David Burt, the Premier and Minister of Finance, says Bermuda has dramatically reshaped its international financial relationships over the past eight years, with European Union regulators now viewing the island as a model financial centre.

“Eight years later, we’re in a different space where people recognise that Bermuda is doing what is necessary, and the communication and co-operation is good,” Mr Burt said in a Zoom interview with The Royal Gazette during his European tour. “That’s a good place to be, and only bodes well for the future of Bermuda and its international financial services sector.”

The Premier is spending the week in Dublin, Brussels and Paris for a series of meetings with regulators, finance ministers and industry leaders. His schedule has included talks with Paschal Donohoe, Ireland’s Minister for Finance, Gabriel Makhlouf, Governor of the Central Bank of Ireland and Robert Troy, Ireland’s Minister of State with special responsibility for financial services, credit unions and insurance.

Today, he met with Jan Jambon, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finances and Pensions in Belgium.

Mr Burt also gave a keynote address at the European Insurance Forum, hosted by Insurance Ireland, and engaged in a fireside chat. “Bermuda is the world’s risk capital, with a vibrant [insurance and reinsurance] industry that provides essential protection to businesses and communities around the world,” Mr Burt said.

“Our message is simple: Bermuda is a compliant, transparent and trusted partner to the EU in financial services,” he remarked. “This government is committed to maintaining equivalence with European standards and to creating a business environment that allows our industry to thrive, innovate and address the risks of tomorrow.”

From 2016 to 2024, Bermuda insurers and reinsurers paid $81 billion in general business and life claims to policyholders in the European Union, while the industry generated about 9,800 jobs in the EU and Britain, he said.

Mr Burt noted that Bermuda’s reputation has shifted markedly in recent years. “These meetings used to last an hour. Now, they’re shorter because we’ve done all the work that’s necessary,” he said. “Bermuda is now seen as a model of an international financial centre that has its act together, that is complying with international regulations, that is remaining competitive and is a reliable partner.”

On digital assets, he said Bermuda continues to set the pace globally. “Digital asset frameworks globally have basically copied from what it is that we’ve done here,” Mr Burt said, adding that Bermuda now has the highest number of licensed digital asset companies in the world.

He also pointed to Bermuda’s early agreement to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s global minimum tax framework in 2021 and the passage of corporate income tax legislation. “We are committed to being a reliable partner for living up to the commitments [that] we make,” he said.

Mr Burt is scheduled to meet tomorrow with Verena Ross, chairman of the European Securities and Markets Authority, and Achim Pross, deputy-director of the Centre for Tax Policy and Administration at the OECD. The discussions are expected to focus on insurance and reinsurance regulation, digital assets and international tax policy.

“When we’re talking about the other meetings, persons are very well aware of Bermuda’s insurance industry,” the Premier said. “We have been a leader in insurance. We are the world’s risk capital, and we continue to lead on that front.”