Bermuda will continue to play a significant role in the growth and evolution of the legacy market due to the depth of talent and its regulator, PWC insurance partner Matt Britten predicted.

“The Bermuda Monetary Authority’s approach has always provided a practical platform for insurers and reinsurers to innovate,” Mr Britten said in the PwC legacy market update session at the Rendez-vous de Septembre conference in Monaco last week.

Looking ahead, he saw the legacy and prospective markets converging as deal motivations evolved and cedents continued to seek capital management solutions.

Mr Britten said: “With the trend in increasing deal size, we might also expect to see some level of partnering to get deals executed.”

He said there is also a growth appreciation by both cedents and legacy companies of the significant benefits of having the same regulator on both sides of a deal.

“So we expect to see Bermuda’s role as the jurisdiction for cedents to consolidate their risk to grow,” he said.

PwC Bermuda director Joseph Gordon said: “Several acquirers have recently been focused on post-deal integration and value creation, investing in areas such as people, operational efficiency and IT.”

He said as chief executive officers and chief operating officers seek to match the development of their operations with the growth of both assets and liabilities under management, they have seen an increased focus on investment in IT infrastructure, including the consideration of AI tools.

During the conference, which was attended by more than 3,000 people, it was also revealed that the global non-life run-off market remains active, with $9.4 billion of estimated gross reserves transacted across 37 publicly announced deals in the 12-month period to the end of the first half of 2023.

It was also said at the conference that while the United States and Lloyd’s markets will continue to be active, opportunities exist in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, as well as in different classes of business, such as motor and transactions involving more recent underwriting years.

“These all require differing approaches to risk assessment, due diligence and operational capability, challenging buyers to be flexible in their approach,” a PwC spokesman said.