London is back

There’s an interesting piece in the Royal Gazette from 22 December in which the authors comment on a recent report by Stifel Nicolaus into the comparative states of the Lloyd’s/London and Bermudian markets.

The rather damning conclusion is that while Bermuda is swilling in cash, there’s rather a drought in the savvy stakes – “long on capital and short on talent.” Ouch.

Key points that, per the RG, emerge are as follows:

* London is a market of choice again
* Berkshire Hathaway’s deal with Lloyd’s to take over the Equitas run-off appears to have lifted the clouds
* the much-heralded ‘flight to Bermuda’ has not really happened
* Bermudian capital is likely to head to London, to acquire acumen and penetrate the London Market
* Bermuda has been something of a monoculture – they need to diversify for both commercial and regulatory reasons
* Brokers wearing out shoe-leather is costly and often pointless, and AON are leading a move to make broking more cost-effective and efficient
* Bermuda still has that 30-0 tax advantage on London, and a big technology gap, too.