The second public offering of 3.8 million Class A Ordinary shares, par value $0.20 per share, in Cayman-based catastrophe reinsurer Mid Ocean Ltd., closed yesterday.

And one Bermuda securities dealer, First Bermuda Securities Ltd., has moved a base of 55,000 shares of the blue chip, property catastrophe reinsurer, according to the offer's prospectus, released last week.

They were the only local player amongst some kingpins of the investment world that included Goldman, Sachs & Co., Bear, Stearns & Co. Inc., Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Incorporated.

The offering is being managed by J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., and, Donaldson, Lufkin and Jenrette Securities Corp. They are the two biggest underwriters in the offer, each taking 1,167,500 ordinary shares and reselling them on the market. Nine other firms each took 120,000, and the remaining seven firms, including First Bermuda, each had 55,000 shares.

The expenses of the more than $128-million offering are estimated to be $650,000 and will be paid by Mid Ocean Ltd., the parent of Bermuda-based Mid Ocean Re.

Information filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission had the shares priced on The Nasdaq National Market on September 26 at $33.875 per share. Yesterday, it was trading above $34 a share, more than double what the original players paid to get into the company initially.

Mid Ocean Ltd., a Caymanian company, has established the price to the public of $33.75 a share, for a total value of $128,250,000. The underwriting discount is $1.35 a share, valued at $5,130,000. The proceeds to sellers, 15 original shareholders, is $32.40 a share for a total of $123,120,000.

The selling shareholders have also granted the underwriters an option, that is exercisable within 30 days after the date of the prospectus to purchase up to an additional 403,600 Ordinary shares on the same terms, only in the event of overallotment, raising the offer from 3.8 million shares to 4.2 million shares.

If exercised in full, the total price to the public rises to $141,871,500, the underwriting discount moves up to $5,674,860 and the proceeds to the selling shareholders swells to $136,196,640.

That First Bermuda Securities is the only local company involved in the re-distribution of the shares is not unusual. They have been involved in an offering for excess liability carrier, ACE Ltd., and just this year with property catastrophe reinsurer, Renaissance Re.

And there are new holders of the stock in Bermuda, through First Bermuda Securities, as of yesterday.

The largest Mid Ocean Ltd. shareholder is Bermuda-based EXEL Ltd., although Mid Ocean was originally sponsored by Marsh & McLennan Risk Capital Corp. and J.P. Morgan & Co.

EXEL retains its sizeable stake in the company and has not listed with regulators an intention to sell during this secondary offering. EXEL, in fact, have just taken a third quarter yield of $18.4 million from their equity in Mid Ocean.

The secondary public offering came about when some of the original investors wanted to redeem their investment. The 3.8 million shares represent between 10 and 11 percent of the company's 34.6 million shares and will add to the current near 11 million publicly traded shares of the company.