Bermuda has climbed six places in the latest Smart Centres Index, reinforcing its leadership position in Latin America and the Caribbean and making strides in its global reputation as an innovation hub.

The 11th edition of the index, published by the Z/Yen Group as part of its Long Finance Initiative, evaluates how effectively global commercial centres create, develop and deploy emerging technologies. It measures three core dimensions: innovation support, creative intensity and delivery capability.

Bermuda now ranks 51st globally, up six places from the previous edition. It remains the highest-ranked jurisdiction in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The region as a whole posted the strongest performance worldwide, with an average rating increase of 2.49 per cent, the largest across all six regions tracked by the index.

Kendaree Burgess, the managing director of the Bermuda Business Development Agency, welcomed the news. She called the island’s rise in the rankings “a strong signal to the global market that we are serious about innovation and we have the regulatory infrastructure to support it”.

She attributed the improvement to forward planning.

“Our advancement reflects a deliberate strategy: to build an economy that is both resilient and future-focused. We’ve prioritised smart regulation, long-term investment and the development of human capital to position Bermuda as a serious jurisdiction for firms navigating complexity and growth,” Ms Burgess said.

Bermuda’s regulatory evolution includes enhancements to its digital asset regime, the expansion of the Economic Investment Residential Certificate programme and growth across sectors such as fintech and professional services.

“We cannot compete on size, but on quality — of insight, of execution and of outcomes,” Ms Burgess added. “For us, innovation is not a slogan — it’s a function of credibility, capability and intent.”

The Smart Centres Index draws on both quantitative data — 135 instrumental factors from sources such as the World Bank, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the United Nations — and 1,772 assessments from professionals worldwide.

According to the report, centres in Latin America and the Caribbean performed especially well in “creative intensity”, demonstrating the region’s potential as a growing hub for tech-driven services and industries.

The BDA sees this momentum not only as a national achievement but as part of a larger regional transformation.

“We’re encouraged to see momentum building across the Latin America and Caribbean region and we view our progress as part of a broader movement towards smarter, more agile economies,” Ms Burgess said.