Canopius declined to renew several large Bermuda contracts during the first half of the year after deciding that the prices offered were too low.

The speciality re/insurer said it is still committed to expanding its island operation, despite walking away from business amid tougher market conditions.

Neil Robertson, group chief executive of Canopius, said: “In Bermuda, we non-renewed several significant contracts based on price, but our operations continue to benefit from the addition of new underwriting capabilities and a broader base of clients and lines of business.”

He added that the company saw more opportunities to expand on the island and was confident it could build “a strong and increasingly profitable operation”.

Canopius’s decision comes amid mounting pressure on reinsurance prices. Guy Carpenter’s global property-catastrophe rate-on-line index fell 16 per cent at the June and July renewals, the steepest annual decline since the index was created 25 years ago.

Like Canopius, some companies are responding by giving up business rather than accepting prices they think are too low.

The group reported insurance contract written premiums of $2.66 billion for the six months ending June 30, an increase of 10 per cent from $2.41 billion in the corresponding period last year.

Profit after tax rose 76 per cent to $391 million, although the result included a $130 million gain from the sale of Vave, its algorithm-driven managing general agent in the United States.

Excluding that sale, profit increased 18 per cent to $261 million.

Canopius has been expanding its Bermuda leadership team in recent years. Jesse DeCouto joined as chief underwriting officer and global product leader for reinsurance in 2024, while Dan Bridges was appointed head of claims, Bermuda, and global head of reinsurance claims in March. The island operation is led by Charles Cooper, CEO of Canopius Reinsurance Ltd and global head of reinsurance.

At the end of 2025, Canopius said its Bermuda business had grown across every line, particularly in casualty reinsurance. However, the company said it would keep growing on an “opportunistic and measured” basis with an emphasis on diversification.

The group said it was confident about its prospects for the rest of 2026, although competition and declining prices were making underwriting challenging.