BF&M Ltd said yesterday it plans to seek relief from the 60/40 foreign ownership rule.President and CEO of the company John Wight said yesterday such an exemption would put BF&M in a good position should a business opportunity arise which requires it to access new capital.He also said the value of a company cannot be fully realised if trading of shares is limited to Bermuda.In a filing to the Bermuda Stock Exchange, BF&M gave notice of the company’s intent, effective 22 July, 2013, to seek relief from the 60/40 rule.And in a letter to Minister of Economic Development, the company stated: “BF&M Limited, whose registered office is at 112 Pitts Bay Road, Hamilton, HM 08, hereby gives notice of its intention with effect from Monday 22nd July, 2013 to rely on the provisions of section 113(1)(cd)(i) of the Companies Act 1981 and to carry on business in reliance upon the provisions of section 114(1)(e) of the said Act and accordingly hereby notifies the Minister of Economic Development that its shares are listed on the Bermuda Stock Exchange and that it is engaged as a business in a material way in the insurance industry.”The Companies Amendment Act 2012 permitted local Bermuda companies listed on the Bermuda Stock Exchange to apply for an exemption to the 60/40 rule, thereby allowing foreign ownership of a company’s common shares to exceed 40 percent, BF&M president and CEO John Wight noted yesterday.Mr Wight told The Royal Gazette: “The Board of Directors of BF&M Limited decided at its recent board meeting to apply for this exemption and thereby gave notice to the Minister of Economic Development this morning of its intention to do so.“There are many issues relating to a company’s decision to apply for this exemption. At a macro level, a fundamental principle in modern, efficient capital markets is that shares of listed companies are freely transferable. The 60/40 rule served Bermuda locally listed companies well for many years protecting those companies interests, but as BF&M and other local companies on the BSX reached the 40 percent foreign ownership threshold, the liquidity in the market lessened due to the much smaller pool of eligible investors. The value of a company cannot be fully realised if trading of shares is limited between Bermudian buyers and sellers only, which has been the case since BF&M hit the foreign ownership limit a couple of years ago.“In addition, businesses need efficient and effective methods to access new capital when it is needed. BF&M is very well capitalised, however should a favourable business opportunity arise which requires the company to access new capital, the Company will be well positioned to act following relief granted from this exemption.”BF&M Ltd is the holding company of the BF&M Insurance Group. The two largest operating companies within the Group are BF&M Life Insurance Company Limited, a leading provider of life, health and pensions.