On Friday, IQUW announced that it had been assigned an A- rating from AM Best, the latest milestone in the ongoing expansion of its third-party reinsurance business from its Bermuda platform.
Discussing this “significant milestone” with ReInsurance Business, Stephen Young (pictured), CEO of IQUW Bermuda noted that it will provide the firm with the flexibility to underwrite reinsurance business from both its Bermuda platform and balance sheet, and its Lloyd’s Syndicate 1856. It’s the next natural step in IQUW’s evolution, he said, and one that will improve its relevance and ability to serve its clients and brokers worldwide.
Touching on why the business was able to attain this rating now, Young highlighted that it follows IQUW Holdings Bermuda Ltd’s successful senior debt issue of $170 million. “This would increase IQUW Re Bermuda Ltd’s capital to over $1 billion,” he said.
“This A- rating will allow us to fully leverage the Bermuda balance sheet by focusing on property, specialty and casualty reinsurance products. It'll also allow us to launch new products in the future. We're continuing to build franchise value through the new platform, and to achieve additional scale and diversification. We would like to proactively select future business opportunities while reacting nimbly to our changing market conditions, which do change quite regularly.”
At the core of the business’s ambition is the desire to make itself more relevant to brokers and clients within both the Lloyd’s and Bermuda markets, and that ambition all starts with people. Over the last three years, IQUW Bermuda has built out an experienced team, he said, and it has utilized that team to develop new infrastructure and operational capabilities in the market. “I’m so proud of this IQUW team and all the work they’ve put in to get us to this incredible milestone. It really has been significant.”
Having been with IQUW Bermuda three and a half years now, Young highlighted that attaining this rating has been one of its key goals. With that achieved, he said, the business is now ready to immediately start writing on the IQUW Bermuda balance sheet with the team it has in Bermuda, but it’s also going to be recruiting and hiring more of the best talent. This will include bringing in new analytical and underwriting capabilities to the team. “IQUW Bermuda's growth starts with our people, and we'll continue to invest in our talent.”
The business has built a strong foundation at Lloyd’s between ERS (Syndicate 218) and Syndicate 1856, he said, and this vision has been underpinned by the combination of data and technology with human expertise, in order to deliver insightful, fast responses for clients and brokers. “That’s the vision, and we continue to do that today.
“[…That] strategy and vision, and the support from our clients and brokers led us to a significant year in 23 and also 24, and that's what we want to use as the blueprint for Bermuda as well. We want to continue to combine data and technology with human expertise to deliver insight. And this AM Best rating is an important milestone and part of this strategy.”
The Bermuda balance sheet will strengthen IQUW’s relevance in the market and support the next stage of its growth strategy as it continues to diversify its business, he said. The rating also facilitates the creation of a supplementary growth channel in Bermuda, in addition to Lloyd's, and provides the business with the flexibility required to react to market conditions and expand in line with its risk appetite.
Using the blueprint for success that has marked the vision and strategy of IQUW’s presence in the Lloyd’s market, the eyes of the team are fixed on further growth. This will include the widening of its distribution strategy, the growth of its product suite – both in Bermuda and internationally. “The balance sheet will build on our growth strategy as we diversify the business into property, specialty and some casualty reinsurance products,” he said. “A service-led proposition makes complex risks as simple as possible through the intelligent use of data and insight. But that has to be in combination with the experience of our individual team members who can deliver those insights to our clients and brokers over time.”
