Jeremy Cox received a standing ovation at the Bermuda Captive Conference as he received the Fred Reiss Lifetime Achievement Award.

The executive chairman of the Bermuda Monetary Authority was visibly moved after he received the acclaim of hundreds of delegates.

Mr Cox joined the BMA in 2002 after working as the Bermuda Government’s Registrar of Companies. Named chief executive officer in 2010 and executive chairman this January, he has led the authority through market milestones, most notably, its 2016 achievement of full equivalence with Europe’s Solvency II insurance regulatory regime.

The BMA marks its 50th anniversary this year.

Mr Cox received the award onstage in the Amphitheatre at the Fairmont Southampton from Curtis Dickinson, the finance minister, and Mike Parrish, the conference chairman.

He said that before the event, the knowledge that he would be honoured with a lifetime achievement award had not really hit him.

“As I sat there reflecting on the 26 years I have been involved in regulation in Bermuda ... it’s hit me now,” Mr Cox said. “It’s quite an emotional moment.”

When he joined the financial services regulator 17 years ago, he said there were just 35 staff — as of the end of last year, there were 196. “They have been a phenomenal group of people over all the years I’ve been there,” Mr Cox said. His award reflected their success, he added.

He also paid tribute to Brian Hall, last year’s Fred Reiss award winner, whom he described as “one of my mentors”.

Mr Cox first worked as an auditor at Arthur Andersen & Co in Bermuda, before joining the Registrar of Companies, where he served as technical officer in the insurance division, and later inspector of companies, and finally Registrar. In this role, his responsibilities included providing technical support to the finance ministry on all insurance-related matters.

After joining the BMA in 2002, Mr Cox served as executive director and supervisor of insurance, becoming deputy CEO in 2008, and CEO in 2010 until taking up the role of executive chairman this year.

In addition, four captive insurance companies have joined the Bermuda Captive Hall of Fame, having completed 25 years of business on the island. The companies are Fairtide Insurance, Iboba Insurance, Pitts Bay Insurance Company, and Trimark Insurance.