David Burt met with two American politicians who sit on influential committees overseeing financial services on his whirlwind visit to Washington last week.

The Premier and Minister of Finance headed a Bermuda Government delegation that participated in the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group, and met with Caribbean finance ministers.

Mr Burt told The Royal Gazette that his two meetings on Capitol Hill were with US senator Bernie Moreno (Republican, Ohio), a member of the Senate Banking Committee, and Representative William Timmons (Republican, South Carolina), who sits on the House Financial Services Committee.

Asked about the subject matter of the meetings, Mr Burt said: “We always want to make sure we share our insurance story, because insurance is our main industry in Bermuda, and we want to make sure that people recognise what Bermuda’s insurance industry means to the American market.

“Clearly, for Representative Timmons, who’s from South Carolina, the issue of hurricanes will resonate a little more, but it’s a broader issue overall in the United States.”

On a visit to Bermuda this month, the top insurance regulator in the US, Scott White, president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, acknowledged the importance of the capacity provided by the island’s reinsurers played in supporting the availability and affordability of insurance coverage in the US.

“We also shared the work that Bermuda has done on digital assets,” Mr Burt said. “With the recent act that was passed in the US regarding stablecoin regulation, we wanted to make sure that they are aware of the work Bermuda is doing with stablecoins and tokenised assets.”

Both senator Moreno and Representative Timmons have a strong interest in digital assets.

The Genius Act, which was passed by the US Congress last July, aims to support innovation in digital assets while addressing illicit finance risks.

This month, the US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and Office of Foreign Assets Control issued a joint proposed rule that would bring payment stablecoin issuers under anti-money laundering and sanctions requirements, under similar rules that apply to banks, implementing parts of the Genius Act.

In January this year, the Bermuda Government announced its plans to enable an onchain economy by creating a digital-assets infrastructure for everyday use.

Also, the Bermuda Monetary Authority also issued a consultation paper on streamlining the regulation of tokenised assets under a “same risk, same rules” approach this month. The aim is part of a broader effort to integrate tokenised products like digital representations of equities, funds or insurance contracts into Bermuda’s established regulatory regimes, rather than creating brand-new rules.

The Washington visit followed Bermuda’s first invitation to the IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings. Mr Burt said this came about from his attendance at the World Governments Summit and the Arab Fiscal Forum, held in Dubai in February, where he was a speaker.

“The comments I made around financial-services regulation, considering artificial intelligence and the work we need to do to ensure regulatory frameworks are appropriate for the future, I think resonated with the persons there and I was asked whether Bermuda would be attending the Spring Meetings,” Mr Burt said.

“I said ‘well, Bermuda’s never been invited’ and they sent an invitation for us to attend. So, from that perspective, I think it’s just a recognition of the work of which we are continuing to do and a recognition, more broadly, of the important role that Bermuda plays in the global financial system.”

He described the event as a effectively a conference, with a series of side meetings built around it.

He added: “Bermuda is not officially a member of the IMF or the World Bank, because we're not a sovereign state, so we were part of the United Kingdom's delegation there. From that particular aspect, I would say that we’re finding our way, but it is the first time here.”

With the knowledge gained last week by Mr Burt and the two technical officers in the delegation, he said a future finance minister who received a similar invitation would be better prepared to ensure Bermuda benefited fully.

Mr Burt said the meeting with Caribbean finance ministers focused on policy responses in times of economic shock.

“Right now, we’re facing an oil shock, which is volatile, day to day,” Mr Burt said. “You can see the measures we announced to freeze fuel prices, announced jointly by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Home Affairs.

“Those types of responses are common around the region and to share with colleagues the types of things they are doing to manage those particular risks, that is always helpful.”