Bermuda had the greatest percentage of growth in its register of companies in the first half of the year compared to other offshore jurisdictions, a top law firm said yesterday.

The Island saw 538 new firms set up in the first six months of 2013 — which brought the total number of companies on the register to 17,622, a five percent increase from the end of 2012.

Bermuda also saw an eight percent jump in the number of new company incorporations between January and June when compared to the last six months of 2012 and a 16 percent increase over the member of incorporations in the first half of 2012.

The figures were revealed in the On the Register report, prepared by law firm Appleby, one of the world’s largest providers of offshore legal, fiduciary and administration services.

The report stated: “With this sustained growth, the registry is approaching pre-recession 2008 highs”.

Out of the 538 new companies on the register, a total of 422 were exempted companies, while 21 were from overseas and a further 95 were local registrations.

The report said: “The number of local companies registering has grown by 44 percent in the six-month period, when compared to the second half of 2012.”

Appleby Services managing director Rory Gorman said: “Bermuda has long been a leading jurisdiction for companies looking to incorporate offshore and this held true in the first half of 2013.

“Business sentiment in the US market, which coupled with the Bermuda Government’s proactive campaign to target international business, is driving much of the influx of new business to the jurisdiction.”

The Appleby report added that Bermuda is also flying high in the area of aircraft leasing.

The report said: “A Bermuda vehicle is required for each aircraft registration and commercial aircraft registrations remain steady and strong.

“Additionally, Bermuda is benefiting more than other jurisdictions as the insurance sector outlook improves and is viewed as a key location from which to issue and list insurance-linked securities (ILS) such as catastrophe bonds, with considerable success.”

The report said there was a total of 38,416 new offshore incorporations in the first six months of this year, with the number of active companies listed on offshore registers stabilising.

It added that the total number of companies listed in most offshore jurisdictions had increased since the end of 2012.

The report also found that, although the number of new incorporations in offshore jurisdictions had fallen slightly compared to the previous six month period, the number of firms ceasing to trade had also dropped, which allowed most registries to grow.

The report said: “Many are approaching, or have even surpassed, their pre-recession peaks.”

Farah Ballands, Appleby partner and global head of fiduciary and administration services, added: “The global economy appears to be stabilising and we’re seeing the number of new company registrations rising in most offshore jurisdictions.

“It is also encouraging to note that the overall number of companies active on the offshore registers has gone up by five percent compared to pre-recession 2008.”