state of perma-crisis?
  • Prioritising and re-evaluating multiple co-existing 'emerging' high risks.
  • Navigating the interconnected and systemic nature of risks
  • Managing Ongoing regulatory uncertainty
    • What do the proposed changes in the BMA's regulatory reform agenda mean for you as a CRO?
      • Implications from an operational perspective (governance requirements on risk departments, timing pressures, resourcing challenges, what extra supervision can we expect?)
      • Implications for strategy
    • International active insurance groups
    • How are insurance capital standards going to be implemented and what challenges does this present?
  • Responding to a continued volatile and uncertain macro-economic environment
  • What primary and secondary impacts from inflationary and interest rate changes are we already experiencing and anticipate ahead of us?
  • Impact on policy holder behaviour – What does lapse behaviour look like?
  • What are we seeing in terms of lapses? Are our dynamic lapse assumptions holding up for now? What are expectations on purchasing habits over time? How will BMA be assessing lapse risk going forward?
  • What does all this mean for the insurance sector and the forward-looking strategy?
    • How are you reviewing and revising assumptions?
    • Reviewing and rethinking stress testing capabilities – What stress testing are you doing? How do we make stress testing more dynamic?
    • How are you adjusting future reserves if at all?
    • Impact on product strategy

Moderator:
Tony Dardis, Principal & Consulting Actuary, Milliman

Panellists:
Julie McDonald, Chief Risk Officer, Bermuda, Global Atlantic Financial Company Bermuda Limited
Nick Burke, Chief Risk Officer, Legal and General Reinsurance
Rebecca Jones, Chief Risk Officer, Nautilus Indemnity Holdings Limited
Sylvia Oliveira, Chief Executive Officer, Wilton Re Bermuda

12:00

PANEL DISCUSSION: REVISITING LIQUIDITY RISK MANAGEMENT

  • What liquidity challenges has the new rate environment posed?
    • Unrealised losses in the investment portfolio
    • IMR challenges and complexities
    • Lack of historical date on lapse rates during a period of sustained higher interest rates.
  • How are we viewing and reviewing liquidity provision in light of SVB failure?
  • Where are the sources of additional liquidity?
  • Are you deploying different assets strategies in light of liquidity concerns?
  • Are you changing your cash strategy in the new rate environment?
  • Are you looking to broaden protection?
  • Are firms considering other lines of credit?
  • Illiquid asset valuation uncertainty risk – to what extent are insurers able to understand and quantify the illiquidity premium in their portfolios?
  • How much is too much to spend on liquidity provision?
  • When is the right time to hold on to liquidity vs taking advantage of the higher yields available?
  • ALM approaches to preventing an insurance run like we have seen with SVB

Moderator:
Vincent Huck, Editor, Insurance Asset Risk

Panellists:
Alastair Sewell, Investment Strategist, Aviva Investors
Geoffrey Meyers, AVP, Head of Risk and Capital, Premia Holdings Limited
Paolo Fiandesio, Chief Risk Officer, Soteria Re

 

12:45

LUNCH

13:40

PANEL DISCUSSION: PILLAR TWO GLOBAL MINIMUM TAX – A CREDIBLE THREAT TO BERMUDA’S INTERNATIONAL INSURANCE INDUSTRY OR A WELCOME NEW REVENUE LINE FOR THE ISLAND?

Moderator:
Chris Cundy, Managing Editor, InsuranceERM

Panellists:
Teresa Gallant, Chief Financial Officer
Yan Leclerc, Group Chief Financial Officer, Coralisle Group
Jeff Sangster, Partner, COO and Head of Strategy, Hudson Structured Capital Management
John Huff, CEO, Assoc of Bermuda Insurers & Reinsurers (ABIR)

14:20

PANEL DISCUSSION: INTEGRATING AI AND ITS ASSOCIATED RISKS INTO UNDERWRITING AND RISK FRAMEWORKS

Moderator:
Ed Bowen, Managing Director, Deloitte Risk and Financial Advisory, Deloitte

Panellists:
Andrew Pryde, Group Chief Risk Officer, Catalina Re
George Alayon, Deputy Director, Supervision (Insurance) and Head of Innovation, Analytics and Infrastructure, Bermuda Monetary Authority
Anjali Dharma-Wardana, SVP, Portfolio Manager, Envelop Risk Analytics, Chief Risk Officer, Augmented Re

14:50

COFFEE BREAK

15:25

PANEL DISCUSSION: NAVIGATING SUSTAINABILITY -RELATED RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES – WHERE NEXT?

Moderator:
Vincent Huck, Editor, Insurance Asset Risk

Panellists:
Andy MacFarlane, Head of Climate, Axa XL
Ralf Kuerzdoerfer, Deputy Director Supervision (Insurance), Bermuda Monetary Authority

16:10

PANEL DISCUSSION: THE TALENT PIPELINE: WHAT ARE THE BUILDING BLOCKS INSURERS NEED TO BE PUTTING IN PLACE IN ORDER TO BE READY FOR THE NEXT DECADE OF DISRUPTIONS, TECHNOLOGY ADVANCEMENTS AND MARKET CHALLENGES

  • Where are we now with the war for talent? What steps have firms taken over the past year to address the challenges around talent?
  • Many insurers have ploughed lots of capital into efforts to secure/acquire/retain talent – has this proved successful and how sustainable is this?
  • What other tools are at our disposal other than financial incentives?
  • How much progress has been made with D&I initiatives and is this the key to attracting talent?
  • What does the future risk professional look like in terms of skill set?
  • Succession planning
  • What impact will the BMA regulatory reform agenda have on talent requirements and availability?
  • What plans are in place to grow Bermuda's working population – both local and foreign talent?

Moderator:
Christine Patton, Executive Director, BILTIR

Panellists:
Grainne Richmond, Director of Bermuda Captive Network, WeSpeak
Jevon Williams, General Counsel – Bermuda, Chubb
Nkechi Kiki Oyemhen, SVP –Insurance Team Leader, Marsh Captive Solutions and Chair of the Education Pillar Committee of the Bermuda Captive Network
Tracey Gibbons, Head of QBE Re Bermuda



16:55

CLOSING REMARKS

17:00

END OF CONFERENCE