Hawaii’s captive insurance division appoints deputy commissioner

Sanford Saito has been appointed deputy commissioner and captive insurance administrator for the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs (DCCA) Insurance Division in Hawaii.

He previously held the position in an acting capacity until Hawaii Insurance Commissioner Gordon Ito announced his full induction into the role.

“Sanford is a dedicated team member who has played an integral role in the success of our captive insurance industry,” says Ito. “The Insurance Division will benefit from Sanford’s continued leadership in maintaining our prudent regulatory and business-friendly environment, which makes us one of the top domiciles in the world.”

Saito is a certified financial examiner and has been with the Insurance Division since 2004 as a captive insurance examiner. Prior to that, he worked in the department’s Division of Consumer Advocacy as a public utilities auditor.

Hawaii is ranked fourth in the US for largest captive domiciles and 11th in the world based on its total number of active captive licenses. In fiscal year 2013, the Captive Insurance Branch brought in $2.13 million in premium taxes and fees for the state. Additionally, $18.4 million in economic benefit is attributed to Hawaii’s captive insurance industry through various professional services, annual conferences and visitor industry businesses.

Since Hawaii’s captive legislation was enacted in May 1986, 279 captive insurers have been licensed. Over the past five years, the state has seen continued growth with an increase in the total combined asset base from $7.2 billion to $15.6 billion. The Captive Insurance Branch has had little choice but to increase staffing by 50 percent since 2009 in order to better serve Hawaii’s captive insurance industry.