Bermuda Premier David Burt will open the Bermuda Risk Summit on March 9, the Bermuda Business Development Agency announced, as the island seeks to capitalize on its position as a global reinsurance hub at a pivotal moment for the industry.
The three-day summit at the Hamilton Princess & Beach Club arrives as reinsurers navigate softening pricing and record capital levels after years of hardening conditions. AM Best recently revised its outlook for global reinsurance to stable from positive, underscoring the shift in market dynamics.
Burt's opening remarks will be followed by a fireside chat with Jason Hayward, minister of economy and labor, focusing on Bermuda's economic priorities and international collaboration in the current global environment.
The fifth annual Bermuda Risk Summit drew more than 400 delegates from 17 countries in 2025, with 39% traveling from overseas, representing 179 companies. The event generated hotel revenue of $136,654, exceeding the original contract by more than $28,000, organizers said.
The summit has delivered tangible business outcomes beyond conversation. Companies that first attended in 2024 returned with active Bermuda operations, while newly engaged firms have entered early-stage discussions about establishing a presence on the island, the BDA said. The 2023 edition generated an estimated economic impact of $1.8 million and supported 266 jobs.
EY returns as headline sponsor for a fifth consecutive year. The firm's chief economist, Gregory Daco of EY-Parthenon, will deliver the keynote address titled "Great Rebalance: The Next Phase of Global Growth."
Daco's 2025 session was "one of the most closely followed conversations" at the summit, offering decision-makers intelligence at a time of heightened volatility, Burgess said. His 2026 keynote will examine shifts in monetary and fiscal policy, demographic changes and artificial intelligence's role in driving productivity.
"In 2026, the focus shifts from diagnosis to adaptation, as supply shocks increasingly drive economic outcomes and uncertainty becomes a constant," Daco said. Business leaders and policymakers will need to recalibrate strategies amid evolving financial conditions, technology-led productivity gains and a more fragmented global demand landscape, he added.
The summit will feature sessions on CEO perspectives on reinsurance performance, innovation panels on AI and alternative capital, plus deep-dive discussions on private credit, catastrophe resilience, and wildfire and heat risk.
Lorene Phillips, a Bermuda-based performance architect and former insurance executive with more than 25 years in the reinsurance marketplace, will serve as master of ceremonies.
"We are operating in a period of rapid change, where capital flows, risk dynamics and geopolitical pressures are evolving in tandem," Burt said. The island's ability to convene global expertise and provide a stable, regulated environment for international business underpins the summit's value, he added.
