"I'm A long way from Hampshire," muses Robert Childs, chief underwriting officer of Hiscox, an insurance syndicate at Lloyd's of London, and head of a new company it has just set up in Bermuda. Hiscox is one of a string of firms to set up shop recently in the British overseas territory, nearly 600 miles (965km) off the coast of America, which has emerged as an important force in the global reinsurance market. "We cannot avoid Bermuda," says Mr Childs. "We've always needed to be at the bazaar." The competitive threat from Bermuda was acknowledged last week by Lloyd's itself, which unveiled a new strategic plan (belatedly, say some) to counter rival centres. Lloyd's is not alone: Germany and Switzerland, two other giants in reinsurance (the business of insuring insurers), are watching Bermuda closely too. Although the island has been a rising force for 15 years, thanks largely to a favourable tax climate, it has had an extra boost lately thanks to billions of dollars of new capital.
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