An international maths conference this autumn is set to bring top experts and business bigwigs to the Island.

The Future of Mathematics in Business conference, sponsored by the Bermuda College, the ACE Group, XL Capital and RenaissanceRe, is scheduled to run at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute from October 20 to 22.

The conference will discuss topics such as risk assessment, asset and securities pricing, risk management, numerical methods in finance, arbitrage theory and market structure models.

"The expert presentations are aimed at general audiences, including non-mathematicians, and are suited to practitioners, managers or CEOs seeking an accessible survey of the use of mathematical models in finance and insurance,'' a Press release said.

A top panel of speakers, including academics, investment bankers and insurance professionals has been assembled to discuss the mathematical applications for financial services, including international banking, insurance and reinsurance.

Principal speakers include Robert Jarrow of Cornell University, Paul Wilmot of Oxford University, Steve Ross of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, John Hull of the University of Toronto, Emmanuel Derman of Goldman Sachs & Company, Jens Nonnenmacher of Dresdner Bank AG, Prakash Shimpi of Swiss Re New Markets, Hans Buhlmann of ETH Zu prich and David Heath of Carnegie Mellon University.

ACE Chief Actuary John Burville, David Ezekiel of International Advisory Services, Svend-Holger Friis from KPMG London and Ronald Layard-Liesching of Pareto Partners, owned by XL Capital, are also slated to speak.

"The purpose of the Conference is to focus the attention of the people of Bermuda on the fundamental importance of mathematics to the health of Bermuda's economy,'' said Bermuda College president Dr. George Cook.

"This conference complements this College's mission in virtually every major respect. Thus, as "the national centre of higher and further learning'', it is only natural that this educational institution should be intimately involved in the presentation of this conference.'' And Dr. Cook said Bermuda College would use the partnership with the private sector to create the Bermuda Institute for Mathematics in Finance and Insurance.

"This will be devoted to development of educational programmes, professional development opportunities and research in the area of mathematics and business,'' he said.

"It is our hope also that there will be a spin-off effect throughout the entire school system, by encouraging greater emphasis on the teaching and learning of mathematics generally.

Business executive Brian Hall, president of Inter-Ocean Management Co Ltd., said: "Bermuda is a significant centre for advanced financial and mathematical applications.

"A mathematical base is essential for young people who want to pursue a career in international business,'' he said.

And Mr. Hall admitted that the international business industry had not emphasised the need for maths skills as much as it should have. Conference Chairman Garth Baker said the conference was very unusual, attempting to brink together many different types of applications from various industries.

Persons interested in registering for the conference can contact Executive Choice Limited on 292-1370. The advance registration fee for the conference is $1,350. Parties who sign up after September 1 can expect to pay $1,500. The maximum number of participants has been set at 150.