Top technology journalist Kara Swisher will be one of the keynote speakers at the Bermuda Convergence 2018 event, organisers ILS (Bermuda) Ltd announced today.

Ms Swisher is executive editor of the Recode Decode podcast and co-executive producer of the Code Conference.

Before co-founding Recode and Code, Ms Swisher co-produced and co-hosted The Wall Street Journal’s technology conference, “D: All Things Digital,” with Walt Mossberg. It was the major high-tech conference with interviewees such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and many other leading players in the tech and media industries. Ms Swisher and Mr Mossberg were also the co-executive editors of a tech and media website, AllThingsD.com.

Swisher previously worked in The Wall Street Journal’s San Francisco bureau and for many years wrote the column, “BoomTown”, which appeared on the front page of the Marketplace section and also on at WSJ.com.

Ms Swisher has worked as a reporter at The Washington Post and as an editor at the City Paper of Washington, DC. She received her undergraduate degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and her graduate degree at Columbia University’s School of Journalism.

Ms Swisher is the author of aol.com: How Steve Case Beat Bill Gates, Nailed the Netheads and Made Millions in the War for the Web, published in 1998. The sequel, There Must Be a Pony in Here Somewhere: The AOL Time Warner Debacle and the Quest for a Digital Future, was published in 2003.

Greg Wojciechowski, CEO, Bermuda Stock Exchange, and ILS Bermuda chairman, said: “On behalf of ILS Bermuda, I am pleased to announce that we have opened registration for Convergence 2018. We are also fortunate to have Kara Swisher as our keynote speaker. The ILS Bermuda steering committee is focusing on continuing to enhance the Bermuda Convergence networking event and we have no shortage of great topics and speakers again this year.”

More than 300 delegates are expected to attend this year’s event on October 3 and 4. Last year delegates from 13 countries attended the annual Bermuda Convergence event — a networking event covering the alternative reinsurance, insurance-linked securities (ILS) and collateralised reinsurance landscape.

Mr Wojciechowski said: “2017 saw the BSX reinforce its position as the listing venue of choice for global ILS vehicles. Bermuda has been at the forefront of the global boom in this asset class and there is no place on earth with a greater concentration of expertise when it comes to ILS and alternative risk transfer.

“Bermuda has been in the risk industry for more than 70 years. Innovating products that work for our clients around the world is what we do best. The continued growth in this sector speaks volumes. I’m thrilled to welcome our returning and new guests to the island in October for Convergence 2018, the networking event you can’t afford to miss.”

The Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX) reported a record number of ILS listings in 2017, a 69 per cent increase in the number of new securities listed in the year and an 87 per cent increase in the nominal value. At year-end, the total number of ILS securities listed stood at 227 with a total nominal value of $25.99 billion.

Bermuda’s global market share reached record levels of over 80 per cent, cementing the Island’s continued position as leader in the innovative asset class.

This year’s event promises an exciting line-up of speakers and ‘Bermuda Shorts’ topics including: confidence in the maturing asset class, bridging the protection gap, transparency in the market, technology shaping the industry, tax and regulation in focus, as well as the popular annual panel with leading investors.

Kathleen Faries, deputy chairwoman of ILS Bermuda and head of Tokio Millennium Re’s Bermuda branch, said: “With everything that’s happened in the cat market, 2017 was an interesting and important year.

“There is no doubt Convergence 2018 attendees will have plenty to talk about and also learn from during our Bermuda Shorts informative talks. With continued support and participation from the across the industry, we are sure to provide another fantastic event in Bermuda.”