12 June 2019Analysis

Bermuda’s placement on blacklist “came as a surprise”


The EU’s blacklisting of Bermuda earlier this year came as a surprise, said Scott Reynolds, president and CEO Member Insurance.

He was talking as he took part in captive owner roundtable discussion at the Bermuda Captive Conference yesterday.

“My reaction was surprise and very mild concern due to the fact that the regulations in Bermuda are sensible and transparent,” said Mr Reynolds, who is also the chair of the Bermuda Captive Owners Association.

“I went to our captive manager and asked, ‘what is going on’. It was clear that the problem was minor, but significant enough to create a blacklist.

“Our board of directors said there was no need to overreact and said let’s see what happens. We were not overly alarmed.”

Bermuda was put on the EU Blacklist earlier this year due to a drafting error in the country’s EU Substance Act but was removed and put back on the grey list last month.