Global Atlantic Financial Group celebrated the opening of its new Bermuda headquarters at Washington House in Hamilton yesterday, marking a major milestone in the company's growth journey on the island.

The new office, located on the fifth floor of the Washington Mall, represents more than just a change of location for the reinsurance firm, which has grown from three employees to nearly 60 staff members over the past decade.

“While our new office is really just mere feet away from our old offices, it represents something much, much larger. This is really, for us, a major milestone in our journey here on the island, and is a direct result of our growth and success,” said Darryl Herrick, the president of Global Atlantic Re and co-head of reinsurance for Global Atlantic Financial.

The office space, designed with modern, open-design elements, was described as conducive to collaboration and out-of-the-box thinking. It triples the previous size at 15,000 square feet, and comes complete with a shuffleboard table overlooking Church Street. It was renovated by local construction company Greymane, a fact highlighted by Malika Cartwright, the director of workforce development for the Government of Bermuda.

“It is a Bermudian company, and we at the Department of Workforce Development are trying to encourage persons to be more in the trades and doing that kind of work. I love when they see works like this that have taken place by our construction companies in Bermuda,” she said.

Barclay Simmons, a board member, director of IVY II and chairman and chief executive of Rose Investment, noted Global Atlantic’s contribution to Bermuda’s economy and regulatory environment.

“Global Atlantic's journey has been synonymous with the growth of the Bermuda market … Bermuda has benefited as employment at the company on island has grown and as have the jobs supporting housing, hotels, transportation and restaurants, as the insurance market grows in size and complexity,” Mr Simmons said.

Global Atlantic had occupied a portion of the fifth floor of the Washington Mall for a year, Paul Slaughter, general manager of Washington Properties, told The Royal Gazette.

The new building, Washington House, is now 100 per cent occupied, he said, contributing to the mall's overall office space occupancy of 78 per cent, with 108,000sq ft occupied and 31,000sq ft vacant. Plans include subdividing larger floors to create smaller office units, he added.

According to Mr Herrick, Global Atlantic’s role is about more than simply building physical capacity; it is about building a future for Bermudians in the industry.

“Bermuda is very important to us, and we believe in the strength of this jurisdiction, and we know that living here is the key part here. It’s investing in Bermuda's future as well as our future,” he concluded. “And it's a passion for us to build what we call a sustainable talent pipeline throughout Bermuda. And that's everything from working with the high schools to working with interns and having them grow up through this organisation.”