Four companies have expressed an interest in setting up business in Bermuda following a Government-sponsored seminar on E-commerce held in London yesterday.

According to Minister of Tourism, Telecommunications and E-commerce, Renee Webb, three finance companies and one insurance company had shown serious interest following the lunchtime meeting of over 100 British executives, Members of Parliament, press and other dignitaries.

"There were four companies who are interested in Bermuda as a jurisdiction," said Ms Webb. "So the potential is great. If only one comes then we have done very well."

The Ministry hosted a lunch and outlined the benefits of Bermuda as a jurisdiction in general and touted the Island as an E-commerce hub.

"Companies today demand the best in technical and professional resources," said Ms Webb. "With 75 percent of Fortune 500 companies having a presence on the Island, we are perfectly placed to service these needs.

"The event was very well attended and we are pleased with how the whole thing was organised and received."

The seminar was held on the back of a tourism event held on Tuesday night which saw singer and diva Grace Jones perform at a party with a glittering array of models and well-known British celebrities.

Over 100 British journalists, tour operators, travel agencies, airlines and hotels attended the party, which was yesterday followed by a business lunch aimed at promoting Bermuda as an E-commerce hub.

During the lunch the Minister pointed to Bermuda's political and economic stability along with a Government that understands the needs of companies operating in the world of business.

Ms Webb told delegates that the Electronic Transactions Act of 1999 plus the E-commerce code of conduct which was brought in the following year helped the business of making electronic transactions legally binding.

"We did this to create a trustworthy environment for business conducting electronic transactions over the web," said Ms Webb.

Ms Webb told delegates that Bermuda had always been a pioneer in technology and telecommunications, stating that Bermuda had one of the first underwater telecommunications cables in the 1890s and now boasts a highly developed communications infrastructure with fibre optic and satellite links to the rest of the world.

She said that the World Economic Forum's Global Information Technology Report confirmed Bermuda's credentials as a place where technology was commonplace.

It ranked Bermuda as tenth in the world for computer penetration and Bermuda topped the Latin American/Caribbean region in Internet use at 49 percent.

And she told the businessmen and women that the Island hosts a $173 billion insurance industry and is also home to a number of technology companies, Internet service providers and web designers.

Ms Webb also pointed out that businesses based in Bermuda were exempt from corporation tax, capital gains, capital transfer and sales taxes.

Along with Ms Webb were Jonathan Koshar, general manager of AT&T Wireless in Bermuda, and Renee Brunson, senior relationship manager at Bank of Bermuda.

Mr. Koshar spoke to the executives about how easy it was for his company to set up in Bermuda and get a Class B telecommunications licence.

Ms. Brunson promoted not only the Island and its infrastructure, but also the bank's fund administration, trust, custody, asset management and banking services.