Bermuda-based insurer Max Re is one of an increasing number of Island insurers to set up operations in Ireland.

The company this week announced that subsidiary company Max Insurance Europe Limited had received authorisation from the Irish Financial Services Regulatory Authority (IFRSA) to conduct non-life insurance business in Ireland.

The company, no stranger to writing business from Dublin as it set up its European reinsurance office there two years ago, said the decision to seek an insurance licence from Irish authorities followed its decision, last year, to move away from its original business strategy with a focus on alternative investments and structured reinsurance products in favour of writing more traditional insurance and reinsurance.

Max Re chief financial officer Keith Hynes told The Royal Gazette securing a licence to write insurance in Ireland gave the company "better access to European clients".

He added that having the IFRSA licence was an advantage in attracting European clients as it meant Max Insurance Europe Limited was an "admitted" carrier giving it authority to write business throughout the European Union and United Kingdom.

"We think of Dublin as our European base," Mr. Hynes said yesterday. In a Press release, Max Re said it intended to use its licence in Ireland to write excess casualty and professional lines business for corporate risk management accounts as well as marketing its capabilities through professional international business intermediaries. The development was said to be part of Max's plan to build its platform in Dublin. At the helm of Max's Irish operation is chief underwriting officer John Boylan and supported by Colin Shaw and Joseph O'Dea as underwriting managers for the group's casualty and professional lines operations.

Walker Rainey also recently joined Max Insurance as chief financial officer. Mr. Hynes said that Max Re now had about 40 staff in its Bermuda office and ten staff in its Irish operations.

Other Bermuda-based insurers with operations in Ireland include ACE, Axis and XL. On the captive side, there are a number of Bermuda-based companies to pick Ireland as their domicile including Allied World Assurance (AWAC), Inter Ocean Re, IPC Holdings and Richmond Insurance.