Paul Scope has been elected as the new chairman of the Bermuda Business Development Agency.

And insurance industry veteran Shelby Weldon has been appointed as a new director of the government-backed agency.

Their appointments were among several changes announced by the 11-member BDA board following its Annual General Meeting today.

Mr Scope, who is chairman of Willis Towers Watson Bermuda, succeeds Kiernan Bell as chairman, while director Stephen Weinstein, group general counsel for RenaissanceRe Holdings, becomes deputy chairman, taking over from David Cash.

Ms Bell and Mr Cash remain on the board as independent non-executive directors. Additionally, BDA directors Derek Stapley and original board chairwoman Caroline Foulger have retired from the board; both have served the agency since its inception in 2013.

“I feel honoured to take up the chair of the BDA, and having been on the board since inception, I have seen first-hand the contributions of the previous chairs, Caroline Foulger and Kiernan Bell,” said Mr Scope.

“I want to follow their lead and continue to promote free thinking and positive mentoring from the board level to BDA staff, and progressive promotion of the jurisdiction with accountability to our stakeholders.

Mr Scope added that Mr Weldon’s “many years with Bermuda’s regulator will benefit us greatly”.

Mr Weldon was a former director of licensing and authorisations at the Bermuda Monetary Authority, where he worked in various capacities over 15 years.

Currently a member of the senior management team at Marsh Management Services, he serves as senior vice-president, team leader, supervising finance and insurance managers. Mr Weldon has 30 years of experience in Bermuda financial services, having started out as an auditor.

“It’s a great honour to join the board of the BDA, and I’d like to thank my fellow directors for this opportunity,” said Mr Weldon.

“I have worked closely with the agency since its inception and have always been extremely supportive of its initiatives. I look forward to representing the insurance sector in general, and the captive insurance sector in particular, as we continue the BDA’s important work of promoting Bermuda as one of the world’s premier financial-services marketplaces.”