The steady stream of newly incorporated companies forming in Bermuda has continued, with no fewer than five starting up last month.

French domiciled Triple-A reinsurance firm CIFG Guaranty led the way at the start of the month when its parent company CIFG established new headquarters on the Island for itself and CIFG Holding.

CIFG Holding Limited, as the company was renamed, is the holding company that owns the companies that make up the CIFG Group, which includes the New York-based Triple-A primary financial guaranty subsidiary CIFG Assurance North America, Inc. and the Paris-based Triple-A financial guarantor CIFG Europe.

Gabriel Topor, currently a senior officer in the Risk Management Department of CIFG in New York, assumed the role of CIFG Guaranty's chief underwriting officer based in Bermuda.

Following the trend were Melchester Re Limited (set to be re-named Hardy Re) and Thamesis Insurance & Surety Limited, both formed on October 17, Governance Re Limited, which set up in business on October 20 and Paget Reinsurance Limited on October 23.

Since its inception, Paget Reinsurance, a subsidiary of ACE Bermuda Insurance, has been busy setting up its team, including the appointment of Carl Daly as president and chief underwriting officer, with responsibility for the general management of the Bermuda-based rent-a-captive operation.

Paget Re, a Bermuda registered Class 3 and long-term insurer, provides customers throughout the world with creative and flexible rent-a-captive facilities to support their risk management programmes. A rent-a-captive is an insurance company which 'rents' its capital, legal status and capabilities to customers interested in sharing in the underwriting results of their business operations.