Resilient insurers, powered by innovative, long-dated private capital, and operating under strong globally recognised regulatory regimes, are the solution to an ageing population with longer lifespans and shrinking public safety nets, Chairman Natasha Scotland Courcy stated at the BILTIR Bermuda conference.<\/p>\n
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Speaking at the 2025 BILTIR International Life & Annuity conference, Courcy highlighted a key demographic and economic shift: an aging global population with increasing life expectancies, and the transfer of longevity risk from employers and governments to individuals.<\/p>\n
\u201cBy 2030, one in six people worldwide will be over the age of 60, up from one in eight in 2020. That means there\u2019ll be about 1.4 billion people over 60 by 2030, rising to 2.1 billion by 2050. Life expectancy is also increasing, with the global average rising to 73 years in 2019, up from 64 years in 1990. And is expected to reach 77 by 2050,\u201d said Courcy.<\/p>\n
Adding: \u201cMeanwhile, the share of retirement assets in defined benefit pensions in advanced economies has fallen sharply from 47% in 2001 to just 31% by 2024, shifting more longevity and investment risk directly to individuals. Put simply, an ageing population creates a dire need for reliable retirement income solutions. It requires capital.\u201d<\/p>\n
According to Courcy, this much needed capital is not coming from government balance sheets, but from long dated investment grade private capital, which are a natural fit for insurers due to their long-dated liabilities.<\/p>\n
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<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\nShe pointed to a growing $4.8 trillion global private credit market focused on financing the real economy, including infrastructure, housing, and corporate growth.<\/p>\n
The executive also noted the emergence of innovative co-investment vehicles like life insurance sidecars.<\/p>\n
These structures, she explained, \u201cinvite long-term horizon third-party equity into the retirement system,\u201d acting as \u201ccapacity multipliers\u201d that are tax efficient and fully consolidated while maintaining prudential strength.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not waiting for perfect conditions. Why would we do that? We\u2019re actually engineering them. We\u2019re creating them, marrying high quality, private credit sidecars, expanding capacity responsibly and where insurers and channel global savings into long-term projects that directly serve the retirees,\u201d Courcy stated.<\/p>\n
BILTIR\u2019s Chair also underscored Bermuda\u2019s pivotal role in this \u201cretirement gap story\u201d. She said: \u201cToday, Bermuda-based long-term insurers manage over $1 trillion in assets\u2026with 92% of those assets rated investment grade, and 77% of them protected in secured funds withheld in modco accounts.\u201d<\/p>\n
A BILTIR white paper published last year further solidifies this confidence, Courcy added, showing that member companies are well-capitalised with quality assets.<\/p>\n
The survey revealed that assets in the industry exceeded liabilities by $231 billion, and 95% of assets were invested in investment-grade bonds, debentures, and structured assets.<\/p>\n
Courcy also stressed Bermuda\u2019s regulatory framework, recognised by the NAIC (National Association of Insurance Commissioners), as a qualified and reciprocal jurisdiction and by Europe as a Solvency II equivalent jurisdiction, makes it \u201cone of the most trusted platforms for capital deployment.\u201d<\/p>\n
She also emphasised that the concentration of long-term reinsurance in Bermuda does not pose a systemic financial risk.<\/p>\n
A recent Oliver Wyman report shows that Bermuda reinsurers hold broadly similar asset allocations to US life insurers, Courcy added.<\/p>\n
\u201cBermuda isn\u2019t a source of systemic fragility, it\u2019s a source of systemic strength for closing this retirement income gap,\u201d she stated. Adding: \u201cHere\u2019s what this purpose and resilience and Innovation means for policyholders: broader menu of guaranteed income products, with credit rates that benefit from access to high quality, private assets.<\/p>\n
\u201cAcross the industry the shifts to what match funded investment grade private credit has delivered additional spread without additional credit risk, helping consumers accumulate more secure retirement savings over time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Courcy also addressed the need for continued regulatory progress, particularly regarding asset intensive reinsurance and private credit exposures.<\/p>\n
She said: \u201cWith growth comes scrutiny, that\u2019s expected. There\u2019s been heightened regulatory focus on asset intensive reinsurance and on private credit exposures. And while we always welcome thoughtful oversight I believe the end goal here should be simple: equal capital for equal risk, and leveraging jurisdictional best practises through cross-border supervision.<\/p>\n
\u201cBermuda\u2019s regulatory enhancements are an essential component to the global effort. The BMA\u2019s proposal to require public disclosure of assets and liabilities for commercial long-term insurers will bolster market discipline and provide stakeholders with clearer insight into the nature and quality of investments, being backed by long-dated liabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Courcy further highlighted the importance of jurisdictional integrity and transparency, arguing that strong, well-regulated markets benefit everyone<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s the right move at the right time and it\u2019s consistent with Bermuda\u2019s long record of measured principles-based supervision. Policy makers outside of Bermuda, one lesson is clear, jurisdictional integrity matters,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n
Continuing: \u201cWhen standards align with economic risk and supervisory, expectations are transparent high quality capital flocks to the places where it can do the most good funding, retirement liabilities modernising infrastructure and supporting the productive capacity of the real economy. And that\u2019s happening right here in Bermuda.\u201d<\/p>\n
Courcy suggested that other jurisdictions \u201cshould look to the US and Bermuda for best practises. Proof that strong oversight, scalable retirement solutions can and should advance together.\u201d<\/p>\n
She concluded that the current moment presents both a challenge and an opportunity, given the need for resilient insurers \u201cpowered by innovative long dated private capital operating under strong globally credible regulatory regimes,\u201d to address an ageing population and shrinking public safety nets.<\/p>\n
The post Insurers backed by private capital & strong regulation key to retirement solutions: BILTIR\u2019s Courcy<\/a> appeared first on ReinsuranceNe.ws<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Resilient insurers, powered by innovative, long-dated private capital, and operating under strong globally recognised regulatory regimes, are the solution to an ageing population with longer lifespans and shrinking public safety nets, Chairman Natasha Scotland Courcy stated at the BILTIR Bermuda…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":802,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[11],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=800"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":804,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/800\/revisions\/804"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/802"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=800"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=800"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.ateliersfurrer.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=800"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}