Williams-Charles to be CEO of long term re/insurers’ association

Bermuda’s long term re/insurers association has appointed the director of policy for its sister property and casualty re/insurers’ association to be its new chief executive officer. 

Suzanne Williams-Charles will leave the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers to take up her new post at Bermuda International Long Term Insurers and Reinsurers in April. 

She has been at ABIR since 2018, having previously been director of compliance at Hiscox and deputy director of insurance supervision at the Bermuda Monetary Authority. 

Current executive director Christine Patton will assist BILTIR with the leadership transition in the next few months before stepping down in April.

BILTIR also announced that former Bermuda Government finance minister Curtis Dickinson will step down as executive advisor but will continue to assist on an ad hoc basis. 

BILTIR said it had contracted with former Florida Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier to serve as executive advisor. 

Williams-Charles, who took part in a Bermuda Finance  digital discussion on diversity in December, brings more than 25 years of experience in the insurance sector, including 15 years with a regulatory focus. 

Her most recent role was director of policy and regulation, corporate secretary and data privacy officer, at the Association of Bermuda Insurers and Reinsurers (ABIR), leading ABIR’s Bermuda office and responsible for leading its public outreach agenda.

Prior to joining ABIR, Williams-Charles was director of compliance for Hiscox and was previously a Deputy Director of Insurance Supervision at the Bermuda Monetary Authority. 

In this role, she directed both group and solo entity level supervision, undertaking risk-based supervision of all commercial regulated entities in the insurance sector.  She  also represented the BMA at working groups of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors.

 As CEO, Williams-Charles will lead BILTIR through its local and global advocacy initiatives for the long-term sector.

The long-term insurance sector, which has grown rapidly in the last decade in Bermuda, is facing increased scrutiny from overseas regulators and competitors. 

Commenting on her appointment, Williams-Charles said: “I am delighted to take up the new position as CEO of BILTIR. The industry is at an exciting and pivotal stage, and I look forward to working with BILTIR members to ensure that they are effectively represented in all areas of development.”

Altmaier was Commissioner of Insurance for Florida from 2016 to 2022. In his capacity as commissioner, he led the Office of Insurance Regulation and had oversight over one of the largest insurance markets in the world.

Altmaier was President of the US National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) in 2021, after serving as the President-elect in 2020 and Vice President in 2019. He also served as a Vice Chair of the Executive Committee for the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), representing insurance regulators and supervisors of more than 200 jurisdictions worldwide.

Chair of BILTIR, Natasha Scotland Courcy, said: “We are excited to have Suzanne and David come on board. With recent global and local regulatory changes impacting the long-term sector, their experience in the regulatory environment will allow us to strengthen our position as we navigate through changes and advocate on behalf of our members.”

She added: “I would like to thank Christine Patton for her support over the last year in helping to continue to build on BILTIR’s advocacy infrastructure both locally and internationally, alongside our members. I’d also like to thank Curtis Dickinson for all of the work he’s done with us over the last year to help bolster our advocacy efforts on behalf of our members.”

See Bermuda Finance's panel discussion on long term re/insurance here