XL Group proposes to relocate from Ireland to Bermuda

Ten months after it completed its acquisition of Catlin Group Ltd., insurance carrier XL Group plc is proposing to change its place of incorporation to Bermuda.

XL’s principal offices are currently in Dublin, Ireland.

In Canada, XL’s coverages include commercial property, liability and surety. It has offices in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary.

Since May 1, XL has been using the XL-Catlin brand. That was when XL completed its US$4.1-billion acquisition of Hamiltion, Bermuda-based Catlin Group.

“XL expects to submit the proposal for redomestication, along with related proposals, to its shareholders in the next several months and complete the transaction in the third quarter of 2016,” XL stated March 1 in a press release. “The proposed redomestication will be subject to receipt of necessary regulatory approvals, approval by the Company’s ordinary shareholders, satisfaction of other conditions and sanctioning by the High Court of Ireland.”

A redomestication would be “a natural step for XL,” CEO Michael McGavick, stated in a release. “XL has had a presence in Bermuda since 1986, which grew significantly following the transformative transaction with Bermuda-based Catlin last year.”

Originally known as Catlin Underwriting Agencies, Catlin was was founded in 1984 Stephen Catlin, now executive deputy chairman of XL Group.

XL “traces its roots” to the merger of EXEL Ltd. and reinsurer Mid Ocean Ltd., “both of which maintained principal operations in Bermuda and were incorporated in the Cayman Islands in 1986 and 1992, respectively,” XL stated in its annual report for 2015. “In 1998 EXEL and Mid Ocean merged into a newly formed holding company in the Cayman Islands, EXEL Merger Company, which subsequently changed its named to XL Capital Ltd in February of 1999.”

XL’s primary coverages include environmental liability, surety, builders risk, directors’ and officers’ liability, aviation and satellite, marine and political risk, among others. It also writes reinsurance.

“Following the Catlin transaction, and with the recent determination of full Solvency II equivalence for Bermuda, it has been concluded that the [Bermuda Monetary Authority] is best situated to serve as XL’s group-wide supervisor and to approve XL’s internal capital model,” McGavick stated in a release.