UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

FORM 20-F

(Mark One)

☐ REGISTRATION STATEMENT PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OR (g) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

OR

☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023

OR

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

OR

☐ SHELL COMPANY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Date of event requiring this shell company report:

Commission File Number: 001-39255

International General Insurance Holdings Ltd.
(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

74 Abdel Hamid Sharaf Street, P.O. Box 941428, Amman 11194, Jordan
+962 6 562 2009
(Address of principal executive offices)

Rawan Alsulaiman
74 Abdel Hamid Sharaf Street, P.O. Box 941428, Amman 11194, Jordan
+962 6 562 2009
Rawan.Alsulaiman@iginsure.com

(Name, Telephone, Email and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person)

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered or to be registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None

Securities for which there is a reporting obligation pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Act: None

Indicate the number of outstanding shares of each of the issuer’s classes of capital or common stock as of the close of the period covered by the annual report: 46,074,179

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒

If this report is an annual or transition report, indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Yes ☐ No ☒

Note — Checking the box above will not relieve any registrant required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 from their obligations under those Sections.

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or an emerging growth company. See definition of “accelerated filer,” “large accelerated filer,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards† provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☒

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐

If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐

Indicate by check mark which basis of accounting the registrant has used to prepare the financial statements included in this filing:

If “Other” has been checked in response to the previous question, indicate by check mark which financial statement item the registrant has elected to follow. Item 17 ☐ Item 18 ☐

If this is an annual report, indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒

INTERNATIONAL GENERAL INSURANCE HOLDINGS LTD.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Some of the statements in this annual report on Form 20-F (this “annual report”) of International General Insurance Holdings Ltd., a Bermuda exempted company (“we,” “IGI” or the “Company”), constitute forward-looking statements that do not directly or exclusively relate to historical facts. You should not place undue reliance on such statements because they are subject to numerous uncertainties and factors relating to our operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control. Forward-looking statements include information concerning our possible or assumed future results of operations, including descriptions of our business strategy. These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as ability,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “budget,” “can,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “could,” “design,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “hope,” “impact,” “intend,” “may,” “outlook,” “plan,” “positioned,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “strategy,” “target,” “value,” “will,” “would” and similar expressions. You should read statements that contain these words carefully because they:

All such forward-looking statements involve estimates and assumptions that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed in the statements. We believe it is important to communicate our expectations to our security holders. However, there may be events in the future that we are not able to predict accurately or over which they have no control. The risk factors and cautionary language discussed in this annual report provide examples of risks, uncertainties and events that may cause actual results to differ materially from the expectations described by us in such forward-looking statements, including among other things:

These risks could cause actual results to differ materially from those implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this annual report.

All forward-looking statements included herein attributable to us or any person acting on our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Except to the extent required by applicable laws and regulations, we undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this annual report or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT U.S. GAAP AND NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES

Our financial statements are prepared in accordance with United States Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (referred to in this annual report as “U.S. GAAP” or “GAAP”). We refer in various places within this annual report to core operating income and core operating return on average equity, which are non-GAAP measures that are more fully explained in “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.” The presentation of this non-GAAP information is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for our consolidated financial results prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. 

FREQUENTLY USED TERMS

As used in this annual report, unless the context otherwise requires or indicates, references to “we,” “us,” “our,” “IGI,” the “Group” and the “Company,” refer to International General Insurance Holdings Ltd., a Bermuda exempted company, and its consolidated subsidiaries subsequent to the Business Combination and references to “IGI Dubai” refer to our wholly owned subsidiary International General Insurance Holdings Limited, a company organized under the laws of the Dubai International Financial Centre, on a stand-alone basis.

In this annual report:

“2020 Plan” means the 2020 Omnibus Incentive Plan of the Company.

“Amended and Restated Bye-laws” means the amended and restated bye-laws of the Company.

“Business Combination Agreement” means the Business Combination Agreement, dated as of October 10, 2019, as amended, by and among Tiberius, IGI Dubai, the Purchaser Representative, the Seller Representative and, pursuant to a joinder thereto, the Company and Merger Sub.

“Business Combination” means the Merger, the Share Exchange and the other transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement that were completed on March 17, 2020.

“Cash Consideration” means an aggregate of $80.0 million paid to the Sellers in connection with the Share Exchange.

“Closing” means the closing of the Business Combination on March 17, 2020.

“Code” means the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended.

“Companies Act” means the Companies Act of 1981 of Bermuda, as amended.

“Company” or “IGI” or “Group” means International General Insurance Holdings Ltd., a Bermuda exempted company, which became the parent company of Tiberius and IGI Dubai as a result of the Business Combination.

“Equity Consideration” means common shares of the Company issued to the Sellers equal in value to the Transaction Consideration minus the Cash Consideration.

“Exchange Act” means the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

“Exchange Shares” means common shares of the Company equal in value to the total Transaction Consideration less $80.0 million of Cash Consideration issued to former shareholders of IGI Dubai in exchange for their IGI Dubai shares.

“IFRS” refers to International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”).

“IGI Dubai” means International General Insurance Holdings Ltd., a company organized under the laws of the Dubai International Financial Centre, which became a subsidiary of the Company as a result of the Business Combination.

“IGI Bermuda” means International General Insurance Co. Ltd.

“IGI Europe” means International General Insurance Company (Europe) Ltd

“IGI Nordic” means International General Insurance Company Nordic AS

“IGI UK” means International General Insurance Company (UK) Limited.

“Insurance Act” means the Insurance Act of 1978 of Bermuda, as amended, and related rules and regulations.

“IRS” means the Internal Revenue Service of the United States.

“Jabsheh Director” means a director appointed by Wasef Jabsheh in accordance with the Amended and Restated Bye-laws.

“Jabsheh Family” means members of Wasef Jabsheh’s immediate family and/or natural lineal descendants of Wasef Jabsheh or a trust or other similar entity established for the exclusive benefit of Wasef Jabsheh and his immediate family and natural lineal descendants.

“Labuan Branch” means the Labuan Branch of International General Insurance Co. Ltd.

“Merger” means the merger of Merger Sub with and into Tiberius, with Tiberius surviving such merger.

“Merger Sub” means Tiberius Merger Sub, Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company that merged with and into Tiberius as part of the Business Combination.

“Nasdaq” means the Nasdaq Capital Market.

“Non-Competition Agreement” means the Non-Competition and Non-Solicitation Agreement, dated October 10, 2019, among Wasef Jabsheh, Tiberius and, pursuant to a joinder thereto, the Company.

“Ominvest” means Oman International Development & Investment Company SAOG.

“private warrants” means 4,500,000 warrants of the Company issued in exchange for 4,500,000 Tiberius private warrants at the closing of the Business Combination.

“Purchaser Representative” means Lagniappe Ventures LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.

“Registration Rights Agreement” means the registration rights agreement, dated as of March 17, 2020, by and among the Company, the Purchaser Representative, and the Sellers party thereto as “Investors” thereunder.

“Sarbanes-Oxley Act” means the U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as amended.

“SEC” means the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

“Securities Act” means the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

“Sellers” means the shareholders of IGI who are parties to the Share Exchange Agreements.

“Seller Representative” means Wasef Jabsheh, who executed the Business Combination Agreement in his capacity as the representative of the Sellers.

“Share Exchange” means the exchange of all of the share capital of IGI Dubai as part of the Business Combination for a combination of our common shares and aggregate cash consideration of $80.0 million.

“Share Exchange Agreements” means the Share Exchange Agreements, dated October 10, 2019 or otherwise prior to the Closing, by and among the holders of all of the outstanding share capital of IGI Dubai, Tiberius and the Seller Representative and, pursuant to a joinder thereto, the Company.

“Sponsor” means Lagniappe Ventures LLC, a Delaware limited liability company.

“Sponsor Share Letter” means the letter agreement between the Sponsor, Tiberius, IGI Dubai, Wasef Jabsheh and Argo Re Limited, dated October 10, 2019, to which the Company became a party after the date thereof by executing and delivering a joinder thereto.

“Tiberius” means Tiberius Acquisition Corporation, a Delaware corporation, which became a subsidiary of the Company as a result of the Business Combination, and which has subsequently been dissolved.

“Tiberius common stock” means shares of common stock of Tiberius, par value $0.0001 per share.

“Tiberius warrant” means a warrant to purchase one share of Tiberius common stock at a price of $11.50 per share.

“Transaction Consideration” means the total consideration paid by the Company to the Sellers for their shares of IGI as part of the Business Combination, consisting of Cash Consideration and Equity Consideration.

“USD” or “$” means the currency in dollars of the United States of America.

“U.S. GAAP” means United States generally accepted accounting principles.

“warrant” means a warrant to purchase one common share of the Company at a price of $11.50 per share.

PART I

Item 1. Identity of Directors, Senior Management and Advisers

Not applicable.

ITEM 2. OFFER STATISTICS AND EXPECTED TIMETABLE

Not applicable.

ITEM 3. KEY INFORMATION

A. [Reserved]

B. Capitalization and Indebtedness

Not applicable.

C. Reasons for the Offer and Use of Proceeds

Not applicable.

D. Risk Factors

An investment in our securities carries a significant degree of risk. You should carefully consider the following risks and other information in this annual report, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes included herein, in connection with your ownership of our securities. If any of the events described below occur, our business and financial results could be adversely affected in a material way. This could cause the trading price of our securities to decline, perhaps significantly, and you therefore may lose all or part of your investment. The risks set out below are not exhaustive and do not comprise all of the risks associated with an investment in the Company. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or which we currently deem immaterial may also have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, prospects and/or its share price.

Summary of Risk Factors

The following is a summary of certain, but not all, of the risks that could adversely affect our business, operations and financial results. If any of the risks actually occur, our business could be materially impaired, the trading price of our common shares could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.

Risks Relating to the Insurance and Reinsurance Industry

Risks Relating to Our Business and Operations

General Risk Factors

Risk Factors

Risks Relating to the Insurance and Reinsurance Industry

If our underwriters fail to assess accurately the underwritten risks or fail to comply with internal guidelines on underwriting or their underwriting authority or if events or circumstances cause the underwriters’ risk assessment to be incorrect, our premiums may prove to be inadequate to cover the losses associated with such risks.

Our underwriting results depend on whether the claims brought by policyholders are consistent with the assumptions and pricing models we use in underwriting and pricing our insurance covers. It is not possible to predict with certainty whether a single risk or a portfolio of risks underwritten by us will result in a loss, or the timing and severity of any loss that does occur. If our underwriters fail to assess accurately the underwritten risks or fail to comply with internal guidelines on underwriting or their underwriting authority or if events or circumstances cause the underwriters’ risk assessment to be incorrect, our premiums may prove to be inadequate to cover the losses associated with such risks. Losses may also arise from events or exposures that are not anticipated when the coverage is priced. In addition to unanticipated events which increase losses beyond our expectations, we also face the risk of the potential unanticipated expansion of our exposures, particularly in long-tail liability lines of business. Any failure by us to manage the risks that we underwrite could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

The insurance and reinsurance industries are highly competitive; competitive pressures may result in fewer policies underwritten, lower premium rates, increased expense for customer acquisition and retention and less favorable policy terms and conditions.

We operate in highly competitive markets. Customers may evaluate us and our competitors on a number of factors, including financial strength, underwriting capacity, expertise, local presence, reputation, experience and qualifications of employees, client relationships, geographic scope of business, products and services offered (including ease of doing business over the electronic placement platforms), premiums charged, ratings assigned by independent rating agencies, contract terms and conditions and the speed of claims payment.

Our competitors include independent reinsurance and insurance companies, subsidiaries or affiliates of established worldwide insurance companies, reinsurance departments of certain insurance companies and domestic and international underwriting operations. Some of these competitors have greater financial resources than we do and have established long term and continuing business relationships throughout the industry, which can be a significant competitive advantage. In addition, the lack of strong barriers to entry into the reinsurance business and the entry of alternative capital markets products and vehicles provide additional sources of insurance and reinsurance capacity and increased competition. We directly compete with large companies, smaller companies and other niche insurers and reinsurers. See “Business — Competition”.

Our competitors vary by offered product line and covered territory. We also compete with new companies that enter the insurance and reinsurance markets, particularly companies with new or “disruptive” technologies or business models. Capital markets participants have created alternative products that are intended to compete with reinsurance products. Recently, the insurance industry has faced increased competition from new underwriting capacity, such as the investment of significant amounts of capital by pension funds, mutual funds, hedge funds and other sources of alternative capital primarily into the natural catastrophe insurance and reinsurance businesses. In addition, technology companies and other third parties have created, and may in the future create, technology-enabled business models, processes, platforms or alternate distribution channels that may adversely impact our competitive position.

The nature of the competition we face may be affected by disruption and deterioration in global financial markets and economic downturns, including as a result of the war in Ukraine, the hostilities between Israel and Hamas and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as by governmental responses thereto. For example, (i) government intervention might result in capital or other support for our competitors, (ii) governments may provide insurance and reinsurance capacity in markets and to consumers that we target, (iii) governments may take actions to reduce interest rates, impacting the value of and returns on fixed income investments or (iv) government intervention intended to protect consumers may restrict increases in premium rates.

Increased competition can result in fewer policies underwritten, lower premiums for the policies that are underwritten (over and above reductions due to favorable loss experience), increased expenses associated with acquiring and retaining business and policy terms and conditions that are less advantageous to us than we were able to obtain historically or that may be available to our competitors.

Consolidation in the insurance and reinsurance industry could adversely impact us.

The insurance and reinsurance industry, including our competitors, customers and insurance and reinsurance brokers, has been consolidating. There has been a large amount of merger and acquisition activity in the insurance and reinsurance sector in recent years which may continue. We may experience increased competition as a result of that consolidation, with larger entities having enhanced market power. Increased competition could result in fewer submissions, lower premium rates, less favorable policy terms and conditions and greater costs of customer acquisition and retention.

Should the market continue to consolidate, competitors may try to use their enhanced market power to obtain a larger market share through increased line sizes or through price competition. If competitive pressures reduce our prices, this could in turn lead to reduced premiums and a reduction in expected earnings. As the insurance industry consolidates, competition for customers will become more intense and the importance of sourcing and properly servicing each customer will become greater. We could incur greater expenses relating to customer acquisition and retention, further reducing our operating margins. In addition, insurance companies that merge may be able to spread their risks across a larger capital base so that they require less reinsurance. The number of companies offering reinsurance to competitors may decline. Reinsurance intermediaries could also continue to consolidate, potentially adversely impacting our ability to access business and distribute our products. We could also experience more robust competition from larger, better capitalized competitors. As a result of the consolidation in the industry, we may experience rate declines and possibly write less business. Any of the foregoing could adversely affect our business, results of operations, growth and prospects.

Our operating results are affected by the cyclicality of the insurance and reinsurance industry.

The insurance and reinsurance industry historically has been cyclical, with significant fluctuations in premium rates and operating results due to competition, the frequency and/or severity of catastrophic events, levels of underwriting capacity in the industry, changes in legislation, case law and prevailing concepts of liability, general economic and social conditions and other factors. Insurance and reinsurance underwriting capacity is related to prevailing premium rates, the level of insured losses and the level of surplus capacity that, in turn, might fluctuate in response to changes in return on investments earned in the insurance and reinsurance industry and other factors. These cycles, as well as other factors that influence aggregate supply and demand for insurance and reinsurance products, are outside of our control.

This cyclicality has produced periods characterized by intense price competition and widening coverage offerings due to excess underwriting capacity (a so-called “soft market”), with each line of business experiencing its own cycle. Where a line of business experiences soft market conditions, we may fail to obtain new insurance business in that line of business at the desired premium rates. In addition, the cycle may fluctuate as a result of changes in economic, legal, political and social factors. Since cyclicality is due in large part to the collective actions of insurers, reinsurers and general economic conditions and the occurrence of unpredictable events, we cannot predict the timing or duration of changes in the market cycle. If we fail to manage the cyclical nature of the insurance business, our operating results and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.

We operate a diversified business, writing insurance in a variety of lines of business and geographic markets. Different lines of business and different geographic markets can experience their own cycles and, therefore, the impact of various cycles will depend in part on the sectors of the insurance and reinsurance industry, as well as the geographic markets, in which we operate. In addition, increases in the frequency and severity of losses suffered by insurers can significantly amplify these cycles. The effects of such cyclicality could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.

Furthermore, when interest rates are low, resulting in reduced investment market returns, alternative capital providers may be encouraged to enter the insurance market in order to achieve higher returns. This could have the effect of increasing the level of competition in the insurance market and applying pressure on premiums, which could affect the gross written premium (“GWP”) that we are able to generate.

Interest rate movements can also contribute to cyclicality in insurers’ underwriting results. In a high-interest rate environment, increased investment returns may reduce insurers’ required contribution from underwriting performance to achieve an attractive overall return. This may result in a less-disciplined approach to underwriting in the market generally as some underwriters could be inclined to offer lower premium rates to generate more business. We may therefore have to accept lower rates or broader coverage terms in order to remain competitive in the market, with the result that our premiums may be inadequate to cover the losses associated with such risks.

We may from time to time, as a result of the cyclicality of certain lines of business, decide to concentrate on fewer lines of business. As a consequence, we may be exposed to additional risk and may be required to hold more regulatory capital on the basis that the business, and hence the associated risk, is more concentrated, which in turn may affect the efficiency of our business and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

If market conditions cause reinsurance to be more costly or unavailable, we may be required to bear increased risks or reduce the level of our underwriting commitments.

As part of our overall risk and capacity management strategy, we purchase reinsurance for certain amounts of risk underwritten by our insurance company subsidiaries, especially catastrophe risks and those risks with relatively high policy limits. We also purchase reinsurance on risks underwritten by others which we reinsure. Market conditions beyond our control determine the availability and cost of the reinsurance protection we seek to purchase, which may affect the level of our business and profitability. Our reinsurance contracts are generally subject to annual renewal, and we may be unable to maintain our current reinsurance contracts or to obtain other reinsurance contracts in adequate amounts and at favorable rates. In addition, we may be unable to obtain reinsurance on terms acceptable to us relating to certain lines of business that we intend to begin underwriting. If we are unable to renew our expiring contracts or to obtain new reinsurance contracts, either our net exposures would increase or, if we are unwilling to bear an increase in net exposures, we would have to reduce the level of our underwriting commitments, especially catastrophe exposed risks.

The Company and its operating subsidiaries are subject to extensive laws and regulations. Any failure to comply with existing regulations or material changes in the regulation of our operations could have a material adverse effect on us.

The Company and its subsidiaries, branches and offices are subject to the laws and regulations of a number of jurisdictions worldwide, including Bermuda, the UK, Malaysia, Malta, Jordan, Morocco, Norway and the UAE. Existing laws and regulations, among other things, limit the amount of dividends that can be paid by our subsidiaries, prescribe solvency and capital adequacy standards, impose restrictions on the amount and type of investments that can be held to meet solvency and capital adequacy requirements, require the maintenance of reserve liabilities, and require pre-approval of acquisitions and certain affiliate transactions. Failure to comply with these laws and regulations or to maintain appropriate authorizations, licenses, and/or exemptions under applicable laws and regulations may cause governmental authorities to preclude or suspend our subsidiaries from carrying on some or all of their activities, place one or more of them into rehabilitation or liquidation proceedings, impose monetary penalties or other sanctions on them or our affiliates, or commence insurance company delinquency proceedings against our insurance subsidiaries.

The application of these laws and regulations could affect our liquidity and ability to pay dividends, interest and other payments on securities, as applicable, and could restrict our ability to expand our business operations through acquisitions of new insurance subsidiaries. Furthermore, compliance with legal and regulatory requirements may result in significant expenses, which could have a negative impact on our profitability. We may not have or maintain all required licenses and approvals in every jurisdiction in which we operate and may not be able to fully comply with the wide variety of laws and regulations applicable to us or the relevant authority’s interpretation of such laws and regulations. Some regulatory authorities have relatively broad discretion to grant, renew or revoke licenses and approvals. If we do not have the requisite licenses and approvals or do not comply with applicable regulatory requirements, the insurance regulatory authorities could preclude or temporarily suspend us from carrying on some or all of our business activities or impose monetary penalties on us. Also, changes in the level of regulation of the insurance industry in the jurisdictions in which we operate, or changes in laws or regulations themselves or interpretations by regulatory authorities, may further restrict the conduct of our business. In some instances, we follow practices based on our interpretations of regulations or practices that we believe may be generally followed by the industry. These practices may turn out to be different from the interpretations of regulatory authorities. These types of actions could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We may not be able to maintain necessary licenses, permits, authorizations or accreditations in jurisdictions where we and our subsidiaries currently engage in business or obtain them in new jurisdictions, or may be able to do so only at significant cost. In addition, we may not be able to comply fully with, or obtain appropriate exemptions from, the wide variety of laws and regulations applicable to insurance or reinsurance companies. Although we have in place systems and controls designed to comply with applicable laws and regulations, there can be no assurance that we, our employees, or agents acting on our behalf are in full compliance with all applicable laws and regulations or their interpretation by the relevant authorities and, given the complex nature of the risks, it may not always be possible for us to ascertain compliance with such laws and regulations. Failure to comply with or to obtain appropriate authorizations and/or exemptions under any applicable laws or regulations could subject us to investigations, criminal sanctions or civil remedies, including fines, injunctions, loss of an operating license, reputational consequences, and other sanctions, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business. Changes in the laws or regulations to which we and our subsidiaries are subject could also have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, in most jurisdictions, government regulatory authorities have the power to interpret or amend applicable laws and regulations, and have discretion to grant, renew or revoke licenses and approvals we need to conduct our activities. Such authorities may require us to incur substantial costs in order to comply with such laws and regulations.

Our continued expansion into new businesses and markets has brought about additional requirements. While we believe that we have adopted appropriate risk management and compliance programs, compliance risks will continue to exist, particularly as we become subject to new rules and regulations. Any failure to comply with applicable laws, regulations and government interpretations of such laws and regulations could also subject us to fines, penalties, equitable relief and changes to our business practices. Compliance with applicable laws and regulations is time consuming and personnel-intensive. Changes in these laws and regulations could materially increase our direct and indirect compliance costs and other expenses of doing business and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We are subject to extensive regulatory supervision and may, from time to time, be subject to inquiries or investigations that could result in fines, sanctions, variation or revocation of permissions and authorizations, reputational damage or loss of goodwill.

The conduct of the insurance and reinsurance business is subject to significant legal and regulatory requirements as well as governmental and quasi-governmental supervision in the various jurisdictions in which our group operates. Our business activities are regulated by the Bermuda Monetary Authority (“BMA”) in our Bermuda operations, the Prudential Regulation Authority (“PRA”) and Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) in our UK operations, the Malta Financial Services Authority (“MFSA”) in our Malta operations, the Insurance Supervision Department, Central Bank of Jordan in our Jordanian operations, the Labuan Financial Services Authority in our operations in Malaysia, the Dubai Financial Services Authority in our operations in Dubai and the Casablanca Finance City for our operations in Morocco. This supervision and regulation are generally intended to be for the benefit of policyholders rather than shareholders or other investors. Among other things, the insurance laws and regulations applicable to us may:

As part of regular, mandated risk assessments, regulators may take steps that have the effect of restricting our business activities, which may in turn have a material impact on our ability to achieve growth objectives and earnings targets. For example, each regulated insurance business we operate is subject to a number of restrictions on assets we may hold under relevant regulations and tax rules, and regulators may, as has happened in the past, alter such restrictions, thus potentially affecting our investment policy and any associated projected income or growth return from our investments. In addition, based on our perceived risk profile, regulators may require additional regulatory capital to be held by us (including as part of guidance provided by the regulator to us on a confidential basis), which, among other things, may affect the business we can write and the amount of dividends we are able to pay out.

In addition, legislation and other regulatory initiatives taken or which may be taken in response to conditions in the financial markets, global supervision and other factors may lead to additional regulation of the insurance industry in the coming years.

The insurance and reinsurance industries have experienced substantial volatility as a result of investigations, litigation and regulatory activity by various insurance, governmental and enforcement authorities, concerning various practices within the insurance and reinsurance industry. If we or any of our subsidiaries were to be found to be in breach of any existing or new laws or regulations now or in the future, we would be exposed to the risk of intervention by regulatory authorities, including investigation and surveillance, and judicial or administrative proceedings. In addition, our reputation could suffer and we could be fined or prohibited from engaging in some or all of our business activities or could be sued by counterparties, as well as forced to devote significant resources to cooperate with regulatory investigations, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Any future regulatory changes, litigation or failure to comply with applicable laws could result in the imposition of significant restrictions on our ability to do business, and could also result in suspensions, injunctions, monetary damages, fines or other sanctions, any or all of which could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. These events, if they occur, could affect the competitive market and the way we conduct our business and manage our capital and could result in lower revenues and higher costs. As a result, such actions could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Changes in accounting principles and financial reporting requirements could impact our reported financial results and reported financial condition.

Prior to January 1, 2023, the Company historically prepared its financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board. Beginning with its consolidated financial statements for fiscal periods ending after January 1, 2023, the Company has voluntarily changed its basis of accounting from IFRS to U.S. GAAP. This Form 20-F presents the Company’s audited financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP for the first time.

As a former preparer of IFRS financial statements, we have historically complied with IFRS 4, Insurance Contracts, which is applicable to the insurance industry. In May 2017, the IASB published its replacement standard on insurance accounting (IFRS 17, “Insurance Contracts”), which will have the effect of introducing fundamental changes to the reporting of insurance entities that prepare accounts according to IFRS. The effective date of IFRS 17 is for annual reporting periods beginning on or after January 1, 2023. Because the Company voluntarily changed its basis of accounting from IFRS to U.S. GAAP and presents its consolidated financial statements under U.S. GAAP effective January 1, 2023 (the “first reporting period”), the Company has discontinued the process of implementing IFRS 17.

The preparation of our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP rather than IFRS has caused us to report results and could cause us to report results in the future which are different than what our results would have been had we continued to report in accordance with IFRS. Because our reported results for the year ended December 31, 2023 and for future periods may be different from our results had they been prepared under IFRS, you may not be able to meaningfully compare our prior financial statements under IFRS with our financial statements under U.S. GAAP.

In addition to the transitional adjustments arising from the change in the basis of accounting as described above, there have also been, and may continue to be, some reclassification adjustments to our balance sheet and income statement, without any impact on shareholders’ equity and net income.

Going forward, changes in U.S. GAAP could require us to change the way in which our future results are determined or require a retrospective adjustment of reported results. Such changes could relate to the fair value of assets and liabilities, the recognition of revenue and expenses, the accounting for acquired entities, as well as related income tax effects. Any such changes could result in material changes to our financial results.

Increasing barriers to free trade and the free flow of capital and fluctuations in the financial markets could adversely affect the insurance and reinsurance industry and our business.

Political initiatives to restrict free trade and close markets, such as the UK’s decision to withdraw from the EU on January 31, 2020 (“Brexit”) and the U.S. decision to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific partnership and renegotiate or terminate existing bilateral and multilateral trade arrangements, could adversely affect the insurance and reinsurance industry and our business. The insurance and reinsurance industries are disproportionately impacted by restraints on the free flow of capital and risk because the value it provides depends on its ability to globally diversify risk. With respect to Brexit, in June 2021 we acquired an EU insurance operation in Malta, which enables IGI to pursue business in the EU, but also subjects us to regulation in the EU.

In addition, prolonged and severe disruptions in the overall public and private debt and equity markets, such as occurred during 2008 and in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, could result in significant realized and unrealized losses. Public and private debt and equity markets may experience disruption in individual market sectors, such as has occurred in the energy sector.

Further, the impact on global markets from the outbreak of global pandemics such as COVID-19 is uncertain. The adoption of certain hygiene measures, including quarantining populations, as well as restrictions on travel and the closing of national borders may adversely affect our business. Any prolonged restrictive measures in order to control a contagious disease or other adverse public health developments in our targeted markets may have a material and adverse effect on our business operations.

Global markets are also highly susceptible to other macroeconomic disruptions, such as, for example, regional military conflicts. In 2022, Russian military forces launched a military action in Ukraine. In 2023, a military conflict erupted between Israel and Hamas. These and similar sustained conflicts and disruptions in the world have continued to date. The length, impact, and outcome of these ongoing military conflicts is highly unpredictable and could lead to further significant market and other disruptions, including significant volatility in commodity prices and supply of energy resources, instability in financial markets, supply chain interruptions, political and social instability, trade disputes or trade barriers, changes in consumer or purchaser preferences, as well as an increase in insurance claims related to losses incurred in connection with any of the above disruptions.

Given ongoing global economic uncertainties, evolving market conditions may affect our results of operations, financial position and capital resources. In the event that there is additional deterioration or volatility in financial markets or general economic conditions, our results of operations, financial position, capital resources and competitive landscape could be materially and adversely affected.

Public health crises, epidemics or pandemics could adversely impact our business, operating results and financial condition.

Any significant public health crises, epidemics or pandemics, such as the COVID-19 outbreak, could lead to significant volatility, uncertainty and disruption in the global economy. Turbulence in the financial markets, including due to public health crises, epidemics or pandemics, may limit our ability to access the credit or equity markets. Moreover, public health crises, epidemics or pandemics could also cause other adverse economic effects, such as changes in interest rates, reduced liquidity and/or otherwise contribute to a continued slowdown in global economic conditions. Extreme market volatility caused by public health crises, epidemics or pandemics may leave us unable to react to market events in a timely manner and consistently with our historical practices in dealing with more orderly markets. As a result of public health crises, we may also face increased costs associated with claims under our policies, an increased number of customers experiencing difficulty paying premiums or policies being designated as “no lapse” for periods of time. The cost of reinsurance to us for these policies could increase, and we may encounter decreased availability of such reinsurance. Continuation of these conditions may potentially affect (among other aspects of our business) the demand for and claims made under our policies, the ability of clients, counterparties and others to establish or maintain their relationships with us, our ability to access and efficiently use internal and external capital resources and our investment performance.

Further, from an operational perspective, our employees, sales associates, brokers and distribution partners, as well as the workforces of our vendors, service providers and counterparties, may also be adversely affected by public health crises or efforts to mitigate them, including government-mandated shutdowns, requests or orders for employees to work remotely, and other social distancing measures, which could result in an adverse impact on our ability to conduct our business. Disruption to our operations may also result if our employees, or those of our service partners and counterparties, are affected by travel restrictions, office closures and other measures impacting on working practices, such as the imposition of remote working arrangements, and quarantine requirements and isolation measures under local laws, social distancing and/or other psychosocial impacts. While such measures are in place, there may be an increase across the industry in attempts to compromise IT systems through phishing and social engineering tactics.

Any significant public health crises, epidemics or pandemics could adversely impact our business, operations and financial results. The impact of such events will depend on numerous evolving factors, many of which are not within our control and which we may not be able to accurately predict.

Ongoing political and economic uncertainties prevalent in Lebanon may adversely affect the fair value of the Group’s equity interest in certain investment properties located in Lebanon.

The Group holds a 32.7% equity ownership interest in several companies located in Beirut and registered in Lebanon, with the Group’s investment amounting to $3.5 million as of December 31, 2023. These companies are engaged in the leasing of commercial buildings which are in the nature of investment property. The real estate market in Lebanon has changed significantly since the onset of the financial crisis that affected the country. Due to the relatively limited amount of information available under prevailing market conditions, and as a result of artificial demand created by investors outside the professional real estate development industry, who primarily aim to divest from cash assets into more secure holdings, prices found on the market are uncertain. Furthermore, since most property owners only accept payments in U.S. Dollar and not in local Lebanese currency, demand for commercial buildings has dropped considerably. Accordingly, prices found on the market as of December 31, 2023, including achieved sales prices, are only indicative and may not hold if the market were to be corrected.

Legislation enacted in Bermuda as to economic substance may affect our operations.

Pursuant to the Economic Substance Act 2018 (as amended) of Bermuda and its related regulations (together, the “ES Act”) that came into force on January 1, 2019, a registered entity other than an entity which is resident for tax purposes in certain jurisdictions outside Bermuda (“non-resident entity”) that carries on as a business any one or more of the “relevant activities” referred to in the ES Act must comply with economic substance requirements. The ES Act may require in-scope Bermuda entities which are engaged in such “relevant activities” to be directed and managed in Bermuda, have an adequate level of qualified employees in Bermuda, incur an adequate level of annual expenditure in Bermuda, maintain physical offices and premises in Bermuda or perform core income-generating activities in Bermuda. The list of “relevant activities” includes carrying on any one or more of the following activities: banking, insurance, fund management, financing, leasing, headquarters, shipping, distribution and service center, intellectual property and holding entities.

The ES Act could affect the manner in which we operate our business, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. For purposes of the ES Act, we believe that the Company is a “pure equity holding company”. The economic substance requirements for a “pure equity holding company” are less onerous than those for entities which are carrying out other relevant activities (pure equity holding entities are subject to minimum economic substance requirements). As such, and as long as it does not carry on any other “relevant activity”, we would not expect to be required to take additional actions beyond the minimum economic substance requirements for the purposes of compliance with the ES Act. Entities like IGI that are not in scope are only required to file a “nil” declaration. However, our expectations could change subject to further amendment and guidance on the interpretation of the ES Act. With respect to IGI Bermuda, for the purposes of the ES Act, we believe IGI Bermuda is carrying on the relevant activity of “insurance”. IGI Bermuda’s compliance with its regulatory requirements under the Insurance Act and the Companies Act 1981 of Bermuda, as amended (the “Companies Act”) will assist in evidencing its compliance with the economic substance requirements under the ES Act, but may not be conclusive. From time to time we engage in dialogue, communication and written correspondence with the Registrar of Companies of Bermuda (the “Registrar”) regarding our compliance with economic substance requirements. The Registrar may from time to time require further information or request documentation from us regarding our compliance with economic substance requirements, may require us to enhance our infrastructure in Bermuda or remediate asserted non-compliance and may impose civil penalties if we are not in compliance with applicable regulations. IGI Bermuda may need to continue to enhance its infrastructure in Bermuda for the purpose of satisfying economic substance requirements under the ES Act and this may result in, among other things, some additional operational cost.

An entity which is in-scope of the ES Act is required to complete and file a declaration form as to its compliance with its economic substance requirements no later than six months after the last day of its previous financial year. The Registrar will have regard to the information provided in the declaration form in making his assessment of the entity’s compliance with the economic substance requirements under the ES Act. Entities like IGI that are not in scope are only required to file a “nil” declaration.

Potential government intervention in the insurance industry and instability in the marketplace for insurance products could hinder our flexibility and negatively affect the business opportunities that may be available to us in the market.

Government intervention in the insurance industry and the possibility of future government intervention have created uncertainty in the insurance and reinsurance markets. Governmental authorities worldwide have become increasingly interested in potential risks posed by the insurance industry as a whole to commercial and financial systems in general, and there could be increased regulatory intervention in the insurance and reinsurance industries in the future.

Government regulators are generally concerned with the protection of policyholders to the exclusion of other constituencies, including shareholders of insurers. While we cannot predict the exact nature, timing or scope of possible governmental initiatives, such proposals could adversely affect our business by, among other things:

Government intervention has in the recent past taken the form of financial support of certain companies in the insurance and reinsurance industry. Governmental support of individual competitors can lead to increased pricing pressure and a distortion of market dynamics. The insurance industry is also affected by political, judicial and legal developments that may create new and expanded theories of liability, which may result in unexpected claims frequency and severity and delays or cancellations of products and services by insureds, insurers and reinsurers which could adversely affect our business.

European legislation known as “Solvency II” was introduced with effect from January 1, 2016 and governs the prudential regulation of insurers and reinsurers. Solvency II requires insurers and reinsurers in Europe to meet risk-based solvency requirements. Solvency II covers three main areas: (i) the valuation of assets and liabilities on a Solvency II economic basis and risk-based solvency and capital requirements; (ii) governance requirements effecting the key functions of compliance, internal audit, actuarial and risk management; and (iii) new supervisory legal entity and group reporting and disclosure requirements, including public disclosures. Solvency II imposes governance requirements on groups with insurers and/or reinsurers operating in the European Economic Area and imposes significant requirements for EU-based regulated companies which require substantial documentation and implementation effort. Following the UK’s departure from the EU it is anticipated that there would be a divergence between UK and EU regulatory systems as the UK determines which EU laws and regulations to maintain and which to replace.

The BMA has also implemented and imposed additional requirements on the commercial insurance companies it regulates, driven, in large part, by Solvency II. The European Commission has adopted a decision concluding that Bermuda meets the full equivalence criteria under Solvency II.

Additionally, governments and regulatory bodies may take unpredictable action to ensure continued supply of insurance, particularly where a given event leads to withdrawal of capacity from the market. For example, regulators may seek to force us to offer certain covers to (re)insureds, constrain our flexibility to apply certain terms and conditions or constrain our ability to make changes to the pricing of our contracts. There can be no assurance as to the effect that any such governmental or regulatory actions will have on the financial markets generally or on our competitive position, business and financial condition.

We cannot predict the exact nature, timing or scope of any possible governmental initiatives and any such proposals could adversely affect our business. We may not be able to comply fully with, or obtain desired exemptions from, revised statutes, regulations and policies that currently, or may in the future, govern the conduct of our business. Failure to comply with, or to obtain desired authorizations and/or exemptions under, any applicable laws could result in restrictions on our ability to do business or undertake activities that are regulated in one or more of the jurisdictions in which we operate and could subject us to fines and other sanctions.

Claims arising from catastrophic events are unpredictable and could be severe.

Our operations expose us to claims arising out of unpredictable natural and other catastrophic events, such as hurricanes, windstorms, hailstorms, tornadoes, tsunamis, severe winter weather, earthquakes, floods, fires, explosions, global pandemics, political unrest, drilling, mining and other industrial accidents, cyber events and terrorism. In addition to the nature of the property business, economic and geographic trends affecting insured property, including inflation, property value appreciation and geographic concentration, tend to generally increase the size of losses from catastrophic events over time.

Actual losses from catastrophic events may vary materially from estimates due to the inherent uncertainties in making such determinations resulting from several factors, including potential inaccuracies and inadequacies in the data provided by clients, brokers and ceding companies, the modeling techniques and the application of such techniques, the contingent nature of business interruption exposures, the effects of any resultant demand surge on claims activity and attendant coverage issues.

The incidence and severity of catastrophes are inherently unpredictable and our losses from such catastrophes could be substantial. The extent of losses from such catastrophes is a function of the number, the frequency and severity of events, the total amount of insured exposure in the areas affected, the effectiveness of our catastrophe risk management program, and the adequacy of our reinsurance coverage. Increases in the value and concentrations of insured property and demographic changes more broadly, the effects of inflation and changes in weather patterns may increase the frequency or severity of claims from catastrophic events in the future. We may from time to time issue preliminary estimates of the impact of catastrophic events that, because of uncertainties in estimating certain losses, need to be updated as more information becomes available.

Our most significant catastrophe exposures are set forth below:

Natural catastrophes. The occurrence of natural catastrophes is inherently uncertain. Generally, over the past decade, insured losses for catastrophes have increased, due principally to weather-related catastrophes, including but not limited to the impact of global warming. The increasing concentrations of economic activities and people living and working in areas exposed to natural catastrophes have resulted in increased exposure for insurance providers. Increasing insurance penetration, growing technological vulnerability and higher property values have further compounded the insurance industry’s exposure. A series of extreme weather events resulted in one of the most expensive years for natural catastrophes in 2017. Significant natural catastrophes affecting IGI in the recent past have included Hurricane Maria, Hurricane Irma and the September 2017 earthquake in Mexico. Our most significant claims relating to natural catastrophes, net of reinsurance, during the recent past have included claims relating to the Mexican floods and Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas in 2019, the Puerto Rico Earthquake and Hurricane Laura in the state of Louisiana in the United States in 2020, Hurricane Ida and the European Floods in 2021 and Hurricane Ian and Australia Floods in 2022. In 2023, the Turkey Earthquake and Cyclone Gabrielle resulted in gross and net reported claims of $15.0 million and $12.4 million, respectively. The possible effects of natural catastrophes could be compounded by climate change, severe weather, floods and drought, as well as adverse agricultural yields.

Man-made disasters. Complex technology intersecting with increased population density, infrastructure and higher rates of utilization of natural resources increase the likelihood and the magnitude of catastrophic man-made events caused by accident or negligence. Man-made disasters, as well as disasters that pose significant risk to the environment, bear particularly high potential for losses. Due to the uncertainty of the occurrence of, and loss from, man-made disasters, unexpected large losses could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and cash flow. Man-made disasters such as oil spills from offshore drilling could give rise not only to claims due to the damage caused by such events but also claims arising from governmental sanctions and civil litigation.

Global pandemics. The outbreak of a pandemic disease, like COVID-19, could have a material adverse effect on our liquidity, financial condition and the operating results of our business due to its impact on the economy and financial markets.

Terrorism. We face risks related to terrorist and criminal acts on a significant scale (including acts intended to cause strain on financial and other critical infrastructures, which, given the state of reliance on digital technology, could be triggered by cyber threats). Our exposure to terrorism and criminal acts arises mainly from the political violence line of business. However, conventions in the market limit or exclude certain terrorist acts in a number of lines of business. We closely monitor the amount and types of coverage we provide for terrorism risk under treaties. If we believe we can reasonably evaluate the risk of loss and charge an appropriate premium for such risk, we will underwrite terrorism exposure on a stand-alone basis. We generally seek to exclude terrorism from non-terrorism policies.

Cyber. Within our insurance portfolio we have limited exposure to cyber as a specific peril. Typically, we require market standard cyber exclusion clauses to be applied. We seek wherever possible to exclude losses resulting from cyber related events. Notwithstanding this, we do have a degree of potential exposure to losses arising following cyber-attacks (physical damage) where cover has been explicitly written back into policies (such as for Upstream Energy) and some exposure to ’silent cyber’ risks, meaning risks and potential losses associated with policies where cyber risk is neither specifically included nor excluded in the policies (such as D&O and financial institutions). In 2023, we actively participated in three cyber-related reinsurance treaties. These risks are written on a net basis and within a specifically defined risk appetite and capital tolerance. All three risks have either Event Limits or Loss Ratio Caps that enables us to quantify our worst-case downside risk.

Military conflicts. In 2022, Russian military forces launched a military action in Ukraine. The sustained conflict and disruption in the region have continued to date and may extend beyond Ukraine and Russia. In 2023, a military conflict erupted between Israel and Hamas and the conflict has expanded to Houthis launching a number of attacks on marine vessels traversing the Red Sea and disrupting shipping routes. These conflicts have resulted in significant volatility in commodity prices and the supply of energy and other resources, supply chain interruptions, political and social instability, trade disputes or trade barriers, any of which could adversely affect the number and amount of insurance claims related to losses incurred in connection with any of the above disruptions.

Systemic events. In addition to natural and man-made disasters, systemic financial risks have the potential to cause significant economic disruptions in a variety of geographies and sectors, due to the interconnectedness of the global economy, which could give rise to significant claims. The 2008 global financial crisis was one such event. In this context, such economic disruptions could adversely impact certain lines of business to which we are exposed including (but not necessarily limited to) our professional lines and financial institutions lines of business.

In general, while we hold capital to cover catastrophes and use geographic and line of business diversification and reinsurance to manage our exposure to risks, these measures may not be sufficient were we to face significant claims in excess of expected losses. Claims from catastrophic events could reduce our earnings and cause substantial volatility in our results of operations for any given period. A catastrophic event or multiple catastrophic events could also adversely affect our financial condition and our capital position. To meet our obligations with respect to claims from catastrophic events, we may be forced to liquidate some of our investments rapidly, which may involve selling a portion of our investments into a depressed market, which would decrease our returns from investments and could strain our capital position. Our ability to write new insurance policies could also be impacted as a result of corresponding reductions in our capital. Any of these occurrences could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and our financial condition.

Additionally, to help assess our exposure to losses from catastrophes we use computer-based models which simulate multiple scenarios using a variety of assumptions. These models are developed in part by third-party vendors and their effectiveness relies on the numerous inputs and assumptions contained within them, including, but not limited to, scientific research, historical data, exposure data provided by insureds and reinsureds, data on the terms and conditions of insurance policies and the professional judgment of our employees and other industry specialists. While the models have evolved considerably over time, they may not necessarily accurately measure the statistical distribution of potential future losses due to the inherent limitations of the inputs and assumptions on which they rely.

These limitations are evidenced by significant variation in the results obtained from different external vendor natural catastrophe models, material changes in model results over time due to refinement of the underlying data elements and assumptions and the uncertain predictive capability and performance of models over longer time intervals.

Due to the foregoing, it is possible that a catastrophic event or multiple catastrophic events could produce significant losses and have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Changing climate conditions may increase the frequency and severity of catastrophic events and thereby adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Over the past several years, changing weather patterns and climatic conditions, such as global warming, appear to have contributed to the unpredictability, frequency and severity of natural disasters and created additional uncertainty as to future trends and exposures. Although the loss experience of catastrophe insurers and reinsurers has historically been characterized as low frequency, climate change increases the frequency and severity of extreme weather events, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, windstorms, floods and other natural disasters. Many sectors to which we provide insurance and reinsurance coverage might be affected by climate change. The increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events could make it more difficult for us to predict and model catastrophic events, reducing our ability to accurately price our exposure to such events and mitigate our risks.

The effects of global warming and climate change cannot be predicted and may aggravate potential loss scenarios, risk modelling and financial performance. Increasing global average temperatures may continue in the future and could impact our business in the long-term. Claims for catastrophic events, or an unusual frequency of smaller losses in a particular period, could expose us to large losses, cause substantial volatility in our results of operations and could have a material adverse effect on our ability to write new business. Furthermore, climate change could lead to severe weather events spreading to parts of the world that have not previously experienced extreme weather conditions. Any of these occurrences may decrease the accuracy of our underwriting models and may result in us mispricing risk when writing our policies.

If climate change results in an increase in the frequency and severity of weather-related catastrophes, we may experience additional catastrophe-related losses or disruptions, which may be material. Additionally, we cannot predict how legal, regulatory and/or social responses to concerns around global climate change may impact our business. Although we attempt to manage our exposure to such events through the use of underwriting controls, risk models, and the purchase of third-party reinsurance, catastrophic events are inherently unpredictable and the actual nature of such events when they occur could be more frequent or severe than contemplated in our pricing and risk management expectations. As a result, the occurrence of one or more catastrophic events could have an adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our investment portfolio exposures may be materially adversely affected by global climate change regulation and other factors.

World leaders met at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in December 2015 in Paris and agreed to limit global greenhouse gas emissions in the atmosphere to a level which would not increase the average global temperature by more than 2° Celsius, with an aspiration of limiting such increase to 1.5° Celsius (the “Paris Agreement”). In order for governments to achieve their existing and future international commitments to limit the concentration of greenhouse gases under the Paris Agreement, there is widespread consensus in the scientific community that a significant percentage of existing proven fossil fuel reserves must not be consumed. In addition, divestment campaigns, which call on asset owners to divest from direct ownership of commingled funds that include fossil fuel equities and bonds, likewise signal a change in society’s attitude towards the social and environmental externalities of doing business.

In addition, the 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) was held in Dubai and sought to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement. The COP28 agreement, although not legally binding, includes pledges to move away from fossil fuels in power systems and triple new investments in renewable energy.

As a result of the above, energy companies and other companies engaged in the production or storage of fossil fuels may experience unexpected or premature devaluations or write-offs of their fossil fuel reserves. A material change in the asset value of fossil fuels or the securities of energy companies and companies in these other sectors may therefore materially adversely affect our investment portfolio and our results of operations and financial condition.

The effects of emerging claim and coverage issues, such as (but not limited to) bad faith claims or disputed policy terms, on our business are uncertain.

As industry practices and economic, legal, judicial, social, political, technological and environmental conditions change, unexpected and unintended issues related to claims and coverage may emerge, including new or expanded theories of liability. Claim and coverage issues can arise when the application of insurance policy language to potentially covered claims is unclear or disputed by the parties. When such issues emerge they may adversely affect our business by extending coverage beyond our underwriting intent or increasing the number or size of claims. In some instances, these coverage changes may not become apparent until after we have issued insurance contracts that are affected by such changes. As a result, the full extent of our liability under insurance policies may not be known for many years after the policies are issued. Emerging claim and coverage issues could therefore have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition. In particular, our exposure to casualty insurance lines increases our potential exposure to this risk due to the uncertainties of expanded theories of liability and the “long-tail” nature of these lines of business.

These issues may adversely affect our business by either extending coverage beyond our underwriting intent or by increasing the frequency and/or severity of claims. In some instances, these changes may not become apparent until sometime after we have issued the insurance or reinsurance contracts that are affected by the changes. In addition, our actual losses may vary materially from our current estimate of the loss based on a number of factors. Examples of emerging claims and coverage issues include, but are not limited to:

These or other changes could impose new financial obligations on us by extending coverage beyond our underwriting intent or otherwise require us to make unplanned modifications to the products and services that we provide, or cause the delay or cancellation of products and services that we provide.

The monetary impact of certain claims may be difficult to predict or ascertain upon inception and potential losses from such claims can be significant. For example, the full extent of our liability and exposure from claims of bad faith is not ascertainable until the claim has been presented and investigated. As such, a significant award in monetary terms on the basis of bad faith could adversely affect our financial condition or operating results.

With respect to our casualty and specialty reinsurance operations, these legal and social changes and their impact may not become apparent until some time after their occurrence. For example, we could be deemed liable for losses arising out of a matter which we had not anticipated or had attempted to contractually exclude.

Potential efforts by us to exclude such exposures could, if successful, reduce the market’s acceptance of our related products. The full effects of these and other unforeseen emerging claim and coverage issues are extremely hard to predict. As a result, the full extent of our liability under our coverages may not be known for many years after a contract is issued.

In addition, the potential passage of new legislation designed to expand the right to sue, to remove limitations on recovery, to extend the statutes of limitations or otherwise to repeal or weaken tort reforms could have an adverse impact on our business. The effects of unforeseen developments or substantial government intervention could adversely impact our ability to achieve our goals. The effects of these and other unforeseen emerging claim and coverage issues are difficult to predict and could harm our business and materially and adversely affect our results of operations.

Risks Relating to our Business and Operations

A deterioration in macroeconomic, political and other conditions, particularly in select parts of Europe, Central and South America, the Middle East and Africa, could adversely impact our financial performance.

We are an international business and are affected by economic, political and other macro conditions and industry specific conditions in certain markets in which we operate, including the UK, continental Europe, Central and South America, the Middle East and Africa.

Our international operations and investments expose us to increased political, operational and economic risks. Deterioration or volatility in foreign and international financial markets or general economic and political conditions could adversely affect our operating results, financial condition and liquidity. Economic imbalances and financial market turmoil could result in a widening of credit spreads and volatility in share prices. The publication of certain financial and economic data could indicate that global financial markets are deteriorating. These circumstances could lead to a decline in asset values and potentially reduce the demand for insurance due to limited economic growth prospects. Concerns about the economic conditions, capital markets, political and economic stability and solvency of certain countries have contributed to global market volatility. Political changes in the jurisdictions where we operate and elsewhere, some of which may be disruptive, can also interfere with the business of our customers and our activities in a particular location.

Economic conditions in the Middle East region affect us given that approximately 9% and 10% of our GWP generated in 2023 and 2022, respectively, originated from risks in this region. In addition, a significant portion of our investment assets are located in the MENA region. Since the start of the 2008 financial crisis, there has been a dampening or reversal of the high rates of growth that had been experienced by many countries within the broader Middle East region and in particular the Gulf Co-operation Council countries, comprising Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (the “GCC”). Since the first half of 2011 there has been significant political and social unrest in the Middle East region, including violent protests and armed conflict in a number of countries, such as Syria and Yemen, and most recently armed conflict between Israel and Hamas and the Houthi disruption of Red Sea international shipping routes. The situation has caused significant disruption to the economies of affected countries, which in some instances has led to an increase in premiums, but has overall had a destabilizing effect on insurance premiums. The bulk of our underwriting operations are based in London, with back and middle-office underwriting operations centralized in Jordan. Jordan has proven politically and socially stable to date, notwithstanding the recent events in the wider Middle East region. While a change in the political or social situation in Jordan could prove disruptive to our operations, we have the capacity to service our operations in Jordan from our London and Dubai offices should the situation change.

A deterioration in macroeconomic conditions globally may affect the decisions of current and prospective policyholders as to the level of insurance or reinsurance coverage which they purchase in any given year, which in turn may, where such parties decide to reduce or otherwise limit their expenditure on such coverage, affect the amount of business underwritten by us. Also, the nature of insurance liabilities is one of a promise to pay claims at a point in the future, meaning that a change in macroeconomic conditions leading to increased inflation may result in an increase in the value at which claims are paid. Our international operations also may be subject to a number of additional risks, particularly in emerging economies, including restrictions such as price controls, capital controls, currency exchange limits, ownership limits and other restrictive or anti-competitive governmental actions or requirements. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our financial performance, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Estimating insurance reserves is inherently uncertain and, if our loss reserves are insufficient, it will have a negative impact on our results.

To recognize liabilities for outstanding claims, both known or unknown, insurers establish reserves, which is a balance sheet account entry representing estimates of future amounts needed to pay claims and related expenses with respect to insured events which have occurred. Estimates and assumptions relating to net reserves for unpaid loss and loss adjustment expenses are based on complex and subjective judgments, often including the interplay of specific uncertainties with related accounting and actuarial measurements. Such estimates are susceptible to change. For example:

When a claim is reported, a member of the claims team will establish a “case reserve”. The case reserve will represent an estimate of the expected settlement amount and will be based on information about the specific claim at that time. The estimate represents an informed judgment based on general industry reserving practices, the experience and knowledge of the claims handler and practices of the claims team. If insufficient information is available, the claims handler may be unable to establish an estimate and will seek further information that will allow an informed estimate to be established. Claims reserves are also established to provide for:

The timing of our results depends in large part on the extent to which the development and settlement of claims and reinsurance recoveries are consistent with the assumptions used to establish reserves. If expectations for and/or the actual cost of settlement increase or the timing of reporting and/or settlement changes than we face the risk that the reserves in our financial statements may be inadequate and need to be increased. In this event an increase in reserves would cause a reduction in our profitability and could result in operating losses and a reduction of capital.

Reserves are not an exact calculation of liability, but rather are estimates of the expected cost of settling claims. This process relies on the assumption that past experience, adjusted for the effects of current developments and anticipated trends, is an appropriate basis for projecting future claims development. The estimates are based on actuarial and statistical projections of facts and circumstances known at the time of the review, estimates of trends in claim frequency, severity and other variable factors, including new bases of liability and general economic conditions. These variables can be affected by many factors, including internal and external events, such as changes in claims handling procedures, economic inflation, foreign currency movements, legal trends, legislative decisions and changes and the recognition of new sources of claims.

Potentially, claims may emerge, particularly claims arising from changes in the legal and regulatory environment, the type or magnitude of which we are unable to predict.

Reserves for inward reinsurance may be subject to greater uncertainty than for insurance primarily because, as a reinsurer, we rely on (i) the original underwriting decisions made by ceding companies and (ii) information and data provided by the ceding companies. As a result, we are subject to the risk that our ceding companies may not have adequately evaluated the risks reinsured by us and the premiums ceded may not adequately compensate us for the risks we assume. In addition, reinsurance reserves may be less reliable than insurance reserves because of the greater scope of losses underlying reinsurance claims, limitations in the information provided and the generally longer lapse of time from the occurrence of the event to the reporting of the loss to the reinsurer and its settlement.

The estimation of adequate reserves is more difficult and thus more uncertain for claims arising from “long-tail” policies, under which claims may not be paid until substantially beyond the end of the policy term. The estimation of such liabilities is subject to many complex variables, including the current legal environment, specific settlements that may be used as precedents to settle future claims, assumptions regarding trends with respect to claim frequency and severity, issues of coverage and the ability to locate defendants. Additional uncertainty also arises from the relative lack of development history, which limits the scope of experience on which estimates are based. This is partially mitigated by the use of and monitoring against market benchmarks.

While every effort is made to ensure we are reserved appropriately, changes in trends and other factors underlying our reserve estimates could result in our reserves being inadequate. Because setting reserves is inherently uncertain we cannot provide assurance that our current reserves will prove adequate considering subsequent events. If our loss reserves are determined to be inadequate, we will be required to increase our reserves at the time with a corresponding reduction in our net income for that period. Such adjustments could have a material adverse effect on our results and our financial condition.

There is a degree of uncertainty and a high-risk environment for investment and business activities in certain countries in which we operate.

Some of the countries in which we operate or may operate in the future are in various stages of developing institutions and legal and regulatory systems that are not yet as firmly established as they are in Western Europe and the U.S. Some of these countries are also in the process of transitioning to a market economy and, as a result, are experiencing changes in their economies and their government policies (including, without limitation, policies relating to foreign ownership, repatriation of profits, property and contractual rights and planning and permit-granting regimes) that may affect our investments in these countries and may expose us to the impact of political or economic upheaval, and we could be subject to unforeseen administrative or fiscal burdens.

The procedural safeguards of the legal and regulatory regimes in these countries are still developing and, therefore, existing laws and regulations may be applied inconsistently. Often, fundamental contract, property and corporate laws and regulatory regimes have only recently become effective, which may result in ambiguities, inconsistencies and anomalies in their interpretation and enforcement. In addition, legislation may often contemplate implementing regulations that have not yet been promulgated, leaving substantial gaps in the regulatory infrastructure. All of these weaknesses could affect our ability to enforce contractual rights or to defend ourselves against claims by others. Moreover, in certain circumstances, it may not be possible to obtain the legal remedies provided under current laws and regulations in a timely manner, or at all. The independence of the judicial systems and their immunity from economic, political and nationalistic influences in many of the countries in which we operate or may operate in the future remain largely untested. Instability and uncertainties relating to the legal and regulatory environment in these countries or other countries in which we may operate in the future could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We are subject to various laws, regulations and rules relating to sanctions, the violation of which could adversely affect our operations.

We recognize the US, the EU, the UK and the UN sanctions authorities (including, but not limited to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (“OFAC”) and UK’s HM Treasury) as our primary sanction authorities, insofar as the sanctions relate to any business being considered by us. Over the past 5 years, we received de minimis revenues relating to risks in Sudan, Cuba and Iran. Our business in these countries has been compliant with the applicable sanction programs. While we have complied fully with all applicable sanctions laws and regulations and have policies and procedures in place designed to ensure that we do not insure any activity that breaches applicable international sanctions, there remains the risk of an inadvertent breach which may result in lengthy and costly investigations followed by the imposition of fines or other penalties, any of which might have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Our business has been affected by the imposition of sanctions in regions that previously were important markets for us. To the extent that sanctions are imposed on any of our key markets, our business will be negatively impacted.

On February 24, 2022 the Russian Federation launched a full-scale military invasion into Ukraine. This has led to significant economic and humanitarian consequences for both countries and, among other things, has had a significant impact on the availability of energy and on global energy and commodities prices. As a result of the invasion, the US, UK and EU imposed wide-ranging sanctions on Russia and individuals and entities based outside of Russia that are connected to sanctions evasion, including those related to arms trafficking and illicit finance. Although we seek to ensure that all business with Russian exposure is compliant with the relevant sanction regime and our compliance team has managed the Russian exposure of our business and conducted the required asset freeze and/or termination of some of our business as per the applicable sanctions regime, the long-term impact of the invasion and sanctions continues to be unknown as the situation develops and our exposure levels may adversely affect our business. We continue to monitor the situation alongside potential exposure to IGI’s balance sheet and the imposition of further sanctions.

We are subject to various anti-corruption and anti-money laundering laws, regulations and rules, the violation of which could adversely affect our operations.

Our activities are subject to applicable money laundering regulations and anti-corruption laws in the jurisdictions where we operate, including Bermuda, the United States, the UK and the EU, among others. For example, we are subject to the Bribery Act 2016 of Bermuda, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, and the UK Bribery Act 2010, which, among other matters, generally prohibit corrupt payments or unreasonable gifts to foreign governments or officials. We do business, and may continue to do business in the future, in countries and regions where governmental corruption has been known to exist, and where we may face, directly or indirectly, corrupt demands by officials, or the risk of unauthorized payments or offers of payments by one of our employees, consultants, sponsors or agents. Although we have in place systems and controls designed to comply with applicable laws and regulations (including continuing education and training programs), there is a risk that those systems and controls will not always be effective to achieve full compliance, as those laws and regulations are interpreted by the relevant authorities. Failure to accurately interpret or comply with or obtain appropriate authorizations and/or exemptions under such laws or regulations could subject us to investigations, criminal sanctions or civil remedies, including fines, injunctions, loss of an operating license, reputational consequences, and other sanctions, all of which could damage our business or reputation. Such damage could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We rely on brokers to source our business and our business may suffer should our relationship with brokers deteriorate.

We market our insurance and reinsurance worldwide through insurance and reinsurance brokers. Brokers are independent of the insurers they deal with. Our top 5 international brokers produced 61% of the gross written premiums of our underwriting operations for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 63% for the year ended December 31, 2023. Loss of all or a substantial portion of the business provided by one or more of these brokers could have a material adverse effect on our business. Due to the concentration of our brokers, our brokers may have increasing power to dictate the terms and conditions of our arrangements with them, which could have a negative impact on our business.

Maintaining good relationships with the brokers from whom we source the policies we underwrite is integral to our positive financial performance. Events could occur which may damage the relationship between us and a particular broker or broker group, which may result in that broker or broker group being unwilling to do business with us. The failure, inability or unwillingness of brokers to do business with us could have a material adverse effect on our financial performance.

Some of our competitors have higher financial strength ratings, offer a larger variety of products, set lower prices for insurance coverage, offer higher commissions and/or have had longer term relationships with the brokers we use than we do. This may adversely impact our ability to attract and retain brokers to sell our insurance products or brokers may increasingly promote products offered by other companies. The failure or inability of brokers to market our insurance products successfully, or the loss of all or a substantial portion of the business provided by these brokers, could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We could be materially adversely affected to the extent that managing general agents, general agents and other producers exceed their underwriting authority or if our agents, our insureds or other third parties commit fraud or otherwise breach obligations owed to us.

For certain business conducted by us, following our underwriting, financial, claims and information technology due diligence reviews, we authorize managing general agents, retail and wholesale brokers and other producers to write business on our behalf within underwriting authority prescribed by us. We rely on the underwriting controls of these agents to write business within the underwriting authorities provided by us. Although we have contractual protections in place in all instances and we monitor such business on an ongoing basis, our monitoring efforts may not be adequate or our agents may exceed their underwriting authority, commit fraud, or otherwise breach obligations owed to us. To the extent that our agents, our insureds or other third parties exceed their underwriting authority, commit fraud or otherwise breach obligations owed to us in the future, our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

We have a strong delegated authority risk management process established by the IGI UK board of directors and directly managed via quarterly meetings of its delegated authority committee which is attended by certain of our executive directors. In particular, we carry out detailed due diligence on all new agents with regular reviews upon renewal, put in place strong contracts, conduct regular audits and monitor monthly reports from agents. All agents are required to carry errors and omissions insurance which would respond in the event that these agents breach their delegated authority. However, there can be no assurance that the safeguards we implemented will be sufficient to fully protect us from losses resulting from violations of our policies and procedures.

We may be exposed to a series of claims for large losses in relation to uncorrelated events that occur at, or around, the same time, which in the aggregate may result in a material adverse effect on our operations.

We may be exposed to a series of claims for large losses in relation to uncorrelated and otherwise unrelated events which occur at, or around, the same time. Some of the more significant examples of large, uncorrelated events are terrorist attacks, fires, explosions or spills at a refinery, the collapse of a major office building, a series of simultaneous cyber-attacks, the collision of two ships, an explosion in a port and the loss of an airplane.

These risks are inherently unpredictable. It is difficult to predict the frequency of events of this nature and to estimate the amount of loss that any given occurrence will generate. Some of these large losses may also have the potential for exposure across multiple lines of business. While no such claims may be material to us, in the aggregate they could require us to recognize significant losses in a single reporting period, which could have a material adverse effect on our capital position, results of operations and financial condition in that particular reporting period. It is also possible that such losses could exceed the reinstatement capacity of our reinsurance coverage, which would have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

The availability of reinsurance, retrocessional coverage, and capital market transactions to limit our exposure to risks may be limited which could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

As is common practice within the insurance industry, we transfer a portion of the risks insured under our policies to other companies through the purchase of reinsurance. This reinsurance is maintained to protect the insurance and reinsurance subsidiaries against the severity of losses on individual claims, an unusual series of which can produce an aggregate extraordinary loss. Although reinsurance does not discharge our subsidiaries from their primary obligation to pay for losses insured under the policies they issue, reinsurance does make the assuming reinsurer liable to the insurance subsidiaries for the reinsured portion of the risk.

Our reinsurance program uses various methods, such as proportional, non-proportional and facultative reinsurance, to mitigate risks across our underwriting portfolio, in return for which we cede to third-party reinsurers a certain percentage of our GWP in any given year. That percentage was 33% for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 28% for the year ended December 31, 2023. The program is finite and absolute in the protection offered, meaning that events outside of its scope would not be covered, and does not offer unlimited protection against highly extreme but improbable events.

Our reinsurance programs are usually purchased annually, with different programs expiring throughout the year. The amount of coverage purchased is determined by our risk appetite and underlying exposure base together with the price, quality and availability of such coverage. Coverage purchased for one year will not necessarily conform to purchases for another year, which may result in variation as to the extent of the coverage year-on-year, even though some policies we issue are multi-year policies. In addition, reinsurance cessation and commencement terms, timing and cost could leave us with an exposure where intended reinsurance protection is either omitted or only partially effective. One or more of our reinsurers could become insolvent, which could cause a portion of our reinsurance protection to become ineffective. In addition, reinsurers may not always honor their commitments or we may have disagreements with reinsurers with respect to the extent of their obligations, which could result in our having greater exposure than anticipated. A failure by reinsurers to cover their portion of our liabilities, and/or disputes with reinsurers over the extent or applicability of their obligations to us, could depending on the amounts involved have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and business.

The availability and cost of reinsurance protection is subject to market conditions, which are beyond our control. Economic conditions could have a material impact on our ability to manage our risk aggregations through reinsurance or capital markets transactions. As a result of such market conditions and other factors, we may not be able to successfully mitigate risk through reinsurance and retrocessional arrangements. There is no guarantee that our desired amounts of reinsurance or retrocessional reinsurance will be available in the marketplace in the future. In addition to capacity risk, the remaining capacity may not be on terms we deem appropriate or acceptable or with companies with whom we want to do business.

If the reinsurance industry were to suffer future substantial losses, the effect could be to limit the availability of appropriate or acceptable reinsurance coverage for us, which in the event of losses in our risk portfolio could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We may be faced with a liquidity shortfall following a large loss or a series of large losses due to the settlement of claims prior to the receipt of monies due under outwards reinsurance arrangements.

As with all insurance companies, we use our liquidity to fund our insurance and reinsurance obligations, which may include large and unpredictable claims (including catastrophe claims). While we seek to manage carefully our exposure to catastrophe risk and while we have a liquidity policy which seeks to ensure sufficient liquidity to withstand claim scenarios at the extreme end of the business plan projections by reference to actual losses in relation to catastrophe events may differ materially from the losses that we estimate, given the significant uncertainties with respect to the estimates and the unpredictable nature of catastrophes. In such scenarios, we may be faced with a shortfall where we are required to settle claims arising under insurance contracts or where we are required to increase the amount of resources required to be held. In such scenarios, we may be required to (a) liquidate investments (including some of our less liquid investments), which may be constrained as a consequence of macroeconomic conditions beyond our control or (b) delay or vary the implementation of our strategic plans so as to maintain appropriate liquidity. Any of the foregoing may affect the amount of business that we can write, as well as our revenue and profitability.

If our risk management and loss mitigation methods fail to adequately manage our exposure to losses, the losses we incur could be materially higher than our expectations and our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

We historically have sought and will continue to seek to manage our exposure to insurance and reinsurance losses through a number of loss limitation methods, including internal risk management procedures, writing a number of our inwards reinsurance contracts on an excess of loss basis, enforcement and oversight of our underwriting processes, outwards reinsurance protection, adhering to maximum limitations on policies whether written on a proportional, first loss, Excess of Loss (XOL) or Possible Maximum Loss (PML) Maximum Foreseeable Loss (MFL) basis, written in defined geographical zones, limiting program size for each client, establishing per risk and per occurrence limitations for each event, employing coverage restrictions and following prudent underwriting guidelines for each program written.

We also seek to limit our loss exposure through geographic diversification. Geographic zone limitations involve significant underwriting judgments, including the determination of the area of the zones and the inclusion of a particular policy within a particular zone’s limits. In addition, various provisions contained in our insurance policies and reinsurance contracts, such as limitations or exclusions from coverage or choice of forum clauses negotiated to limit our risks, may not be enforceable in the manner we intend, as it is possible that a court or regulatory authority could nullify or void an exclusion or limitation, or legislation could be enacted modifying or barring the use of these exclusions and limitations. We cannot be sure that these loss limitation methods will effectively prevent a material loss exposure which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

Underwriting is a matter of judgment, involving assumptions about matters that are inherently unpredictable and beyond our control, and for which historical experience and probability analysis may not provide sufficient guidance. We have made significant investments through vendor models to develop analytic and modeling capabilities to facilitate our underwriting, risk management, capital modeling and allocation, and risk assessments relating to the risks we assume. These models and other tools help us to manage our risks, understand our capital utilization and risk aggregation, inform management and other stakeholders of capital requirements and seek to improve the risk/return profile or optimize the efficiency of the amount of capital we apply to cover the risks in the individual contracts we sell and in our portfolio as a whole. However, given the inherent uncertainty of modeling techniques and the application of such techniques, the possibility of human or systems error, the challenges inherent in consistent application of complex methodologies in a fluid business environment and other factors, our models, tools and databases may not accurately address the risks we currently cover or the emergence of new matters which might be deemed to impact certain of our coverages.

Many of our methods of managing risk and exposures are based upon observed historical market behavior and statistic-based historical models. As a result, these methods may not predict future exposures, which could be significantly greater than historical measures indicate. These uncertainties can include, but are not limited to, the following:

Accordingly, our models may understate the exposures we are assuming. Conversely, our models may prove too conservative and contribute to factors which may impede our ability to grow in respect of new markets or perils or in connection with our current portfolio of coverages or the loss environment otherwise may prove more benign than our capital loading for catastrophes or other modeled losses. In such case of excess capital, we may make a judgment about redeploying the capital in lines of businesses or pursuing other capital management activities, such as dividends or share repurchases, which judgment may also depend on modeling techniques and results. If capital models prove inadequate, our result of operations and financial condition may be materially adversely impacted.

Other risk management methods depend on the evaluation of information regarding markets, policyholders or other matters that are publicly available or otherwise accessible to us. This information may not always be accurate, complete, up-to-date or properly evaluated. For example, much of the information that we enter into our risk modelling software is based on third-party data that we do not control, and estimates and assumptions that are dependent on many variables, such as assumptions about loss adjustment expenses, insurance-to-value and post-event loss amplification (the temporary local inflation of costs for building materials and labor resulting from increased demand for rebuilding services in the aftermath of a catastrophe).

Accordingly, if the estimates and assumptions that we enter into our risk models are incorrect, or if such models prove to be an inaccurate forecasting tool, the losses we might incur from an actual catastrophe could be materially higher than our expectation of losses generated from modelled catastrophe scenarios, and our financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

We also seek to manage our loss exposure through loss limitation provisions in the policies we issue to customers, such as limitations on the amount of losses that can be claimed under a policy, limitations or exclusions from coverage and provisions relating to choice of forum. These contractual provisions may not be enforceable in the manner that we expect or disputes relating to coverage may not be resolved in our favor. If the loss limitation provisions in our policies are not enforceable or disputes arise concerning the application of such provisions, the losses we might incur from a catastrophic event could be materially higher than our expectations and our financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected.

In relation to catastrophe risk, we monitor and control the accumulation of risk for a large number of realistic disaster scenario events. There are specific scenarios for natural, man-made and economic disasters, and for different business lines. The assumptions made in such scenarios may not be an accurate guide to actual losses that ultimately are incurred in respect of a particular catastrophe.

No assurances can be made that these loss limitation methods will be effective and mitigate our loss exposure. One or more catastrophic events, other loss events, or severe economic events could result in claims that substantially exceed our expectations, or the protections set forth in our policies could be voided, which, in either case, could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations, possibly to the extent of reducing or eliminating shareholders’ equity.

A significant amount of our assets are invested in fixed maturity securities and are subject to market fluctuations.

Our investment portfolio includes a substantial amount of fixed maturity securities. As of December 31, 2023, our investment in fixed maturity securities was approximately $767.6 million, or 68% of our total investment and cash portfolio, including cash and cash equivalents. As of that date, our portfolio of fixed maturity securities consisted of corporate securities (98.4%) and government securities (1.6%).

The fair value of these assets and the investment income from these assets fluctuate depending on general economic and market conditions. The fair value of fixed maturity securities generally decreases as interest rates rise. If significant further inflation or further increases in interest rates were to occur, the fair value of our fixed maturity securities would be negatively impacted. Conversely, if interest rates decline, investment income earned from future investments in fixed maturity securities will be lower. Some fixed maturity securities, such as mortgage-backed and other asset-backed securities, also carry prepayment risk as a result of interest rate fluctuations. Additionally, in a low interest rate environment, we may not be able to successfully reinvest the proceeds from maturing securities at yields commensurate with our target performance goals.

The value of investments in fixed maturity securities is subject to impairment as a result of deterioration in the credit worthiness of the issuer, default by the issuer (including states and municipalities) in the performance of its obligations in respect of the securities and/or increases in market interest rates. To a large degree, the credit risk we face is a function of the economy; accordingly, we face a greater risk in an economic downturn or recession. During periods of market disruption, it may be difficult to value certain of our securities, particularly if trading becomes less frequent and/or market data becomes less observable. There may be certain asset classes that were acquired in active markets with significant observable data that become illiquid due to the current financial environment. In such cases, more securities may require additional subjectivity and management judgment.

Although we attempt to manage these risks through the use of investment guidelines and other oversight mechanisms and by diversifying our portfolio and emphasizing preservation of principal, our efforts may not be successful. Impairments, defaults and/or rate increases could reduce our net investment income and net realized investment gains or result in investment losses. Investment returns are currently, and will likely continue to remain, under pressure due to continued inflation, actions by the Federal Reserve, economic uncertainty, more generally, and the shape of the yield curve. As a result, our exposure to the risks described above could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, liquidity and financial condition.

Losses on our investments may reduce our overall capital and profitability.

Our invested assets include a substantial amount of interest rate and credit sensitive instruments such as corporate debt securities. Fluctuations in interest rates may affect our future returns on such investments, as well as the market values of, and corresponding levels of capital gains or losses on, such investments. Interest rates are highly sensitive to many factors, including governmental monetary policies, domestic and international economic and political conditions and other factors beyond our control. A decline in interest rates improves the market value of existing instruments but reduces returns available on new investments, thereby negatively impacting our future investment returns. Conversely, rising interest rates reduce the market value of existing investments but should positively impact our future investment returns. During periods of declining market interest rates, we could be forced to reinvest the cash we receive as interest or return of principal on our investments in lower-yielding instruments. Issuers of fixed income securities could also decide to redeem such securities early in order to borrow at lower market rates, which would increase the percentage of our investment portfolio that we would have to reinvest in lower-yielding investments of comparable credit quality or in lower credit quality investments offering similar yields. Given current high interest rate levels, in the future we are likely to be subject to the effects of potentially lower rates. Although we attempt to manage the risks of investing in a changing interest rate environment, we might not be able to mitigate interest rate sensitivity completely, and a significant or prolonged increase or decrease in interest rates could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition.

We are exposed to counterparty risk in relation to our investments, including holdings of debt instruments to which we are a party. In particular, our business could suffer significant losses due to defaults on corporate bonds and ratings downgrades.

Furthermore, as a result of holding debt securities, we are exposed to changes in credit spreads. Widening credit spreads could result in a reduction in the value of fixed income securities that we hold but increase investment income related to purchases of new fixed income securities, whereas tightening of credit spreads will generally increase the value of fixed income securities at higher yields that we hold but decrease investment income generated through purchases of any new fixed income securities.

We also hold equity securities. Equity investments are subject to volatility in prices based on market movements, which can impact the gains that can be achieved. We periodically adjust the accounting book values of our investment portfolio (“mark-to-market”) which could result in increased volatility and uncertainty surrounding reported profits and net asset values at any point in time.

We also invest to a limited extent in real estate in Jordan and Lebanon. Real estate is subject to price volatility as a result of interest rate movements and general market conditions, which can impact the value of the real estate portfolio and the rent chargeable to tenants.

Moreover, a major loss, series of losses or reduction in premium income could result in a sustained cash outflow requiring early realization, which may involve selling a portion of our investments into a depressed market, which could decrease our returns from investments and strain our capital position.

Furthermore, challenging market conditions are likely to make our assets less liquid, particularly affecting those assets which are by their nature already inherently less liquid. If, in such conditions, we require significant amounts of cash on short notice in excess of normal cash requirements (for example, to meet higher-than-anticipated claims) or are required to post or return collateral in connection with certain of our reinsurance contracts, credit agreements or invested portfolio, we may have difficulty selling any of our less liquid investments in a timely manner, or may be forced to sell them for less than we otherwise would have been able to realize if sold in other circumstances.

Market volatility, changes in interest rates, changes in credit spreads and defaults, a lack of pricing transparency, market illiquidity, declines in equity prices, and foreign currency movements, alone or in combination, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition through realized losses, impairments or changes in unrealized positions. Although we attempt to protect our investment portfolio against the foregoing risks, we cannot ensure that such measures will be effective. In addition, a decrease in the value of our investments may result in a reduction in overall capital, which may have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and our financial condition.

Our results of operations, liabilities and investment portfolio may be materially affected by conditions affecting the level of interest rates in the global capital markets and major economies, such as central bank policies on interest rates and the rate of inflation.

As a global insurance and reinsurance company, we are affected by the monetary policies of the Bank of England, the European Central Bank, the Board of Governors of the U.S. Federal System and other central banks around the world. Since the financial crisis of 2007 and 2008, these central banks have taken a number of actions to spur economic activity, such as keeping target interest rates low and supporting the prices of financial assets through “quantitative easing”. Unconventional monetary policy from the major central banks, and reversal of such policies, and moderate global economic growth remain key uncertainties for markets and our business.

Our exposure to interest rate risk relates primarily to the market price and yield variability of outstanding fixed income instruments that are associated with changes in prevailing interest rates. Our investment portfolio contains interest rate-sensitive instruments, such as fixed income securities which have been, and will likely continue to be, affected by variations in the level of interest rates, whether due to changes in central bank monetary policies, domestic and international fiscal policies as well as more general economic and political conditions, resulting levels of inflation and other factors beyond our control.

Interest rates are highly sensitive to the foregoing factors. For example, inflation could lead to higher interest rates and falling fixed income prices, causing the current unrealized loss position in our fixed income portfolio to increase. As a result of the higher interest rate environment, we have captured the opportunity of elevated yield curves across the major currencies, and heavily invested in high-grade bonds generating higher investment yield during the year 2023. However, these assets are riskier in nature, with potentially greater volatility based upon changes in economic factors.

Steps that may be taken by central banks to raise interest rates in the future in order to combat inflation could, in turn, lead to an increase in our loss costs. Changes in the level of inflation also could result in an increased level of uncertainty in our estimation of loss reserves for our specialty long-tail segment lines of business. As a result of the above factors, our business, financial condition, liquidity or operating results could be adversely affected.

The determination of the amount of expected credit losses (ECL) taken on our investments involves the estimation of uncertainties which, if they turn out to be incorrect, could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We perform an ECL assessment for our investments not held at fair value through profit or loss. ECL for an investment contract is based on the difference between the contractual cash flows due in accordance with the investment contract and all the cash flows that we expect to receive with respect to such contract, discounted at an approximation of the original effective interest rate. The assessment of ECL is sensitive to changes in underlying circumstances, the applicable interest rate environment and the existing economic conditions outlook. Assessing the accuracy of the level of ECL recorded in our financial statements is inherently uncertain given the subjective nature of the process which may result in additional ECL being taken in the future with respect to events that may impact specific investments.

We cannot guarantee that our reinsurers will pay in a timely fashion, if at all, and, as a result, we could experience losses.

We purchase reinsurance by transferring part of the risk that we have assumed, known as ceding, to a reinsurance company in exchange for part of the premium we receive in connection with the risk. Although reinsurance makes the reinsurer contractually liable to us to the extent the risk is transferred or ceded to the reinsurer, it does not relieve us, the reinsured, of our liability to our policyholders. Our reinsurers may not pay the recoverable reinsurance that they owe to us or they may not pay such recoverables on a timely basis. Accordingly, we bear credit risk with respect to our reinsurers, and if our reinsurers fail to pay us, our financial results would be adversely affected. Underwriting results and investment returns of some of our reinsurers may affect their future ability to pay claims. In addition, from time to time we engage in disputes with reinsurers regarding their contractual obligations, which may involve arbitration or litigation and could involve amounts that are material. As of December 31, 2023, the amount owed to us from our reinsurers for paid claims was approximately $10.8 million and the portion of our case reserves due from reinsurers was approximately $117.4 million. A failure by reinsurers to cover their portion of our liabilities, and/or disputes with reinsurers over the extent or applicability of their obligations to us, could depending on the amounts involved have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and business.

Our operating subsidiaries are rated and a decline in any of these ratings could adversely affect our standing among brokers and customers and cause our premiums and earnings to decrease.

Ratings have become an increasingly important factor in establishing the competitive position of insurance and reinsurance companies. Rating agencies represent independent opinions of the financial strength of insurers and reinsurers and their ability to meet policyholder obligations. We currently hold financial strength ratings assigned by third-party rating agencies which assess and rate the claims paying ability and financial strength of insurers and reinsurers. The ratings of our operating subsidiaries are subject to periodic review by, and may be placed on credit watch, revised downward or revoked at the sole discretion of A.M. Best Inc. or S&P Global Ratings. We currently hold a stable outlook rating of “A (Excellent)” from A.M. Best Inc. and a stable outlook rating of “A-” from S&P.

If the ratings of our operating subsidiaries are reduced from their current levels by A.M. Best Inc. or S&P Global Ratings, our competitive position in the insurance industry might suffer and it might be more difficult for us to market our products, expand our insurance and reinsurance portfolio and renew our existing insurance and reinsurance policies and agreements. A downgrade may also require us to establish trusts or post letters of credit for ceding company clients and could trigger provisions allowing some clients to terminate their insurance and reinsurance contracts with us. Some contracts also provide for the return of the premium for the unexpired periods to the ceding client in the event of a rating downgrade. It is increasingly common for our reinsurance contracts to contain such terms. A significant downgrade could result in a substantial loss of business as ceding companies and brokers that place such business move to other reinsurers with higher claims-paying and financial strength ratings and therefore could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

A.M. Best and S&P Global Ratings periodically review our ratings and may revise them downward or revoke them at their sole discretion based primarily on their analysis of our balance sheet strength (including capital adequacy and claims and claim adjustment expense reserve adequacy), operating performance and business profile. Factors that could affect such an analysis include but are not limited to:

These and other factors could result in a downgrade of our ratings. A downgrade of our ratings could cause our current and future brokers and agents, retail brokers and insureds to choose other, more highly-rated competitors. A downgrade of our ratings could also increase the cost or reduce the availability of reinsurance to us, increase collateral required for our assumed reinsurance business, or trigger termination of assumed and/or ceded reinsurance contracts. A downgrade could also adversely limit our access to the capital markets, which may increase the cost of debt.

In addition, in view of the earnings and capital pressures recently experienced by many financial institutions, including insurance companies, it is possible that rating organizations will heighten the level of scrutiny that they apply to such institutions, will increase the frequency and scope of their credit reviews, will request additional information from the companies that they rate and may increase the capital and other requirements employed in the rating organizations’ models for maintenance of certain ratings levels. It is possible that such reviews of the Company may result in adverse ratings consequences, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. A downgrade or withdrawal of any rating could severely limit or prevent us from writing new and renewal insurance or reinsurance contracts.

The risk associated with underwriting treaty reinsurance business could adversely affect us.

Like other reinsurers, our reinsurance group does not separately evaluate each of the individual risks assumed under reinsurance treaties. Therefore, we are largely dependent on the original underwriting decisions made by ceding companies. We are subject to the risk that the ceding companies may not have adequately evaluated the risks to be reinsured and that the premiums ceded may not adequately compensate us for the risks we assume.

Consistent with market practice, much of our treaty reinsurance business allows the ceding company to terminate the contract below a certain threshold. Whether a cedent would exercise any of these rights could depend on various factors, such as the reason for and extent of such downgrade, the prevailing market conditions and the pricing and availability of replacement reinsurance coverage. We cannot predict to what extent these contractual rights would be exercised, if at all, or what effect this would have on our financial condition or future operations, but the effect could be material.

A failure in or damage to our operational systems or infrastructure, or those of third parties, could disrupt our businesses and have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Our business is highly dependent on our ability to process, on a daily basis, a large number of transactions across numerous and diverse markets in many currencies. In particular, we rely on the ability of our employees, our internal systems and systems operated by third parties on behalf of the London insurance market, including technology centers, to process a high volume of transactions. As our client base and geographical reach expands, developing and maintaining our operational systems and infrastructure requires continuing investment. Our financial, accounting, data processing and other operating systems and facilities may fail to operate properly or become disabled as a result of events that are wholly or partially beyond our control, adversely affecting our ability to process these transactions or provide these services.

In addition, our operations rely on the secure processing, storage and transmission of confidential and other information in our computer systems and networks. We rely on these systems for critical elements of our business processes, including, for example, entry and retrieval of individual risk details, premium and claims processing, monitoring aggregate exposures and financial and regulatory reporting. Although we take industry standard protective measures and endeavor to modify them as circumstances warrant, our computer systems, software and networks may be vulnerable to unauthorized access, computer viruses or other malicious code and other events that could have a security impact.

We routinely transmit and receive personal, confidential and proprietary information by email and other electronic means. We have discussed and worked with clients, vendors, service providers, counterparties and other third parties to develop secure transmission capabilities, but we do not have, and may be unable to put in place, secure capabilities with all of our clients, counterparties and other third parties and we may not be able to ensure that these third parties have appropriate controls in place to protect the confidentiality of the information. An interception, misuse or mishandling of personal, confidential or proprietary information being sent to or received from a client, counterparty or other third party could result in legal liability and/or regulatory action (including, without limitation, under data protection and privacy laws and standards) and reputational harm.

If one or more of such events occur, this potentially could jeopardize our or our clients’ or counterparties’ confidential and other information processed and stored in, and transmitted through, computer systems and networks, or otherwise cause interruptions or malfunctions in our, our clients’, our counterparties’ or third parties’ operations, which could result in significant losses or reputational damage. We may be required to expend significant additional resources to modify our protective measures or to investigate and remediate vulnerabilities or other exposures, and we may be subject to litigation and financial losses that are either not insured against or not fully covered through any insurance maintained by us. Any expansion of existing or new laws and regulations regarding data protection could further increase our liability should protected data be mishandled or misused.

While we have developed and implemented disaster recovery systems which we believe are sufficient for our business needs, it is always possible that we could suffer data losses for numerous reasons and we could potentially be affected by acts of terrorism or nuclear, chemical, biological or radiological exposure. Such exposures may be uninsurable and, were they to occur on our premises or those of third parties with or through which we conduct our business, they could prevent us from carrying on that business, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

We have outsourced certain technology and business process functions to third parties and may continue to do so in the future. Our outsourcing of certain technology and business process functions to third parties may expose us to increased risk related to data security, service disruptions or the effectiveness of our control system, which could result in monetary and reputational damage or harm to our competitive position. These risks could grow as vendors increasingly offer cloud-based software services rather than software services which can be run within our data centers.

Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

We could be adversely affected by the loss of one or more key employees or by an inability to attract and retain qualified personnel, which could negatively affect our financial condition, results of operations, or ability to realize our strategic business plan.

Our success has depended and will continue to depend on the continued services and continuing contributions of our underwriters, management and other key personnel and our ability to continue to attract, motivate and retain the services of qualified personnel. While we have entered into employment contracts or letters of appointment with such key personnel, the retention of their services cannot be guaranteed. We may also encounter unforeseen difficulties associated with the transition of members of our senior management team to new or expanded roles necessary to execute our strategic and tactical plans from time to time.

The pool of talent from which we actively recruit is limited. Although, to date, we have not experienced difficulties in attracting and retaining key personnel, the inability to attract and retain qualified personnel could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. In addition, our underwriting staff is critical to our success in the production of business. While we do not consider any of our key executive officers or underwriters to be irreplaceable, the loss of the services of key executive officers or underwriters or the inability to hire and retain other highly qualified personnel in the future could delay or prevent us from fully implementing our business strategy which could affect our financial performance.

Special considerations apply to our Bermuda operations. Under Bermuda law, non-Bermudians, other than spouses of Bermudians and individuals holding permanent or working resident certificates, are not permitted to engage in any gainful occupation in Bermuda without a work permit issued by the Bermuda Government. A work permit is only granted or extended if the employer can show that, after a proper public advertisement, no Bermudian, spouse of a Bermudian or individual holding a permanent or working resident certificate, who meets the minimum standards reasonably required for the position, is available. The Bermuda Government places a six-year term limit on individuals with work permits, subject to specified exemptions for persons deemed to be key employees of businesses with a significant physical presence in Bermuda. No assurances can be given that any work permit will be issued or, if issued, renewed upon the expiration of the relevant term.

Offices in other jurisdictions, such as Dubai, may have residency and other mandatory requirements that affect the composition of our local boards of directors, executive teams and choice of third-party service providers. Due to the competition for available talent in such jurisdictions, we may not be able to attract and retain personnel as required by our business plans, which could disrupt operations and adversely affect our financial performance.

Our success will depend in part upon our continuing ability to recruit and retain employees of suitable skill and experience, and we may find that we are not able to recruit sufficient or qualified staff, or that the individuals that we would like to recruit will not be able to obtain the necessary work permits if required or that we will not be able to retain such staff. The loss of the services of one, or some of, the underwriters, management or other key personnel or the inability to recruit and retain staff of suitable quality could adversely affect our ability to continue to conduct our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

We enter into various contractual arrangements with third parties generally, including brokers, with respect to insurance, reinsurance and financing arrangements; any deterioration in the creditworthiness of, defaults by, commingling of funds by, or reputational issues related to, counterparties or other third parties with whom we transact business could adversely impact our financial condition and results of operations.

We are exposed to credit risk relating to policyholders, independent agents and brokers. For example, our policyholders, independent agents or brokers may not pay a part of or the full amount of premiums owed to us, and our brokers or other third-party claim administrators may not deliver amounts owed on claims under our insurance and reinsurance contracts for which we have provided funds. If the counterparties or other third parties with whom we transact business default or fail to meet their payment obligations, it could materially adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. If the counterparties or other third parties with whom we transact business experience reputational issues, they may in turn cause other counterparties, third parties or customers to question our reputation in respect of choosing to enter into contractual arrangements with such counterparties.

As credit risk is generally a function of the economy, we face a greater credit risk in an economic downturn. While we attempt to manage credit risks through underwriting guidelines, collateral requirements and other oversight mechanisms, our efforts may not be successful. For example, to reduce such credit risk, we may require certain third parties to post collateral for some or all of their obligations to us. In cases where we receive pledged securities and the applicable counterparty is unable to honor its obligations, we may be exposed to credit risk on the securities pledged and/or the risk that our access to that collateral may be stayed as a result of bankruptcy. In cases where we receive letters of credit from banks as collateral and one of our counterparties is unable to honor its obligations, we are exposed to the credit risk of the banks that issued the letters of credit. During 2023, no third parties were required to post collateral for our benefit.

Brokers present a credit risk to us. We will pay amounts owed on valid claims under our insurance and reinsurance contracts to brokers, and these brokers, in turn, will pay these amounts over to the clients making the claim under the policy underwritten by us. If a broker fails to make such a payment, it is possible that we will be liable to the client for the deficiency in a particular jurisdiction because of local laws or contractual obligations under the applicable Terms of Business Agreement in place and settlement terms and conditions as set out in the relevant contract. Likewise, in certain jurisdictions, when the insured or ceding insurer pays premiums for these policies to brokers for payment over to us, these premiums might be considered to have been paid and the insured or ceding insurer will no longer be liable to us for those amounts only where the broker was appointed as our agent under the applicable Terms of Business Agreement in place and underlined terms and conditions as set out in the relevant contract, whether or not we have actually received the premiums from the broker, while leaving us at risk in respect of the underlying policy. These risks are heightened during periods characterized by financial market instability and/or an economic downturn or recession. Consequently, we assume a degree of credit risk associated with our brokers. We have experienced some losses related to this credit risk in the past.

In addition, brokers generally are entitled to commingle payments made by, or owing to, us, with their other client monies. These commingled funds owing to us could then be claimed by other creditors or otherwise disposed of, which could prevent us from recovering the amount due. However, the majority of insurance policies have Premium Payment Warranties that enable us to cancel coverage in case of non-payment of premiums. Of the brokers with whom we transact business, as of December 31, 2023, 81.7% were located in the UK, 5.7% were located elsewhere in Europe, 11.6% were located in the MENA region, Africa or Asia, the majority of which were from subsidiaries of UK brokers, and 1.0% were located in North, South and Central America and Australasia.

Our operating results may be adversely affected by the failure of policyholders, brokers or other intermediaries to honor their payment obligations.

In accordance with industry practice, we generally pay amounts owed on claims under our insurance and reinsurance contracts to brokers and these brokers, in turn, pay these amounts to the clients that purchased insurance and reinsurance from us. In some jurisdictions where we write a significant amount of business, depending on whether the broker is our agent or the client’s agent, if a broker fails to make such a payment it is highly likely that we will be liable to the client for the deficiency because of local laws or contractual obligations. Likewise, when the client pays premiums for policies to brokers for payment to us, these premiums are generally considered to have been paid and, in most cases, the client will no longer be liable to us for those amounts whether or not we have actually received the premiums. Consequently, we assume a degree of credit risk associated with brokers with respect to most of our (re)insurance business.

In addition, bankruptcy, liquidity problems, distressed financial conditions or the general effects of economic recession may increase the risk that policyholders may not pay a part of, or the full amount of, premiums owed to us despite an obligation to do so. While a majority of our policies include a premium payment warranty, it is possible that some policies may not permit us to cancel our insurance even if we have not received payment. If non-payment becomes widespread, whether as a result of bankruptcy, lack of liquidity, adverse economic conditions, operational failure, delay due to litigation, bad faith and fraud or other events, it could have a material adverse impact on our business and operating results.

Our liquidity and counterparty risk exposures may be adversely affected by the impairment of financial institutions.

We routinely execute transactions with counterparties in the financial services industry, including brokers and dealers, commercial banks, investment banks and other institutions. We are exposed to the risk that these counterparties are unable to make payments or provide collateral to a third party when required, or that securities that we own are required to be sold at a loss in order to meet liquidity, collateral or other payment requirements. In addition, our investments in various fixed income securities issued by financial institutions expose us to credit risk in the event of default by these issuers. With respect to derivatives transactions that require exchange of collateral, due to mark to market movements, our risk may be exacerbated in the event of default by a counterparty. Any such losses could materially and adversely affect our business and operating results. In such an event, we may not receive the collateral due to us from the defaulted counterparty.

We are exposed to credit risk in certain areas of our business operations.

In addition to exposure to credit risk related to our investment portfolio, and reliance on brokers and other agents, we are subject to credit risk with respect to our reinsurance because the ceding of risk to reinsurers and retrocessionaires does not relieve us of our liability to the clients or companies we insure or reinsure. Our reinsurers may not pay the reinsurance recoverables that they owe to us or they may not pay such recoverables on a timely basis. The collectability of reinsurance is subject to the solvency of the reinsurers, interpretation and application of contract language and other factors. We are selective in regard to our reinsurers, placing reinsurance with those reinsurers with stronger financial strength ratings from A.M. Best or S&P Global Ratings, a sovereign rating or a combination thereof. Despite strong ratings, the financial condition of a reinsurer may change based on market conditions. In certain instances, we may also require assets in trust, letters of credit or other acceptable collateral to support balances due. However, there is no certainty that we can collect on these collateral agreements in the event of a reinsurer’s default.

Additionally, we write retrospectively rated policies (i.e., policies in which premiums are adjusted after the policy period based on the actual loss experience of the policyholder during the policy period). In this instance, we are exposed to credit risk to the extent the adjusted premium is greater than the original premium. Although we have not experienced any material credit losses to date, an increased inability of our policyholders to meet their obligations to us could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Although we have not experienced any material credit losses to date, an inability of our reinsurers or retrocessionaires to meet their obligations to us could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Our losses for a given event or occurrence may increase if our reinsurers or retrocessionaires dispute or fail to meet their obligations to us or the reinsurance protections purchased by us are exhausted or are otherwise unavailable for any reason. Our failure to establish adequate reinsurance arrangements or the failure of our existing reinsurance arrangements to protect us from overly concentrated risk exposure could adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations.

We may be forced to retain a higher proportion of risks than we would otherwise prefer, incur additional expense, or purchase reinsurance from companies with a higher credit risk or we may underwrite fewer or smaller contracts or seek alternatives such as, for example, risk transfer to capital markets. Any of these factors could negatively impact our financial performance.

We may not be able to raise capital in the long term on favorable terms or at all.

Each of our regulated underwriting entities is required to meet stipulated regulatory capital requirements. These include capital requirements imposed by the UK PRA, the MFSA and the BMA.

While the specific regulatory capital requirements vary between jurisdictions, under applicable regulatory regimes, required capital can be impacted by items such as line of business mix, product type, underwriting premium volume and reserves. The regulatory capital requirements that we may have to comply with are subject to change due to factors beyond our control. In general, regulatory capital requirements are expected to evolve over time as regulators continue to respond to demands for tighter controls over financial institutions, and the expectation is that these requirements will only become more stringent.

An inability to meet applicable regulatory capital requirements in the longer term due to factors beyond our control may lead to intervention by a relevant regulator which, in the interests of customer security, may require us to take steps to restore regulatory capital to acceptable levels, potentially by requiring us to raise additional funds through financings or to reduce or cease to write new business. To the extent we are required to raise additional external funding in the longer term, macroeconomic factors could impact our ability to access the capital markets and the bank funding market and the ability of counterparties to meet their obligations to us.

To the extent that cash flows generated by our operations are insufficient to fund future operating requirements, or that our capital position is adversely impacted by a decline in the fair value of our investment portfolio, losses from catastrophic events or otherwise, we may need to raise additional funds through financings or curtail our growth. Any further equity or debt financings, or capacity needed for letters of credit, if available at all, may be on terms that are unfavorable to us. Our ability to raise such capital successfully would depend upon the facts and circumstances at the time, including our financial position and operating results, market conditions, and applicable legal issues. If we are unable to obtain adequate capital when needed, our business, results of operations and financial condition would be adversely affected. We also may be required to liquidate fixed maturities or equity securities, which may result in realized investment losses.

Our access to capital may be impaired if regulatory authorities or rating agencies take negative actions against us. Our inability to obtain adequate capital when needed could have a negative impact on our ability to invest in, or take advantage of opportunities to expand our businesses, such as possible acquisitions or the creation of new ventures. Any of these effects could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Our future capital requirements depend on many factors, including our ability to write new business successfully, deploy capital into more profitable business lines, identify acquisition opportunities, manage investments and preserve capital in volatile markets, and establish premium rates and reserves at levels sufficient to cover losses. Our operations are subject to significant volatility in capital due to our exposure to potentially significant catastrophic events. We monitor our capital adequacy on an ongoing basis. To the extent our funds are insufficient to fund future operating requirements or cover claims losses, we may need to raise additional funds through corporate finance transactions or curtail our growth and reduce our liabilities. Any such financing, if available at all, may be on terms that are not favorable to us. Our ability to raise such capital successfully would depend upon the facts and circumstances at the time, including our financial position and operating results, market conditions and applicable regulatory filings and legal issues. If we cannot obtain adequate capital on favorable terms, or obtain it at all, our business, financial condition and operating results could be adversely affected.

We are involved in legal and other proceedings from time to time, and we may face damage to our reputation or legal liability as a result.

In the ordinary course of business, we are involved in lawsuits, arbitrations and other formal and informal dispute resolution procedures in a variety of jurisdictions, the outcomes of which will determine our rights and obligations under insurance, reinsurance and other contractual agreements or under tort laws or other legal obligations. Any lawsuit brought against us or legal proceeding that we may bring to enforce our rights could result in substantial costs, divert the time and attention of our management, result in counterclaims (whether meritorious or as a litigation tactic), result in substantial monetary judgments or settlement costs and harm our reputation, any of which could seriously harm our business.

From time to time, we may institute or be named as a defendant in legal proceedings, and we may be a claimant or respondent in arbitration proceedings. These proceedings have in the past involved, and may in the future involve, coverage or other disputes with ceding companies, disputes with parties to which we transfer risk under reinsurance arrangements, disputes with other counterparties or other matters. We are also involved, from time to time, in investigations and regulatory proceedings, certain of which could result in adverse judgments, settlements, fines and other outcomes. We could also be subject to litigation risks arising from potential employee misconduct, including non-compliance with internal policies and procedures. We cannot determine with any certainty what new theories of recovery may evolve or what their impact may be on our business. Multi-party or class action claims may present additional exposure to substantial economic, non-economic or punitive damage awards. The loss of even one of these claims, if it results in a significant damage award or a judicial ruling that was otherwise detrimental, could create a precedent in the industry that affects a great many future or unrelated claims and so could have a material adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition.

We are not currently subject to any pending litigation which individually or in the aggregate would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. However, in the future, substantial legal liability could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations, and could cause significant reputational harm.

Information technology systems that we use could fail or suffer a security breach, which could have a material adverse effect on us or result in the loss of sensitive information.

Our business is dependent upon the operational effectiveness and security of our enterprise systems and those maintained by third parties. Among other things, we rely on these systems to interact with producers, insureds, customers, clients, and other third parties, to perform actuarial and other modeling functions, to underwrite business, to prepare policies and process premiums, to process claims and make claims payments, to prepare internal and external financial statements and information, as well as to engage in a wide variety of other business activities. A significant failure of our enterprise systems, or those of third parties upon which we may rely, whether because of a natural disaster, network outage or a cyber-attack on our systems, could compromise our personal, confidential and proprietary information as well as that of our customers and business partners, impede or interrupt our business operations and result in other negative consequences, including remediation costs, loss of revenue, additional regulatory scrutiny and fines, litigation and monetary and reputational damages.

In addition, our computer systems and network infrastructure present security risks and could be susceptible to hacking, computer viruses, data breaches, or ransomware attacks. Any such failure could affect our operations and could materially adversely affect our results of operations by requiring us to expend significant resources to correct the defect, as well as by exposing us to litigation or losses not covered by insurance. Although we have business continuity plans and other safeguards in place, our business operations may be materially adversely affected by significant and widespread disruption to our physical infrastructure or operating systems and those of third-party service providers that support our business.

Our operations rely on the secure processing, transmission and storage of confidential information in our computer systems and networks and the cloud. Our technologies, systems and networks may become the target of cyber-attacks or information security breaches that could result in the unauthorized release, gathering, monitoring, misuse, loss or destruction of our or our insureds’ or reinsureds’ confidential, proprietary and other information, or otherwise disrupt our or our insureds’, reinsureds’ or other third-parties’ business operations, which in turn may result in legal claims, regulatory scrutiny and liability, reputational damage, the incurrence of costs to eliminate or mitigate further exposure and the loss of customers. Although to date we have not experienced any material losses relating to cyber-attacks or other information security breaches, there can be no assurance that we will not suffer such losses in the future. While we make efforts to maintain the security and integrity of our information technology networks and related systems, and have implemented various measures and an incident response protocol to manage the risk of, or respond to, a security breach or disruption, there can be no assurance that our security efforts and measures will be effective or that attempted security breaches or disruptions would not be successful or damaging. Our risk and exposure to these matters remains heightened because of, among other things, the evolving nature of these threats and the outsourcing of some of our business operations. As a result, cyber-security and the continued development and enhancement of our controls, processes and practices designed to protect our systems, computers, software, data and networks from attack, damage or unauthorized access remain a priority. As cyber-threats continue to evolve, we may be required to expend significant additional resources to continue to modify or enhance our protective measures or to investigate and remediate any information security vulnerabilities.

Although we have implemented controls and have taken protective actions to reduce the risk of an enterprise failure and protect against a security breach, such measures may be insufficient to prevent, or mitigate the effects of, a global natural disaster, cyber-attack, or other disruption on our systems that could result in liability to us, cause our data to be corrupted or stolen and cause us to commit resources, management time and money to prevent or correct those failures.

Moreover, employee or agent negligence, error or misconduct may be difficult to detect and prevent, and could materially adversely affect our operations.

It is not always possible for us to prevent or detect employee or agent negligence, error and misconduct and the precautions taken to prevent or detect this activity may not be effective in all cases. Resultant losses could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Our business depends on our ability to process a large number of increasingly complex transactions. If any of our operational, accounting, or other data processing systems fail or have other significant shortcomings, we could be materially adversely affected. Moreover, third parties with whom we do business, including vendors that provide services or security solutions for our operations, could also be sources of operational and information security risk to us, including from breakdowns, failures, or capacity constraints of their own systems or employees. Any of these occurrences could diminish our ability to operate our business, or cause financial loss, potential liability to insureds, inability to secure insurance, reputational damage or regulatory intervention, which could materially adversely affect us.

Disruptions or failures in the physical infrastructure or operating systems that support our business and customers, or cyber-attacks or security breaches of the networks, systems or devices that our customers use to access our products and services, could result in customer attrition, regulatory fines, penalties or intervention, reputational damage, reimbursement or other compensation costs, and/or additional compliance costs, any of which could materially adversely affect our financial condition or results of operations.

Our operating results may be adversely affected by an unexpected accumulation of attritional losses.

In addition to our exposures to catastrophes and other large losses as discussed above, our operating results may be adversely affected by unexpectedly large accumulations of attritional losses. Attritional losses are defined as losses from claims excluding catastrophes and large one-off claims. We seek to manage this risk by using appropriate underwriting processes to guide the pricing, terms and acceptance of risks. These processes, which may include pricing models, are intended to ensure that premiums received are sufficient to cover the expected levels of attritional losses and a contribution to the cost of catastrophes and large losses where necessary. However, it is possible that our underwriting approaches or our pricing models may not work as intended and that actual losses from a class of risks may be greater than expected. Our pricing models are also subject to the same limitations as the models used to assess our exposure to catastrophe losses noted above. Accordingly, these factors could adversely impact our business, financial condition and/or results of operations.

We are dependent on the use of third-party software and data, and any reduction in third-party product quality or any failure to comply with our licensing requirements could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

We rely on third-party software and data in connection with our underwriting, claims, investment, accounting and finance activity. We depend on the ability of third-party software and data providers to deliver and support reliable products, enhance their current products, develop new products on a timely and cost-effective basis, and respond to emerging industry standards and other technological changes. Third-party software and data we use may become obsolete or incompatible with versions of products that we will be using in the future, or may lead to temporary or permanent data loss when upgraded to newer versions.

We anticipate that we will continue to rely on such third-party software in the future. Although we believe that there are commercially reasonable alternatives to the third-party software we currently license, this may not always be the case, or it may be difficult or costly to replace such software. In addition, integration of new third-party software may require significant work and require substantial investment of our time and resources. Our use of additional or alternative third-party software would require us to enter into license agreements with third parties, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all. Many of the risks associated with the use of third-party software cannot be eliminated, and these risks could negatively affect our business.

We also monitor our use of third-party software and data to comply with applicable license requirements. Despite our efforts, such third parties may challenge our use of such software and data, resulting in loss of rights or costly legal actions. Our business could be materially adversely affected if we are not able, on a timely basis, to effectively replace the functionality provided by software or data that becomes unavailable or fails to operate effectively for any reason. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

If we are unable to keep pace with the technological advancements in the insurance industry, our ability to compete effectively could be impaired.

We are committed to developing and maintaining information technology systems that will allow our insurance subsidiaries to compete effectively. There can be no assurance that the development of current technology for future use will not result in our being competitively disadvantaged, especially with those carriers that have greater resources. If we are unable to keep pace with the advancements being made in technology, our ability to compete with other insurance companies who have advanced technological capabilities will be negatively affected. Further, if we are unable to effectively execute and update or replace our key legacy technology systems as they become obsolete or as emerging technology renders them competitively inefficient, our competitive position and cost structure could be adversely affected.

Compliance with laws and regulations governing the processing of personal data and information may impede our services or result in increased costs. The failure to comply with such data privacy laws and regulations could result in material fines or penalties imposed by data protection or financial services conduct regulators and/or awards of civil damages and any data breach may have a material adverse effect on our reputation, results of operations or financial condition, or have other adverse consequences.

Our business relies on the processing of data in many jurisdictions and the movement of data across national borders. The collection, storage, handling, disclosure, use, transfer and security of personal information that occurs in connection with our business is subject to federal, state and foreign data privacy laws. These legal requirements are not uniform and continue to evolve, and regulatory scrutiny in this area is increasing around the world. In many cases, these laws apply not only to third-party transactions, but also to transfers of information among us and our subsidiaries. Privacy and data protection laws may be interpreted and applied differently from country to country and may create inconsistent or conflicting requirements.

One leading data protection law is the General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”), which came into force throughout the EU in May 2018 and has extra-territorial effect. The GDPR applies not only to companies in the EU but also to companies anywhere in the world that collect personal data from individuals in the EU in connection with offering goods or services to such individuals or monitoring their behavior in the EU. It also imposes obligations on EU companies processing data of non-EU citizens. The GDPR imposes extensive requirements regarding the processing of personal data and confers rights on data subjects including the “right to be forgotten” and the right to “portability” of personal data. The GDPR imposes significant punishments for non-compliance which could result in a penalty of up to 4% of a company’s global annual revenue. Many other jurisdictions around the world also have enacted privacy and data protection laws, and these laws continue to evolve and expand.

Compliance with the enhanced obligations imposed by the GDPR and other privacy and data protection laws requires investment in appropriate technical or organizational measures to safeguard the rights and freedoms of data subjects, which may result in significant costs to our business and may require us from time to time to further amend certain of our business practices. Enforcement actions, investigations and the imposition of substantial fines and penalties by regulatory authorities as a result of data security incidents and privacy violations have increased dramatically in recent years. The enactment of more restrictive laws, rules, regulations, or future enforcement actions or investigations could impact us through increased costs or restrictions on our business, and noncompliance could result in regulatory penalties, significant legal liability, and reputational damage and cause us to lose business.

In addition, unauthorized disclosure or transfer of sensitive or confidential client or Company data, whether through systems failure, employee negligence, fraud or misappropriation, by us or other parties with whom we do business, could subject us to significant litigation, monetary damages, regulatory enforcement actions, fines and criminal prosecution in one or more jurisdictions. Such events could also result in negative publicity and damage to our reputation and cause us to lose business, which could therefore have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

We are exposed to fluctuations in exchange rates which may adversely affect our operating results.

We are exposed to currency risk mainly on insurance written premiums and incurred claims that are denominated in a currency other than our functional currency. The currencies in which these transactions are primarily denominated are Sterling (GBP), euro (EUR) and the Australian Dollar (AUD). As a significant portion of our transactions are denominated in U.S. Dollar, this reduces currency risk. Intra-group transactions are primarily denominated in U.S. Dollar.

Part of our monetary assets and liabilities are denominated in a currency other than our functional currency and are subject to risks associated with currency exchange fluctuation. We reduce some of this currency exposure by maintaining some of our bank balances in foreign currencies in which some of our insurance payables are denominated.

We are exposed to changes in exchange rates arising from the mismatch of cash flows due to currency exchange fluctuations.

We are also subject to currency translation risk, which arises from the translation into our functional currency for reporting purposes of income from operations conducted in other currencies, which can cause volatility in reported earnings from our business conducted overseas and translation gains and losses. In preparing our financial statements, we use period-end rates to translate all monetary assets and liabilities in foreign currencies in the balance sheet to our functional currency and presentational currency. The non-monetary assets and liabilities, namely unearned premium reserves, loss reserves and deferred acquisition costs, are measured at fair value and translated using the exchange rates as of the date of the measurement of fair value.

We write business on a worldwide basis, and our results of operations may be affected by fluctuations in the value of currencies other than the U.S. Dollar. The primary foreign currencies in which we operate are the euro, Sterling and the Australian Dollar. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates may reduce our revenues, increase our liabilities and costs and cause fluctuations in the valuation of our investment portfolio. We may therefore suffer losses solely as a result of exchange rate fluctuations. In order to mitigate our exposure to foreign currency fluctuations in our net insurance liabilities, we have invested and expect to continue to invest in securities denominated in currencies other than the U.S. Dollar. In addition, we may replicate investment positions in foreign currencies using derivative financial instruments. We cannot assure you that we will be able to manage these risks effectively or that they will not have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

If actual renewals of our existing policies and contracts do not meet expectations, our gross written premiums in future fiscal periods and our future operating results could be materially adversely affected.

A majority of our insurance policies and reinsurance contracts are for a one-year term. We make assumptions about the renewal rate and pricing of the prior year’s policies and contracts in our financial forecasting process. If actual renewals do not meet expectations, our gross written premiums in future fiscal periods and our future operating results and financial condition could be materially adversely affected.

Our efforts to expand in targeted geographical markets and lines of business may not be successful and may create enhanced risks.

A number of our planned business initiatives involve expanding in targeted geographical markets and lines of business. To develop new markets and business lines, we may need to make substantial capital and operating expenditures, which may adversely affect our results in the near term. In addition, the demand for our products in new markets and lines of business may not meet our expectations. To the extent we are able to expand in new markets and business lines, our risk exposures may change and the data and models we use to manage such exposures may not be as sophisticated as those we use in existing markets and business lines. This, in turn, could lead to losses in excess of expectations. Moreover, we are considering setting up new offices and increasing staff at existing offices as part of our growth strategy. Such growth, which may include hiring additional underwriters, could make it more difficult for us to monitor and enforce compliance with internal underwriting authorities, limits and controls. We cannot be certain that we will be successful or identify attractive targets in these new markets.

Risks Relating to Ownership of Our Securities

Our main holding is our ownership of IGI Dubai (and, indirectly, IGI Dubai’s subsidiaries) and such ownership may not be sufficient to pay dividends or make distributions or loans to enable us to pay any dividends on our common shares or satisfy other financial obligations.

We are a holding company and do not directly own any operating assets other than our ownership of interests in IGI Dubai. We depend on IGI Dubai for distributions, loans and other payments to generate the funds necessary to meet our financial obligations, including our expenses as a publicly traded company and to pay any dividends. The earnings from, or other available assets of, IGI Dubai may not be sufficient to make distributions or pay dividends, pay expenses or satisfy our other financial obligations.

Additionally, our primary operating subsidiary is IGI Bermuda, which is subject to Bermuda regulatory constraints that affect its ability to pay dividends on its common shares and make other distributions. Under the Insurance Act, and related regulations, IGI Bermuda, as a Class 3B insurer, is required to maintain certain minimum capital, liquidity and solvency levels and is prohibited from declaring or paying dividends that would result in noncompliance with this requirement. In addition, a Class 3B insurer is prohibited from declaring or paying any dividends, in any financial year which would exceed 25% of its total statutory capital and surplus, as shown on its previous financial year statutory balance sheet, unless at least seven days before payment of those dividends it files an affidavit with the BMA signed by at least two directors and by its principal representative in Bermuda, which states in the opinion of those signing, the declaration of those dividends will not cause the insurer to fail to meet its required solvency margin and minimum liquidity ratio. Further, with respect to the distribution of any contributed surplus, a Class 3B insurer must also submit an affidavit and obtain the BMA’s prior approval before reducing its total statutory capital as shown in its previous year statutory balance sheet by 15% or more.

We are subject to numerous rules and regulations of the SEC and Nasdaq by virtue of being a publicly reporting company in the U.S.

Since March 2020, IGI has been subject to numerous rules, regulations, corporate governance requirements and other reporting obligations in the U.S. by virtue of being a publicly reporting company listed on Nasdaq in the U.S. These include numerous rules, regulations and requirements adopted by the SEC pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended the (“Exchange Act”) and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as amended (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”) and rules and regulations adopted by Nasdaq. The significant regulatory oversight and reporting obligations imposed on public companies require substantial attention from our senior management and from time to time could divert attention away from the day-to-day management of our businesses, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Similarly, corporate governance obligations, including with respect to the development and implementation of appropriate corporate governance policies, and concurrent service on the board of directors and possibly multiple board committees, impose additional burdens on our non-executive directors.

As a result of these regulatory requirements, we have incurred higher costs associated with being a public company, including significant additional legal, compliance, accounting, reporting, insurance and other applicable costs following completion of the Business Combination. This includes hiring of more employees or engaging outside consultants to comply with these requirements.

The expenses incurred by public companies generally for reporting and corporate governance purposes have been increasing. We may need to hire more employees or engage outside consultants to comply with these requirements, which will increase our costs and expenses. Being a public company could make it more difficult or costly for us to obtain certain types of insurance, including director and officer liability insurance, and we may be forced to accept reduced policy limits and coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain the same or similar coverage. Being a public company could also make it more difficult and expensive for us to attract and retain qualified persons to serve on our board of directors, board committees or as executive officers. Furthermore, if we are unable to satisfy our obligations as a public company, we could be subject to delisting of our common shares, SEC enforcement actions, fines, sanctions and other regulatory action and potentially civil litigation brought by shareholders or the SEC.

Failure to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting (ICOFR) could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and stock price.

Each year our management is required to evaluate the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and of our disclosure controls and procedures. If we detect any material weaknesses and are unable to assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, we may fail to meet our future reporting obligations in a timely and reliable manner and our financial statements may contain material misstatements. Any such failure could also adversely cause our investors to have less confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, which could have a material adverse effect.

If we are unable to remediate our material weaknesses in a timely manner or we identify additional material weaknesses, we may be unable to provide required financial information in a timely and reliable manner and we may incorrectly report financial information. Likewise, if our financial statements are not filed on a timely basis, we could be subject to sanctions or investigations by the stock exchange on which our common shares are listed, the SEC or other regulatory authorities. Failure to timely file will cause us to be ineligible to utilize short form registration statements on Form F-3, which may impair our ability to obtain capital in a timely fashion to execute our business strategies. In either case, there could result a material adverse effect on our business.

Beginning on January 1, 2023, our financial statements have been reported in accordance with U.S. GAAP rather than IFRS. Significant differences exist between IFRS and U.S. GAAP. The conversion from IFRS into U.S. GAAP and the preparation of our consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP has resulted, and may continue to result in the future, in changes in the application of accounting principles by our staff and, consequently, will affect our financial reporting processes and results.

We may issue additional common shares or other equity securities without shareholder approval, which would dilute your ownership interests and may depress the market price of our common shares.

We may issue additional common shares or other equity securities of equal or senior rank in the future in connection with, among other things, future acquisitions, without shareholder approval, in a number of circumstances.

Our issuance of additional common shares or other equity securities of equal or senior rank would have the following effects:

You will have limited ability to bring an action against the Company or against its directors and officers, or to enforce a judgment against the Company or its director and officers, because the Company is incorporated in Bermuda, because the Company conducts its operations primarily outside of the United States and because a majority of the Company’s directors and officers reside outside the United States.

We are an exempted company incorporated in Bermuda and, as a result, the rights of the holders of our common shares are governed by Bermuda law and our memorandum of association and our Amended and Restated Bye-laws. We conduct our operations through subsidiaries which are located primarily outside the U.S. All of our current assets are located outside the U.S., and substantially all of our business is conducted outside the U.S. All of our officers and a majority of our directors reside outside the U.S. and a substantial portion of the assets of those persons are located outside of the U.S. As a result, it could be difficult or highly challenging for you to effect service of process on these individuals in the U.S. in the event that you believe that your rights have been infringed under applicable securities laws or otherwise or to enforce in the U.S. judgments obtained in U.S. courts against the Company or those persons based on civil liability provisions of the U.S. securities laws. In addition, it is doubtful whether the courts in Bermuda will enforce judgments obtained in other jurisdictions, including the U.S., against the Company or its directors or officers under the securities laws of those jurisdictions or entertain actions in Bermuda against the Company or its directors or officers under the securities laws of other jurisdictions. In addition, our Amended and Restated Bye-laws state that all disputes arising out of the Companies Act or out of or in connection with our Amended and Restated Bye-laws are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Bermuda.

Shareholders of Bermuda exempted companies such as the Company also have no general rights under Bermuda law to inspect corporate records and accounts other than rights to review the Company’s memorandum of association and bye-laws, financial statements, minutes of the shareholder meetings and the shareholder register. This could make it more difficult for you to obtain the information needed to establish any facts necessary for a shareholder motion or to solicit proxies from other shareholders in connection with a proxy contest.

As a result of all of the above, public shareholders might have more difficulty in protecting their interests in the face of actions taken by management, members of the board of directors or controlling shareholders than they would as public shareholders of a U.S. company.

Our Amended and Restated Bye-laws designate the Supreme Court of Bermuda, to the fullest extent permitted by law, as the exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our shareholders, which could limit our shareholders’ ability to bring certain actions or proceedings in a forum of their choosing.

Our Amended and Restated Bye-laws provide that the Supreme Court of Bermuda will be, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the exclusive forum for any dispute that arises concerning the Companies Act or out of or in connection with our Amended and Restated Bye-laws, including any question regarding the existence and scope of any bye-law and/or whether there has been any breach of the Companies Act or the bye-laws by an officer or director (whether or not such a claim is brought in the name of a shareholder or in the name of the Company).

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the forum selection bye-law discussed above will apply to derivative actions or proceedings brought on behalf of the Company and arising under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) or the Exchange Act, although we have been advised by the SEC that in the opinion of the SEC, our shareholders cannot waive compliance with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. There is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce such provision in connection with any such derivative action or proceeding arising under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, and it is possible that a court could find the forum selection bye-law to be inapplicable or unenforceable.

This forum selection bye-law could limit the ability of our shareholders to bring certain actions or proceedings involving disputes with us or our directors, officers and other employees in a forum of our shareholders’ choosing. If a court were to find the forum selection bye-law inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our business and financial condition.

U.S. persons who own our securities may have more difficulty in protecting their interests than U.S. persons who are shareholders of a U.S. corporation.

The Companies Act, which applies to the Company, differs in some material respects from laws generally applicable to U.S. corporations and their shareholders. These differences include, but are not limited to, the manner in which directors must disclose transactions in which they have an interest, the rights of shareholders to bring class action and derivative lawsuits, the scope of indemnification available to directors and officers and provisions relating to amalgamations, mergers and acquisitions and takeovers. Holders of our common shares may therefore have more difficulty protecting their interests than would shareholders of a corporation incorporated in a jurisdiction within the U.S. 

Generally, the duties of directors and officers of a Bermuda company are owed to the company and not, in the absence of special circumstances, to the shareholders as individuals. Shareholders of Bermuda companies typically do not have rights to take action against directors or officers of the company and may only do so in limited circumstances. Class actions and derivative actions are typically not available to shareholders under Bermuda law. The Bermuda courts, however, would ordinarily be expected to permit a shareholder to commence an action in the name of a company to remedy a wrong to the company where the act complained of is alleged to be beyond the corporate power of the company or illegal, or would result in the violation of the company’s memorandum of association or bye-laws. Our Amended and Restated Bye-laws state that all disputes arising out of the Companies Act or out of or in connection with the Amended and Restated Bye-laws are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Bermuda. This would make it more difficult to make certain claims against the Company or its directors or officers in jurisdictions outside of Bermuda, including the U.S. Additionally, our Amended and Restated Bye-laws contain a waiver by the Company’s shareholders of any claim or right of action, both individually and on the Company’s behalf, against any of the Company’s directors or officers. The waiver applies to any action taken by an officer or director, or the failure of an officer or director to take any action, in the performance of his or her duties, except with respect to any matter involving any fraud or dishonesty on the part of the officer or director. This waiver limits the right of shareholders to assert claims against the Company’s officers and directors unless the act or failure to act involves fraud or dishonesty.

Nasdaq may delist our securities, which could limit investors’ ability to engage in transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.

In order to list common shares and warrants, we were required to meet the Nasdaq initial listing requirements, including the requirement to have at least 300 round lot holders of our common shares, at least 50% of which must hold at least $2,500 of securities. Although we were able to meet those initial listing requirements, we may be unable to maintain the listing of our securities or comply with Nasdaq’s continued listing requirements in the future.

If Nasdaq subsequently delists our securities, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:

In addition, the permission of the BMA is required, under the provisions of the Exchange Control Act, for all issuances and transfers of shares (which includes our common shares) of Bermuda companies to or from a non-resident of Bermuda for exchange control purposes, other than in cases where the BMA has granted a general permission. The BMA, in its notice to the public dated June 1, 2005, granted a general permission for the issue and subsequent transfer of any securities of a Bermuda company from and/or to a non-resident of Bermuda for exchange control purposes for so long as any “Equity Securities” of the company (which would include our common shares) are listed on an “Appointed Stock Exchange” (which would include Nasdaq). In granting the general permission the BMA accepts no responsibility for our financial soundness or the correctness of any of the statements made or opinions expressed in this annual report. If our common shares are delisted from Nasdaq and not otherwise listed on an Appointed Stock Exchange, the issue and transfer of our equity securities (which would include our common shares) would be subject to the prior approval of the BMA, unless the BMA has granted a general permission in respect of any such issue or transfer.

Provisions in our memorandum of association and our Amended and Restated Bye-laws may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our securities and could entrench management.

Our Amended and Restated Bye-laws contain provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that our shareholders may consider to be in their best interests. Among other provisions, the staggered board of directors and Wasef Jabsheh’s director appointment rights may make it more difficult for our shareholders to remove incumbent management and accordingly discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities. For so long as Wasef Jabsheh, together with his family and/or affiliates, own at least 10% of our issued and outstanding common shares, Wasef Jabsheh will be entitled to appoint two directors to our board of directors. For so long as Wasef Jabsheh, together with his family and/or affiliates, own at least 5% of our issued and outstanding common shares, Wasef Jabsheh will be entitled to appoint one director to our board of directors. Other anti-takeover provisions in our Amended and Restated Bye-laws include the ability of our board of directors to issue preference shares with preferences and voting rights determined by the board of directors without shareholder approval, the indemnification of our officers and directors, the requirement that directors may only be removed from our board of directors for cause, the provision that shareholders may take specified action by written consent only if such action is by unanimous written consent, the requirement for the affirmative vote of 66% of the directors then in office and holders of at least 66% of the voting shares to amend specified provisions in our Amended and Restated Bye-laws and the requirement that a business combination with a 15% shareholder must be approved by an affirmative vote of 66% of the voting shares owned by non-interested shareholders and our board of directors. These provisions could also make it difficult for our shareholders to take certain actions and limit the price investors might be willing to pay for our securities.

As a “foreign private issuer” under the rules and regulations of the SEC, we are permitted to, and will, file less or different information with the SEC than a company incorporated in the United States or otherwise subject to these rules, and will follow certain home country corporate governance practices in lieu of certain Nasdaq requirements applicable to U.S. issuers.

The Company is considered a “foreign private issuer” under the Exchange Act and is therefore exempt from certain rules under the Exchange Act. For example, we are not required to file current reports on Form 8-K or quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and we are exempt from the U.S. proxy rules which impose certain disclosure and procedural requirements for U.S. proxy solicitations. We are not required to comply with Regulation FD, which imposes restrictions on the selective disclosure of material information to shareholders, and our officers, directors and principal shareholders are exempt from the reporting and short-swing profit recovery provisions of Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we are not required to file periodic reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or within the same time frames as U.S. companies with securities registered under the Exchange Act.

In addition, as a “foreign private issuer” whose common shares are listed on Nasdaq, we are permitted to follow certain home country corporate governance practices in lieu of certain Nasdaq requirements. Unlike the requirements of Nasdaq, the corporate governance practice and requirements in Bermuda do not require us to have a majority of independent directors; do not require us to establish a nomination committee or a nomination committee consisting of only independent directors; do not require us to have a compensation committee or a compensation committee consisting of only independent directors; and do not require us to hold regular executive sessions of the board of directors where only independent directors shall be present; and do not require shareholder approval for certain issuances of equity securities. Such Bermuda home country practices may afford less protection to holders of our common shares. We intend to voluntarily comply with certain Nasdaq corporate governance requirements, including having a majority of independent directors on the board of directors and establishing compensation and nomination committees of the board of directors, but we are not required to do so and may cease doing so at any time as long as we maintain our status as a “foreign private issuer.”

We could lose our status as a “foreign private issuer” under current SEC rules and regulations if more than 50% of our outstanding voting securities become directly or indirectly held of record by U.S. holders and one of the following is true: (i) the majority of our directors or executive officers are U.S. citizens or residents; (ii) more than 50% of our assets are located in the United States; or (iii) our business is administered principally in the United States.

If we lose our status as a foreign private issuer in the future, we will no longer be exempt from the rules described above and, among other things, will be required to file periodic reports and annual and quarterly financial statements as if we were a company incorporated in the United States. If this were to happen, we would likely incur substantial costs in fulfilling these additional regulatory requirements and members of our management would likely have to divert time and resources from other responsibilities to ensuring these additional regulatory requirements are fulfilled.

We are an “emerging growth company” and, as a result of the reduced disclosure and governance requirements applicable to emerging growth companies, our common shares may be less attractive to investors.

We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act and we intend to take advantage of some of the exemptions from reporting requirements that are available to emerging growth companies, including:

We cannot predict if investors will find our common shares less attractive because we rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our common shares less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for common shares and our share price may be more volatile. We may take advantage of these reporting exemptions until we are no longer an emerging growth company. We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the Closing (i.e. 2025), (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.235 billion or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our common shares that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30th, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period. After we no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, if we are not an accelerated filer (which requires a market capitalization of at least $75 million) or a large accelerated filer (which requires a market capitalization of at least $700 million) we would continue to be exempt from the auditor attestation requirement for the assessment of our internal control over financial reporting under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.

Former IGI Dubai shareholders will continue to exert significant influence over the Company as a result of their shareholdings, and their interests may not be aligned with those of the other shareholders.

As of December 31, 2023, former IGI Dubai shareholders beneficially owned more than 52% of our issued and outstanding common shares. The former IGI Dubai shareholders will continue to be able to exercise a significant degree of influence over the outcome of certain matters requiring an ordinary resolution of our shareholders including:

Furthermore, as of December 31, 2023, Wasef Jabsheh, who was IGI Dubai’s Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Vice Chairman and is currently our Executive Chairman, was our largest single shareholder and beneficially owned approximately 31.2% of our issued and outstanding common shares. Another former IGI Dubai shareholder, Oman International Development & Investment Company SAOG (“Ominvest”), beneficially owned approximately 20.8% of our issued and outstanding common shares as of December 31, 2023. Beneficial ownership is calculated in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC. Although there are corporate governance controls in place to mitigate conflicts of interest of members of senior management and major shareholders vis-à-vis the Company and minority shareholders, the former IGI Dubai shareholders may make decisions in respect of the business that do not serve the interests of the Company or the minority shareholders. Among other consequences, this concentration of ownership may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control and might therefore negatively affect the market price of our common shares.

The grant and future exercise of registration rights may adversely affect the market price of our common shares.

Pursuant to the registration rights agreement among Tiberius, the Sponsor and officers and directors of Tiberius, that was assumed by the Company in connection with the Business Combination, and the registration rights agreement among the Company, the Sponsor in its capacity as the Purchaser Representative, and certain former shareholders of IGI Dubai entered into at the closing of the Business Combination, we were required to file a resale registration statement shortly after Closing which registered for resale our common shares held by the Sponsor, the former officers and directors of Tiberius and former shareholders of IGI Dubai. In addition, the Sponsor, the former officers and directors of Tiberius and certain former shareholders of IGI Dubai can demand that the Company register their registrable securities under certain circumstances and also have piggyback registration rights for their securities in connection with certain registrations of securities that we undertake. We were also required to file and maintain an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering securities issued at Closing to investors pursuant to forward purchase contracts and securities issued at Closing to the PIPE Investors. The Company has an effective registration statement on Form F-3 filed with the SEC, which satisfies these requirements.

The registration of these securities pursuant to the registration statement or any future registration statement that the Company may file will permit the public resale of such securities, subject to any contractual lock-up restrictions. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common shares.

Sales of a substantial number of our securities in the public market could adversely affect the market price of our common shares.

As of December 31, 2023, Wasef Jabsheh and Ominvest beneficially owned approximately 31.2% and 20.8% of our common shares, respectively. All of these shares and all of our common shares received by the former IGI Dubai shareholders in the Business Combination have been registered for resale on a registration statement on Form F-3 and are available for resale in the public market. Sales of a significant number of our common shares in the public market, or the perception that such sales could occur, could reduce the market price of our common shares.

In addition, our affiliates and the former IGI Dubai shareholders who received restricted securities in the Business Combination may sell our common shares pursuant to Rule 144 under the Securities Act, which became available to the Company, as a former shell company, on March 23, 2021 (one year after our filing with the SEC of a Shell Company Report on Form 20-F containing Form 10 type information reflecting the Business Combination). In these cases, the resales must meet the criteria and conform to the requirements of Rule 144.

So long as our registration statement on Form F-3 remains effective or upon satisfaction of the requirements of Rule 144 under the Securities Act, or another applicable exemption from registration, the former IGI Dubai shareholders may sell large amounts of our common shares in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions, which could have the effect of increasing the volatility in our share price or putting significant downward pressure on the price of our securities.

The issue of additional shares in the Company in connection with future acquisitions or pursuant to share incentive plans or otherwise may dilute all other shareholdings.

We may seek to raise financing to fund future acquisitions and other growth opportunities. We may, for these and other purposes, such as in connection with share incentive plans, issue additional equity or convertible equity securities that could dilute your ownership in the Company and may include terms that give new investors rights that are superior to yours. Any issuances by us of equity securities may be at or below the prevailing market price of our common shares and in any event may have a dilutive impact on your ownership interest, which could cause the market price of our common shares to decline.

The decision by our board of directors whether or not to declare dividends, and if so the amount declared, will be based on all relevant considerations, including market conditions and the views and recommendations of regulatory authorities.

Our board of directors will evaluate whether or not to pay dividends and, if so, whether to pay dividends on a quarterly, semi-annual or annual basis. The board of directors’ evaluation will depend on numerous factors, including our results, market conditions, contractual obligations, legal restrictions and other factors deemed relevant by the board of directors. Among other things, in the current environment, the board of directors will take into consideration the views of regulators with respect to dividend policies of insurance companies as well as the board of directors’ and management’s evaluation of global market conditions. In addition, there are certain restrictions on the declaration and payment of dividends by the Company’s insurance subsidiaries which such restrictions are further detailed in this annual report.

On April 8, 2020, the UK PRA issued a statement that “when insurers are considering whether or not to proceed with any dividend payments, their boards should pay close attention to the need to protect policyholders and maintain safety and soundness. Decisions regarding capital or significant risk management issues need to be informed by a range of scenarios, including very severe ones.”

In addition, the European Insurance and Occupational Pension Authority (“EIOPA”) stated in its December 2020 Financial Stability Report that it “strongly recommends insurers to maintain extreme caution and prudence within their capital management.” EIOPA also stated that any dividend distributions “should not exceed thresholds of prudency and institutions should ensure that the resulting reduction in the quantity or quality of their own funds remains at levels appropriate to the current levels of risks.”

In May 2022, the Company’s board of directors determined that going forward the board intended to declare a $0.01 per share dividend on a quarterly basis. However, the board of directors has not yet made any final decisions with respect to its dividend policy. Any decision to declare dividends will be made based on an evaluation and review of the Company’s latest results and the Company’s analysis of its pending claims, market conditions, and advice from the Company’s regulators, among other factors. In addition, as a Bermuda exempted company, the Company must comply with the provisions of the Companies Act regulating the payment of dividends and making distributions from contributed surplus. The Company may not declare or pay a dividend, or make a distribution out of contributed surplus, if there are reasonable grounds for believing that: (a) the company is, or would after the payment be, unable to pay its liabilities as they become due; or (b) the realizable value of the company’s assets would thereby be less than its liabilities.

Taxation Risks

Intra-group arrangements found not to be on arm’s length terms may adversely affect our tax charge.

Trading relationships between our members in different jurisdictions will in general be subject to the transfer pricing regimes of the jurisdictions concerned. We intend to operate intra-group trading arrangements and relationships on demonstrable and documented arm’s length terms. If, however, such trading arrangements were found not to be on arm’s length terms, adjustments might be required to taxable profits in the relevant jurisdictions, which could lead to an increase in our overall tax charge; this could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.

Legislation to adopt these standards has been enacted or is currently under consideration in a number of jurisdictions, including country-by-country reporting. As a result, our earnings may be subject to income tax, or intercompany payments may be subject to withholding tax, in jurisdictions where they are not currently taxed or at higher rates of tax than currently taxed. The applicable tax authorities could also attempt to apply such taxes to past earnings and payments. Any such additional taxes could materially increase our effective tax rate. Also, the adoption of these standards may increase the complexity and costs associated with tax compliance and adversely affect our financial position and results of operations.

The Company could be or may become a passive foreign investment company, by reason of its subsidiaries failing to qualify as “qualified insurance corporations,” which also could result in other adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences.

Significant potential adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences, including certain reporting requirements, generally apply to any U.S. person who owns shares in a passive foreign investment company (a “PFIC”). Although not free from doubt, we do not believe it is likely the Company will be classified as a PFIC for the current taxable year. However, we cannot provide assurance that the Company will not be a PFIC for the current year or will not become a PFIC in any future taxable year.

A non-U.S. corporation will be considered a passive foreign investment company for any taxable year if either at least 75% of its gross income for such taxable year is passive income or at least 50% of the value of its assets (based on an average of the quarterly values of the assets during a taxable year) is attributable to assets that produce or are held for the production of passive income. For purposes of the PFIC rules, a corporation is treated as owning its proportionate share of the assets and earning its proportionate share of the income of any other corporation in which it owns, directly or indirectly, at least 25% (by value) of the stock (the “Look-Through Rule”).

Passive income generally includes dividends, interest, rents and royalties (other than rents or royalties derived from the active conduct of a trade or business), passive assets generally include assets held for the production of such income, and gains from the disposition of passive assets are generally all included in passive income. Special rules apply, however, in determining whether the income of an insurance company is passive income for purposes of these rules. Specifically, income derived in the active conduct of an insurance business by a “qualified insurance corporation” (a “QIC”) is excluded from the definition of passive income, even though that income would otherwise be considered passive (the “Insurance Company Exception”). The Insurance Company Exception provides a modified version of the Look-Through Rule which allows a QIC to treat certain income and assets of its non-QIC subsidiaries as active income or assets.

Although not free from doubt, the Company believes that between the Insurance Company Exception and the Look-Through Rule, a sufficient amount of its subsidiaries’ income and assets will be treated as active for the Company not to qualify as a PFIC. We cannot provide assurance that the IRS will not successfully challenge our interpretation of the scope of the Insurance Company Exception and our qualification for the exception.

In addition, changes in law can adversely affect the Company and its subsidiaries’ abilities to qualify for the Insurance Company Exception, modify the Look-Through Rule as applied for that exception, or otherwise cause the Company to qualify as a PFIC, possibly with retroactive effect. In particular, the U.S. Treasury has proposed regulations regarding the Insurance Company Exception. We cannot provide any assurance that such proposed regulations, when finalized, will not cause the Company to be treated as a PFIC. Further, the IRS may issue guidance that causes us to fail to qualify for the Insurance Company Exception on a prospective or retroactive basis.

Thus, although not free from doubt, the Company does not believe it is likely to be treated as a PFIC for the current year and does not believe it is likely to be so treated in foreseeable future years. However, the PFIC determination is factual in nature and is made annually. In particular, it will depend on the relative assets and insurance liabilities of the Company’s subsidiaries and on the manner in which they conduct their businesses and how they are regulated.

Accordingly, no assurance can be given that the Company will not be a PFIC for the current year or will not become a PFIC in any future taxable year. A U.S. investor that owns Company common shares during any year in which the Company is a PFIC will generally be subject to adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences. See “Taxation — Material United States Federal Income Tax Considerations — Passive Foreign Investment Company (“PFIC”) Rules.”

Changes in tax law might adversely affect the Company or our shareholders.

The tax treatment of an investment in our common shares may be the subject of future tax legislation. For example, the TCJA among other things, made significant changes to the PFIC rules applicable to the taxation of U.S. holders of the Company’s common shares (which are discussed in greater detail herein). Further changes in tax laws (including the PFIC rules) could adversely affect holders of our common shares.

No prediction can be made as to whether any particular proposed legislation will be enacted or, if enacted, what the specific provisions or the effective date of any such legislation would be, or whether it would have any effect on us. As such, we cannot assure you that future legislative, administrative or judicial developments will not result in an increase in the amount of U.S. tax payable by us or by an investor in our equity securities. If any such developments occur, it could have a material and adverse effect on an investor or our business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

General Risk Factors

A prolonged recession or a period of significant turmoil in international financial markets could adversely affect our business, liquidity and financial condition and our share price.

In recent years, global financial markets have been characterized by volatility and uncertainty. Unfavorable economic conditions could increase our funding costs, limit our access to the capital markets or make credit harder to obtain. Uncertainties in the financial and commodity markets may also affect our counterparties which could adversely affect their ability to meet their obligations to us.

Deterioration or volatility in the financial markets or general economic and political conditions could result in a prolonged economic downturn or trigger another recession and our operating results, financial position and liquidity could be materially and adversely affected. Further, unfavorable economic conditions could have a material adverse effect on certain of the lines of business we write, including, but not limited to, political risks and professional liability.

International financial market disruptions such as the ones experienced in the last global financial crisis in 2008, as well as the economic effects caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas conflict along with the possibility of a prolonged recession, may potentially affect various aspects of our business, including the demand for and claims made under our products, counterparty credit risk, the ability of our customers, counterparties and others to establish or maintain their relationships with us, our ability to access and efficiently use internal and external capital resources and our investment performance. Volatility in the U.S. and other securities markets may also adversely affect our share price. Depending on future market conditions, we could incur substantial realized and unrealized losses in future periods, which may have an adverse impact on our results of operations, financial condition, credit ratings, insurance subsidiaries’ capital levels and our ability to access capital markets.

Loss of business reputation or negative publicity could negatively impact our business and results of operations.

We are vulnerable to adverse market perception because we operate in an industry where integrity and customer trust and confidence are paramount. In addition, any negative publicity (whether accurate or inaccurate) associated with our business or operations could result in a loss of clients and/or business and could result in decreased demand. We also may be negatively impacted if competitors in one or more of our markets engage in practices resulting in increased public attention to our business. Accordingly, any mismanagement, fraud or failure to satisfy fiduciary responsibilities, or the negative publicity resulting from these or other activities or any allegation of such activities, could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations. These factors may further increase our costs of doing business and adversely affect our profitability by impeding our ability to market our products and services, requiring us to change our products or services or by increasing the regulatory burdens under which we operate.

Changes in employment laws, taxation and acceptable compensation practice may limit our ability to attract senior employees to our current operating platforms.

Our business and operations are, by their nature, international and we compete for senior employees on a global basis. Changes in local employment legislation, taxation and the approach of regulatory bodies to compensation practices within our operating jurisdictions may impact our ability to recruit or retain senior employees or the cost to us of doing so. Any failure to retain senior employees may adversely affect the strategic growth of our business and operating results.

We may be adversely impacted by inflation.

We monitor the risk that the principal markets in which we operate could experience increased inflationary conditions, which would, among other things, cause our costs to increase, and impact the performance of our investment portfolio. We believe the risk of inflation across our key markets is increasing. The impact of inflation on loss costs could be more pronounced for those lines of business that are considered to be long-tail in nature, as they require a relatively long period of time to finalize and settle claims. Changes in the level of inflation also result in an increased level of uncertainty in our estimation of loss reserves, particularly for specialty long-tail segment lines of business. The onset, duration and severity of an inflationary period cannot be estimated with precision.

Fluctuations in operating results, earnings and other factors, including incidents involving our customers and negative media coverage, may result in significant decreases in the price of our securities.

The stock markets experience volatility that is often unrelated to operating performance. These broad market fluctuations may adversely affect the trading price of our common shares and, as a result, there may be significant volatility in the market price of our common shares. If we are unable to operate profitably as investors expect, the market price of our common shares will likely decline when it becomes apparent that the market expectations may not be realized. In addition to operating results, many economic and seasonal factors outside of our control could have an adverse effect on the price of our common shares and increase fluctuations in our earnings. These factors include certain of the risks discussed herein, operating results of other companies in the same industry, changes in financial estimates or recommendations of securities analysts, speculation in the press or investment community, negative media coverage, the risk of potential legal proceedings or government investigations, the possible effects of war, terrorism and other hostilities (such as the war in Ukraine or the Israel-Hamas conflict), the effects of global pandemics such as the COVID-19 pandemic, adverse weather conditions, changes in general conditions in the economy or the financial markets or other developments affecting the insurance industry.

A market for our securities may not be sustained, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our securities.

Although our securities are listed on Nasdaq, there can be no assurances that an active trading market for our securities will be sustained. In addition, the price of our securities could fluctuate significantly for various reasons, many of which are outside our control, such as large purchases or sales of the common shares, legislative changes and general economic, political or regulatory conditions. The release of our financial results may also cause our share price to vary. If an active market for our securities does not develop, it may be difficult for you to sell our common shares you own or purchase without depressing the market price for the shares or to sell the shares at all. The existence of an active trading market for our securities will depend to a significant extent on our ability to continue to meet the Nasdaq listing requirements, which we may be unable to accomplish.

The price of our common shares may be volatile.

The price of our common shares may fluctuate due to a variety of factors, including:

These market and industry factors may materially reduce the market price of our common shares, regardless of our operating performance.

Reports published by analysts, including projections in those reports that differ from our actual results, could adversely affect the price and trading volume of our common shares.

Securities research analysts from time to time may publish reports about our business, including estimated projections of our future performance. These projections may vary widely and may not accurately predict the results we achieve. Our share price may decline if our actual results do not match the projections of these securities research analysts. Similarly, if one or more of the analysts who write reports on the Company downgrades our common shares or publishes inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our share price could decline. If one or more of these analysts ceases coverage of the Company or fails to publish reports on the Company regularly, our share price or trading volume could decline. While we expect research analyst coverage, if no analysts commence coverage of the Company, the trading price and volume for our common shares could be adversely affected.

Item 4. Information on the Company

A. History and Development of the Company

General

International General Insurance Holdings Ltd. was incorporated on October 28, 2019 under the laws of Bermuda as an exempted company solely for the purpose of effectuating the Business Combination, which was consummated on March 17, 2020, at which time we became a public company. Prior to the Business Combination, the Company owned no material assets and did not operate any business. We are the successor to the insurance business of International General Insurance Holdings, Ltd., a Dubai corporation founded in 2001.

Our registered office is located at Clarendon House, 2 Church Street, Hamilton HM11, Bermuda. Our principal executive office is located at 74 Abdel Hamid Sharaf Street, PO Box 941428, Amman 11194, Jordan, and our telephone number is +962 6 562 2009. Our agent for service of process in the United States is Puglisi & Associates, located at 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, DE 19711.

On October 10, 2019, IGI Dubai entered into the Business Combination Agreement (as amended, the “Business Combination Agreement”) with Tiberius Acquisition Corporation, a Delaware corporation (“Tiberius”), Lagniappe Ventures LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”), Wasef Jabsheh (solely in his capacity as the representative of the holders of IGI Dubai’s outstanding capital shares (the “Sellers”)) and, pursuant to a joinder thereto, the Company and Tiberius Merger Sub, Inc., a Delaware corporation and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company (“Merger Sub”).

Pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement, among other matters, on March 17, 2020 (1) Merger Sub merged with and into Tiberius, with Tiberius surviving the merger and each of the former security holders of Tiberius receiving securities of the Company (the “Merger”) and (2) all of the outstanding share capital of IGI Dubai was exchanged by the Sellers for a combination of common shares of the Company and aggregate cash consideration of $80.0 million (the “Share Exchange” and, together with the Merger and the other transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement, the “Business Combination”).

In accordance with the terms and conditions of the Business Combination Agreement, each of Tiberius and IGI Dubai became a subsidiary of the Company and the Company became a new public company owned by the prior stockholders of Tiberius and the prior shareholders of IGI Dubai. Upon consummation of the Business Combination pursuant to the terms of the Business Combination Agreement, our common shares and warrants to purchase common shares became listed on Nasdaq.

Other than in connection with the Business Combination, since our incorporation, there have been no material changes to our share capital, mergers, amalgamations or consolidations of the Company or any of our significant subsidiaries, no acquisitions or dispositions of material assets other than in the ordinary course of business, no material changes in the mode of conducting our business, no material changes in the types of products produced or services rendered and no name changes. There have been no bankruptcy, receivership or similar proceedings with respect to the Company or its significant subsidiaries. There have been no public takeover offers by third parties for our shares nor any public takeover offers by us for the shares of another company which have occurred during the last or current financial years.

The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC which is accessible at www.sec.gov.

Our principal website address is www.iginsure.com. The information contained on our website does not form a part of, and is not incorporated by reference into, this annual report.

B. Business Overview

Securityholders should read this section in conjunction with the more detailed information about the Company contained in this annual report, including our audited financial statements and the other information appearing in the section entitled “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects.”

General

We are a highly-rated global provider of specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions in over 200 countries and territories. We underwrite a diversified portfolio of specialty risks including energy, property, construction and engineering, ports and terminals, general aviation, political violence, professional lines, financial institutions, marine, contingency and treaty reinsurance. Our size affords us the ability to be nimble and seek out profitable niches that can generate attractive underwriting results. Our underwriting focus is supported by exceptional service to our clients and brokers. Founded in 2001, we and our predecessors have prudently grown our business with a focus on underwriting profitability.

Our primary objective is to underwrite specialty products that maximize return on equity subject to prudent risk constraints on the amount of capital we expose to any single event. We follow a careful and disciplined underwriting strategy with a focus on individually underwritten specialty risks through in-depth assessment of the underlying exposure. We use data analytics and modern technology to offer our clients flexible products and customized and granular pricing. We manage our risks through a variety of means, including contract terms, portfolio selection and underwriting and geographic diversification. Our underwriting strategy is supplemented by a comprehensive risk transfer program with reinsurance coverage from highly-rated reinsurers that we believe lowers our volatility of earnings and provides appropriate levels of protection in the event of a major loss event.

Our Executive Chairman, Wasef Jabsheh, with the assistance of our President and Chief Executive Officer, Walid Jabsheh, founded IGI in 2001. Wasef Jabsheh has over 50 years of industry experience. Under our management’s leadership we have developed a culture of prudent and disciplined underwriting focused on generating superior risk-adjusted returns. Our “underwriting first” approach has led to a strong track record of profitable growth in our core lines of business and has allowed for successful expansion into new lines of business and geographic locations without compromising underwriting profitability. We have expanded our gross written premium (“GWP”) from $467 million for the year ended December 31, 2020 (the year we became a public company) to $689 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, resulting in a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.8%, while delivering a consistently strong underwriting performance which is demonstrated by an average combined ratio of 82.7% over the same time period. Our growth and underwriting performance have allowed us to post consistently strong profitability levels with an unlevered return on average equity of 17.0% over the same time period with limited volatility through market cycles.

Our primary underwriting subsidiary, IGI Bermuda, is a class 3B insurance and reinsurance company regulated by the BMA. IGI Bermuda’s subsidiary, IGI UK, underwrites UK and international domiciled business and risks that are predominantly sourced through London brokers and is regulated by the PRA and the FCA. We underwrite insurance in the EU through our Malta subsidiary, IGI Europe, which is regulated by the MFSA. We maintain our centralized operational functions in Amman, Jordan, complemented by offices in London and Dubai and our Asia Pacific hub in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. We are licensed as a Tier 2 reinsurer in Labuan, Malaysia and have a representative office in Casablanca, Morocco. We also operate in Norway through our Norway-based managing general agency IGI Nordic AS.

Our presence in various geographic locations provides us with access to global business in profitable niche markets. Our technical underwriting capabilities, client service, nimble culture and ability to quickly adapt to changing market conditions further support our strong market position and reputation as an expert in niche businesses in our core geographies.

Our Competitive Strengths

We believe we distinguish ourselves from our competitors as follows:

Market respected and highly effective management team

Our management team has an average of over 30 years of relevant experience working in insurance, reinsurance and capital markets in various countries. We are led by our Founder and Executive Chairman, Wasef Jabsheh, who has over 50 years of industry experience and has been recognized with multiple industry accolades. Our key management team has worked together for several years, providing stability and consistency of approach to the market. In addition, our senior management team takes a hands-on approach to the business and is readily accessible to the underwriters and other employees, making for a flat structure where decisions are made quickly. The management team has embedded a high performance, service-oriented culture within the Company, which has helped differentiate us in the market and resulted in IGI receiving the “Reinsurance Company of the Year” award at the 2020 Middle East Insurance Industry Awards.

Local knowledge and access to attractive geographies

Our local knowledge and presence in attractive markets is a competitive advantage. We have exposure in over 200 countries and territories in both mature and high-growth markets with attractive growth rates. Through our global platform with presence in various geographic locations, the vast experience of our senior management and underwriters and our long-standing relationships with an extensive network of specialty brokers, we have differentiated access to profitable niche businesses in our core markets, including the UK, continental Europe, Latin America, the Middle East and Asia.

Long-standing relationships with key brokers

Our longstanding relationships with brokers, and ultimately clients, enable us to receive a regular and sizeable flow of our preferred business. We source almost all of our business through brokers, with our top five international brokers producing 63% of our premiums in the year ended December 31, 2023. We have held relationships with many of those brokers since inception. We believe that we have been able to develop strong broker relationships through the high quality of service that we provide and also through our enhanced reputation in the marketplace.

A pillar of our high quality client service is prompt and professional claims management. We use Xchanging Insurance Services’ electronic system for the majority of our premiums and claims, aligning our service levels with London market standards.

Geographically diverse, specialty and niche book of business

Since IGI’s inception, management’s objective has been to offer specialty and niche products requiring underwriting and technical skills balanced by geography and line of business. We actively manage our exposures by geographic zone to maintain a diverse portfolio of underlying risks. For the year ended December 31, 2023, we wrote 28.4% of our business in the United Kingdom, 13.0% in North America, 12.1% in Continental Europe, 7.0% in Latin America, 9.1% in the Middle East and 10.4% in Asia. The remaining business was underwritten in the Caribbean, Africa and Australasia. We currently underwrite business in three business segments through 13 lines of business spanning across attractive specialty and niche products. Of $688.7 million in gross written premiums for the year ended December 31, 2023, 32.9% was generated by our specialty long-tail segment, 58.2% by the specialty short-tail segment and 8.9% by the reinsurance segment.

Disciplined risk selection

Our underwriting approach combines decades of customized underwriting experience of our management and underwriting teams with sophisticated modelling tools that utilize actuarial data across all of our lines of business. Our analytical pricing framework is embedded in our business and is incorporated into our pricing metrics, underwriting and risk management. For the year ended December 31, 2023, 67.0% of our business was individually underwritten where our underwriters analyzed submissions and determined if the underlying risk of each contract met our overall risk and profitability requirements. In addition, 24.1% was sourced through Managing General Agents, that are required to strictly adhere to our narrowly defined underwriting criteria and return thresholds and only 8.9% was originated through reinsurance treaties. We believe that our analytically-driven underwriting approach has been the foundation of our ability to generate attractive risk-adjusted underwriting margins.

Prudent risk management framework

We reduce the volatility of our operating results and manage our exposure to catastrophe events through several risk mitigation strategies, including the purchase of reinsurance from highly-rated reinsurers. We believe that our reinsurance program provides appropriate levels of protection and visibility into our earnings. In addition, our reinsurance coverage is highly tailored according to the underlying exposure.

Scalable technology-enabled operating platform

Operating a technology-enabled platform utilizing a “hub-approach” of maintaining a single profit center in Amman, Jordan has enabled us to optimize our cost base by offering cost-efficient central services. We have invested in technology that has identifiable benefits for our business across underwriting, actuarial, risk, capital and pricing functions among others. Since 2015 we have implemented a digital transformation initiative to proactively adapt to market changes and industry shifts. This focus on technology has enhanced our approach to clients, brokers and regulators, allowing for greater ease of doing business and transparency.

Our Strategy

We aim to continue creating superior long-term value for our shareholders by pursuing the following strategies:

Expand our presence in existing markets

Our size relative to the market opportunity positions us to execute on our strategy of growing in our already existing profitable markets and lines of business. We believe that we are well-positioned in the London and Middle Eastern markets to capitalize on the increasing focus in those markets on portfolio remediation to improve underwriting profitability. In addition, we believe we are beneficiaries of capacity reductions and withdrawals from specific classes of businesses by certain (re)insurers. Our differentiated product offerings, superior client service and robust capital position support our strategy to continue growing in our existing core markets.

Expand our presence to new specialty lines of business and markets

We seek to leverage our proven advantages of technical underwriting, local market knowledge, distribution relationships and financial strength to grow into adjacent lines and markets. We continually seek to evaluate additional lines of business and markets that will complement our core competencies and where we believe we can generate attractive risk-adjusted returns. For example, in 2021, we started underwriting our contingency line of business, which produced $3.9 million, $11.1 million and $19.7 million of premiums in 2021, 2022 and 2023, respectively. In 2021, we acquired our Malta subsidiary giving us the capability to continue to underwrite business throughout the European Economic Area (“EEA”). In April 2020, we expanded into the U.S. market and began writing excess and surplus lines of business. Most recently in March 2023, we acquired Energy Insurance Oslo AS (“EIO”), a managing general agency duly incorporated under the laws of Norway.

Maintain balance sheet strength and thorough reserves assessment

Our balance sheet strength underpins our clients’ confidence in our business and uniquely positions us among other insurers and reinsurers of our size. We maintain a conservative balance sheet, which reflects our rigorous reserving practices, use of reinsurance and conservative investment policy. Our business profile including our well-diversified and profitable book of business, along with our strong capitalization, among other factors, led to “A” (Excellent)/Stable and “A-”/Stable ratings by A.M. Best and S&P Global Ratings, respectively.

We have a thorough reserving adequacy assessment process designed and overseen by qualified internal actuaries. The reserving committee is responsible to the board of directors for the governance of the reserving process and for the recommendation of the quantum of claims reserves to be booked. The committee includes members of senior management who represent underwriting, claims, outward reinsurance and finance. Key inputs to the committee include, but are not limited to, the quarterly actuarial reserve review, presented by the Group chief actuary, and discussions with the heads of claims, reinsurance and underwriting. Our policy is to reserve to a “best estimate” basis.

Maintain our conservative investment strategy

We have a conservative investment strategy, maintaining a short-to-medium term investment portfolio maturity profile with the purpose of providing sufficient liquidity and stable returns with limited volatility. We follow an “underwriting first” model and have designed an investment strategy that allows us to maximize our underwriting profits in a capital efficient manner. As of December 31, 2023, our investment portfolio was comprised primarily of cash and fixed income securities. Cash (including cash equivalents and term deposits) represented 28.6% of our invested assets and fixed income securities represented 67.8% of our invested assets as of December 31, 2023. Our fixed income portfolio is geographically diverse with a weighted-average modified duration of three years, with 75.6% of the securities in our portfolio having an S&P Global Ratings rating of ‘A-’ and above as of December 31, 2023.

Continue to purchase conservative reinsurance coverage, while optimizing for risk-adjusted returns

We believe that protecting our earnings and balance sheet through the use of reinsurance is critical in ensuring that we are able to meet obligations to our policyholders and generate strong returns for our shareholders. We are active purchasers of reinsurance and seek to find opportunities to maximize risk-adjusted results by finding dislocations and inefficiencies in the market. We plan to maintain a conservative, robust reinsurance program to help ensure that we are adequately protected against potential catastrophe losses while minimizing the volatility of our operating results.

Our Segments

We conduct our worldwide operations through three reportable segments under U.S. GAAP segment reporting: Specialty Long-tail, Specialty Short-tail and Reinsurance.

Our Specialty Long-tail segment includes (a) our professional lines (non-U.S.) business, which includes our professional indemnity, directors and officers, legal expenses and other casualty lines of business, (b) our financial institutions line of business, (c) our marine liability line of business and (d) our inherent defects insurance line of business. The lines of business in our specialty long-tail segment are generally characterized by claims that are often reported and ultimately paid or settled years, or even decades, after the related loss events occur. As a general rule, estimates of accident year or underwriting year ultimate losses for long-tail businesses are notably more uncertain than those for short-tail businesses.

Our Specialty Short-tail segment includes our energy (upstream, downstream, power and renewable), property, construction and engineering, political violence, ports and terminals, marine cargo, contingency and general aviation lines of business. The lines of business in our specialty short-tail segment generally include exposures for which losses are usually known and paid within a relatively short period of time after the underlying loss event has occurred. The underlying loss events typically tend to be of lower frequency and higher severity.

Our Reinsurance segment includes our inward reinsurance treaty business.

In addition, we have a corporate function (“Corporate”), which includes the activities of the parent company, and which carries out certain functions, including investment management. Corporate includes investment income on a managed basis and other non-segment expenses, predominantly general and administrative, stock compensation, finance and transaction expenses. Corporate also includes the activities of certain key executives such as the President and Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Financial Officer. Our corporate expenses and investment results are presented separately within the corporate segment section.

Specialty Long-tail Segment

Professional Lines

Our professional lines of business represented approximately 27.2% and 28.0% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Major subclasses within the professional lines of business include directors’ and officers’ insurance, legal expenses, professional indemnity, comprehensive commercial general liability, public liability, product liability, employers’ liability, workers’ compensation, event liability, completed operations liability and media and advertising liability. We primarily underwrite professional lines risks from Europe and the UK on a “primary” basis, meaning that loss up to a limit is covered primarily, or on an excess-of-loss basis.

Financial Institutions

Our financial institutions line of business represented approximately 3.8% and 4.2% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

The financial institutions business covers a range of risks including bankers’ blanket bond, financial institutions professional indemnity, financial institutions directors’ & officers’ liability, plastic card fraud, electronic computer crime, vault risk, cash in transit, commercial crime and fidelity guarantee, and money.

Marine Liability

Our marine liability line of business represented approximately 0.8% and 0.5% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our marine liability portfolio covers third-party liabilities related to marine risks, including ship repairer’s liability, ship owner’s protection and indemnity, Wharfinger’s liability, Stevedore’s liability, Charterer’s liability and port and terminal excess liability. We focus our marine liability portfolio predominantly on Asia and Europe.

Inherent Defects Insurance

Our inherent defects insurance line of business represented approximately 1.1% of our GWP for both the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.

Our inherent defects insurance portfolio covers inherent defects insurance and insurance backed guarantee risks. We focus our inherent defects insurance portfolio predominantly on the UK and Europe.

Specialty Short-tail Segment

Energy

Our energy businesses represented approximately 21.2% and 17.1% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. We have a lead capability in both upstream energy and downstream energy (oil & gas, petrochemicals, refining, conventional power and renewable energy), with a maximum exposure of $75 million and $50 million for any single risk in upstream and downstream energy, respectively. We have a strong presence in major energy insurance hubs and in 2018 began underwriting renewable energy.

Our upstream energy team covers the oil and gas industry both offshore and onshore. Our industry knowledge and products allow us to service a broad spectrum of clients involved with the construction, exploration & production, operating, contracting and decommissioning industries. Our focus is on operators and companies with proven track records and strong risk management policies worldwide, with a particular focus in the Middle East, the wider Afro-Asian region and Scandinavia, excluding named windstorms in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico area. We have a strong presence in major energy insurance hubs, namely the United Kingdom, Norway, the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia. Our clients in the upstream energy line of business include major oil and gas corporations, national and state-owned oil and gas operations, independent oil and gas companies, integrated energy companies, contractors and service industry companies.

Our downstream energy business provides expert insurance for a wide range of onshore energy plants around the world, with a particular focus in the Middle East, Afro-Asian, European and Latin American regions. We underwrite a portfolio of predominantly operating risks in the onshore energy sector, with an emphasis on operators and companies with proven track records and strong risk management policies, with a geographically diversified portfolio. Our clients in the downstream energy line of business include petrochemical operators, oil refineries, utilities, independent power producer (IPP) companies and energy pipeline operators. We insure a spread of operational risks including machinery breakdown and property damage, and associated loss of revenues.

We began underwriting renewable energy in 2018. Our renewable energy business provides expert insurance for a wide range of risks including: wind power (onshore and offshore), solar power (photovoltaic, concentrated, thermal and floating), bioenergy (biomass, biogas, biofuels and waste-to-energy), hydro, geothermal, wave & tidal, battery storage, and other emerging technologies, e.g. energy efficiency. We cover the full life-cycle of a renewable energy project, namely construction, marine and inland transit, operational and decommissioning, including associated loss of revenues, liabilities, as well as natural catastrophe risks. We write business on a worldwide basis.

Property

Our property business represented approximately 14.4% and 12.8% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our property offering includes coverage for physical damage, machinery breakdown, business interruption and forestry. We cover a wide variety of risks from large hotels to industrial manufacturing. Our clients include a wide range of businesses involved in sectors such as leisure, commercial and industrial property, manufacturing, heavy industry and infrastructure, civil works and communications.

Construction & Engineering

Our construction and engineering business represented approximately 7.4% and 4.1% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our construction and engineering line of business provides coverage with respect to construction all risks (CAR), civil engineering completed risks (CECR), machinery breakdown and business interruption (MB/BI), erection all risks (EAR) and contractors’ plant and equipment (CPE/CPM). We focus our construction & engineering portfolio on construction all risks and erection all risks.

Political Violence

Our political violence portfolio represented approximately 2.6% and 1.7% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our political violence line of business focuses on comprehensive sabotage and terrorism, strikes, riots, civil commotions, malicious damage, missing mutiny, coup d’etat, insurrection, revolution, rebellion, war and civil war. Our offering does not normally include risks associated with nuclear, chemical or biological terrorism, trade disruption insurance or standalone contingent business interruption risks. Our coverage generally includes physical loss or damage, business interruption, debris removal and third-party liability following a political violence peril.

Ports and Terminals

Our ports and terminals business represented approximately 4.3% and 3.9% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our current offerings in this line of business include the handling of equipment, damage to port property, business interruption and damage to port craft, marine trade, liabilities to authorities and other liabilities. We primarily serve port authorities, terminal operators, stevedores, warehouse operators and depot operators. This also includes a variety of organizations specializing in other aspects of the shipping industry, including freight forwarders, non-vessel operating common carriers, ship managers, ship agents and ship brokers.

General Aviation

Our general aviation business represented approximately 2.8% and 3.2% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our general aviation portfolio covers worldwide commercial and industrial operations, including coverage for hull, hull and spares, war and allied perils, third-party legal liability, general aviation premises, spares, passenger legal liability, personal accident and general aviation hangar keepers. We focus our general aviation portfolio on South and Central America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

Marine Cargo

Our marine cargo line of business represented approximately 2.6% and 1.8% of our gross written premium for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our marine cargo portfolio covers general cargo, oil, machinery and equipment, project cargo, war on land and freight forwarders. We cover cargo for physical loss or damage while in transit by air, land or sea for importers, exporters and manufacturers. We have a worldwide focus for our marine cargo portfolio.

Contingency

Our contingency line of business represented approximately 2.9% and 1.6% of our gross written premium for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our contingency portfolio covers all risks event cancellation, non-appearance, event terrorism and political violence perils, named peril cancellation, prize indemnity and bespoke non-physical damage business interruption, in each case excluding communicable disease. We have a worldwide focus for our contingency portfolio.

Reinsurance Segment

Our reinsurance business represented approximately 8.9% and 4.6% of our GWP for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Our reinsurance portfolio includes primarily underwritten programs related to the marine liability, energy, property, engineering, motor, casualty and aviation sectors, and is concentrated in the MENA region and the wider Afro-Asian and European markets. Our reinsurance portfolio is primarily written on a non-proportional or excess-of-loss basis. Property reinsurance forms the most significant portion of our overall treaty reinsurance portfolio.

Our History

Our group was founded in 2001 and commenced operations in Jordan in 2002, underwriting business in the offshore energy, onshore energy, property, marine and engineering lines of business. In 2005, we raised $75 million of capital through a private placement and commenced underwriting our reinsurance portfolio. In 2006, we established a holding company in the DIFC and also established our Labuan branch, which is licensed to issue Labuan law-governed policies, including Islamic law-compliant re-takaful policies. In 2007, we established our Bermuda subsidiary and commenced underwriting our financial institutions portfolio. In 2009, we acquired SR Bishop which was renamed North Star Underwriting Limited (“North Star”). In 2009, we established our UK subsidiary, which commenced business in 2011. The UK subsidiary underwrites most of IGI’s UK-governed policies and serves as an important point of contact for brokers based in London. In June 2021, we acquired our Malta subsidiary so that we could continue to underwrite throughout the European Union. In March 2023, we completed the acquisition of Norway-based managing general agency EIO.

On March 17, 2020, we completed the Business Combination with Tiberius, as a result of which each of IGI Dubai and Tiberius became a subsidiary of the Company and the Company became a new public company owned by the prior stockholders of Tiberius and the prior shareholders of IGI Dubai. Upon consummation of the Business Combination, our common shares and warrants to purchase common shares were listed on Nasdaq. Our warrants have since all been repurchased or redeemed.

Platform Overview

We primarily underwrite business through IGI Bermuda, IGI UK and IGI Europe (which are subsidiaries of IGI Bermuda). Additionally, we issue Labuan-governed policies (through a capitalized Malaysian branch of IGI Bermuda) and are also licensed to issue Islamic re-takaful policies. The platforms through which IGI issues these policies are discussed below.

IGI Bermuda

IGI’s Bermuda-governed policies are issued pursuant to a license held by IGI Bermuda. The underwriting operations for the Bermuda-governed policies are located in IGI Underwriting Co. Ltd. (“IGI Underwriting”), which is registered and based in Amman, Jordan. When a Bermuda-governed policy is sourced through IGI’s office in the United Kingdom, the policy is referred to the office in Amman for formal underwriting approval. IGI Dubai also has underwriting authority to underwrite Bermuda-governed policies through an underwriting agency agreement, subject to authority limits, and IGI Morocco operates a representative office of IGI Bermuda in Casablanca which is authorized to issue Bermuda governed policies. IGI Bermuda has three additional wholly-owned subsidiaries: Specialty Mall Investment Co., which focuses on real estate properties, development, and leasing, IGI Services Limited, which focuses on owning and chartering aircraft and IGI Nordic, writing a portfolio of energy and construction business in Norway.

IGI UK

IGI’s UK-governed policies are primarily underwritten by IGI UK based in London. IGI UK serves as an important point of contact for brokers based in London, through whom IGI sources the majority of its business. IGI also owns North Star, a specialty underwriting agency for writing marine liability and trade, war and special risks policies and which is based alongside IGI UK in IGI’s London office. North Star is currently not transacting any business, but can easily be reactivated.

IGI Labuan Branch

International General Insurance Co. Ltd — Labuan Branch (the “Labuan Branch”), a second-tier reinsurer registered in Labuan, Malaysia, is licensed to issue Labuan law-governed policies, including Islamic law-compliant re-takaful policies. The Labuan Branch obtained the approval of the Labuan Financial Services Authority to engage the Labuan Financial Services Authority’s Shariah Supervisory Council as its internal Shariah advisory board, which is permitted under the Directive on Islamic Financial Business in the Labuan International Offshore Financial Center. IGI’s Labuan-based operation is supported by an Asia Pacific hub in Kuala Lumpur, which also serves as a point of contact for local brokers in Asia. Both Labuan-governed policies and Bermuda-governed policies sourced through the Labuan Branch are referred to IGI’s Amman office for underwriting approval.

IGI Europe

IGI’s Europe-governed policies are issued pursuant to a license held by IGI Europe. IGI Europe was acquired in 2021 in order to continue to underwrite business throughout the European Economic Area (“EEA”) countries following Brexit.

Representation and Intermediate Offices (Non-Risk Bearing Companies)

IGI Morocco

IGI Bermuda operates a representative office of IGI Bermuda in Casablanca, which is regulated by Casablanca Finance City. Our Casablanca operations constitute our Africa hub and provide access to the Northern, Central and West African markets.

IGI Dubai

IGI Dubai is authorized as a category four entity by the Dubai Financial Services Authority and it operates as a marketing and intermediate office of IGI Bermuda in Dubai. Our Dubai operations constitute our Middle East hub and provide access to the MENA region including the Gulf Cooperation Council markets.

IGI Nordic AS (formerly, EIO)

IGI Nordic AS is a Norway-based managing general agency writing a portfolio of energy and construction business in Norway on behalf of IGI Bermuda.

Underwriting

Our underwriting process is managed by our experienced management team, which adheres to strict process controls. We have assembled a team of experienced lead underwriters and claims personnel with significant regional and international experience. This diverse array of talent and experience creates strategic advantages with regard to local knowledge, protocols and methods of business production. We have rigorous acceptance criteria for our underwriting risk, and will exit or reduce exposures in lines of business or client types that do not perform in accord with our expectations.

Each risk submitted to an underwriter is assessed on its own merits. The experience and expertise of senior management and the underwriters are ultimately the determining factor in deciding whether to underwrite a given risk. As a result, we rely on our underwriters’ discretion in acquiring business. However, when exercising their discretion, the underwriters take into account key considerations, some of which may include the following:

Pursuant to our delegated authority matrix, which sets underwriting limits for each line of business and each underwriter, the underwriters have the authority to enter into binding policies. If a policy exceeds the underwriter’s limits, the policy is then referred to our officer who has the authority to bind the policy. Management also receives periodic reports that allow them to oversee the business and identify underwritings that deviate from acceptable parameters, providing management the opportunity to intervene to rectify such deviations. Monthly key performance indicator reports are reviewed by the management team to monitor the performance of the underwriting teams.

Risk Management Strategy

We have a comprehensive risk management framework that defines the corporate risk appetite, risk strategy and the policies required to monitor, manage and mitigate the risk inherent in our business. In doing so, we aim to comply with corporate governance and industry best practice and to monitor risks against six main risk objectives: (i) ensuring losses remain within planned limits, (ii) ensuring volatility of results fall within planned limits, (iii) compliance with existing and emerging regulatory requirements, (iv) preserving rating agency credit ratings, (v) maintaining adequate solvency and liquidity, and (vi) avoiding any reputational risk. Below is a summary of our current risk governance arrangements and risk management strategy.

We operate an integrated enterprise-wide risk management strategy designed to deliver shareholder value in a sustainable and efficient manner while providing a high level of policyholder protection. The execution of our integrated risk management strategy is based on:

The main types of risks that we face are summarized as follows:

Insurance risk: Insurance risk includes the risks of inappropriate underwriting, ineffective management of underwriting, inadequate controls over exposure management in relation to catastrophic events and insufficient reserves for losses including claims incurred but not reported.

Market risk: The risk of variation in the income generated by, and the fair value of, our investment portfolio, cash and cash equivalents and derivative contracts including the effect of changes in foreign currency exchange rates.

Credit risk: The risk that one party to a financial instrument will fail to discharge an obligation and cause the other party to incur a financial loss.

Liquidity risk: The risk that we will not be able to meet our commitments associated with insurance contracts and financial liabilities as they fall due.

Operational risk: The risk of loss resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, personnel or systems, or from external events.

Strategic risk: The risk of adverse impact on shareholder value or income and capital of adverse business decisions, poor execution or failure to respond to market changes.

Regulatory risk: The risk of non-compliance with regulatory requirements, including ensuring we understand and comply with changes to those requirements, is assessed and managed as an operational risk. There is a residual risk that changes in regulation could impact our ability to operate profitably in some jurisdictions or some lines of business.

Taxation risk: The risk that we do not understand, plan for and manage our tax obligations is assessed and managed as operational risk. There is a residual risk that changes in taxation could impact our ability to operate profitably in some jurisdictions or some lines of business.

Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) risk: The risk that environmental, social and governance factors could cause reputational or financial harm to our business.

Emerging risk: The risk that events or issues not previously identified or fully understood could impact our operations or financial results.

We divide risks into “core” and “non-core” risks. Core risks comprise those risks which are inherent in the operation of our business, including insurance risks in respect of our underwriting operations and market and liquidity risks in respect of our investment activity. We intentionally expose the Company to core risks with a view to generating shareholder value but seek to manage the resulting volatility in our earnings and financial condition within the limits defined by our risk appetite. However, these core risks are intrinsically difficult to measure and manage and we may not, therefore, be successful in this respect. All other risks, including regulatory and operational risks, are classified as non-core. We seek, to the extent we regard as reasonably practicable and economically viable, to avoid or minimize our exposure to non-core risks.

Marketing and Distribution

We source our business primarily through brokers, with 63% of 2023 premiums coming from five producing brokers. Given our regional focus, we also make use of a range of smaller, more regional brokers, such as NASCO, UIB, Fenchurch Faris and Chedid Re. Currently, our largest broker relationships as measured by gross written premiums are with Arthur J. Gallagher, Marsh, Aon, Willis and Howden Broking Group.

Claims Management

We offer prompt and professional claims service to our policyholders and service providers. Our claims department works closely with our underwriting team in order to achieve a synchronized and efficient process for managing claims. Technology is deeply embedded in our claims process, improving accuracy and efficiency. Our systems allow us to review real-time, detailed information on our current claims activity across our Company.

The key responsibilities of our claims management department are to:

Reserving

When a claim is reported to us or when an event occurs, we establish loss reserves to cover our estimated ultimate losses under the insurance policies that we underwrite, and loss adjustment expenses relating to the investigation and settlement of policy claims. These reserves include estimates of the cost of the claims reported to us (case reserves) and estimates of the cost of claims that have been incurred but not yet reported (“IBNR”) and are net of estimated related salvage, subrogation recoverables and reinsurance recoverables. The case reserve will represent an estimate of the expected settlement amount and will be based on information about the specific claim at that time. The estimate represents an informed judgment based on general industry case reserving practices, the experience and knowledge of the claims handler and practices of the claims team.

The following charts show the percentage breakdown of net reported case reserves and IBNR including ULAE reserves as of December 31, 2023 and 2022:

The reserving committee is responsible to the board of directors for the governance of the reserving process and for the recommendation of the quantum of claims reserves to be booked. The committee includes members of senior management who represent underwriting, claims, outward reinsurance and finance. The committee meets quarterly and agrees the carried reserve for each product line. Key inputs to the committee include but are not limited to the quarterly actuarial reserve review, presented by the Group chief actuary, and discussions with the heads of claims, reinsurance and underwriting. The committee also considers the findings of third-party independent actuarial reviews.

At present these reviews are undertaken every six months. In support of IGI’s annual statutory submission to the BMA, a ‘big four’ actuarial consultant conducts an actuarial review of the loss reserves to support their statutory loss reserve opinion.

For additional information regarding our reserves, our reserves development and our reserves releasing, see “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Reserves.”

Investments

Investment income represents a component of our earnings. We collect premiums and are required to hold a portion of these funds in reserves until claims are paid. We invest these reserves primarily in fixed maturity investments. We manage most of our investment portfolio in-house, with the exception of approximately $21.8 million as of December 31, 2023 which is managed by a third-party investment advisor. Our investment team is responsible for implementing our investment strategy as set by the investment committee established by our management.

Our investments include a sizeable portfolio of high quality and diversified fixed income securities, term deposits and to a lesser extent a modest allocation to equities, mutual funds and real estate holdings.

The following charts show the percentage breakdown of our investment assets by class as of December 31, 2023 and 2022:

For additional information regarding our investments, see “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Investments.”

Reinsurance

We follow a common industry practice of reinsuring a portion of our exposures and paying to reinsurers a portion of the premiums received on the policies that we write. Reinsurance is purchased principally to reduce net liability on individual risks and to protect against catastrophic losses. Although reinsurance does not legally discharge an insurer from its primary liability for the full amount of the policies, it does make the assuming reinsurer contractually liable to the insurer to the extent of the reinsurance coverage. We monitor the financial condition of our reinsurers and attempt to place our coverages only with substantial, financially sound carriers. As a result, generally the reinsurers who reinsure our casualty insurance must have an A.M. Best rating of “A” (Excellent) or better.

Regulatory Overview

Bermuda Regulatory Considerations

Bermuda Insurance Regulation

The Insurance Act. The Insurance Act, which regulates the business of IGI Bermuda, provides that no person shall carry on insurance business in or from within Bermuda unless registered as an insurer under the Insurance Act by the BMA. The BMA, in deciding whether to grant registration, has broad discretion to act as it thinks fit in the public interest. The BMA is required by the Insurance Act to determine whether the applicant is a fit and proper body to be engaged in the insurance business and, in particular, whether it has, or has available to it, adequate knowledge and expertise. The registration of an applicant as an insurer is subject to its complying with the terms of its registration and such other conditions as the BMA may impose at any time. It is not necessary that the insurance company be incorporated in Bermuda. A foreign corporation may obtain a permit under the Companies Act to carry on business in Bermuda and then be registered as an insurer in Bermuda under the Insurance Act. (The Insurance Act does not distinguish between insurers and reinsurers: companies are registered (licensed) under the Insurance Act as “insurers” (although in certain circumstances a condition to registration may be imposed to the effect the company may carry on only reinsurance business). The Insurance Act uses the defined term “insurance business” to include reinsurance business. References herein to insurance companies include reinsurance companies.) The Insurance Act also grants to the BMA powers to supervise, investigate and intervene in the affairs of insurance companies. An Insurance Advisory Committee appointed by the Bermuda Minister of Finance advises the BMA on matters connected with the discharge of the BMA’s functions and subcommittees thereof supervise, investigate and review the law and practice of insurance in Bermuda, including reviews of accounting and administrative procedures. The Insurance Act imposes on Bermuda insurance companies’ solvency and liquidity standards, as well as auditing and reporting requirements. Bermuda is a Solvency II equivalent jurisdiction, meaning that Bermuda’s laws and regulations broadly mirror the requirements under the Solvency II regime. See “Business — Regulatory Overview — UK Regulatory Framework” and “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Capital Requirements — PRA Requirements.” Certain significant aspects of the Bermuda insurance regulatory framework applicable to Class 3B insurers are set forth below.

Classification of Insurers. The Insurance Act distinguishes between insurers carrying on long-term business, insurers carrying on general business and insurers carrying on special purpose business. There are two classifications of insurers carrying on special purpose business: special purpose insurers and collateralized insurers.

There are several classifications of insurers carrying on general business ranging from Class 1 insurers (pure captives) to Class 4 insurers (large commercial underwriters).

There are also several classifications of insurers carrying on long-term business ranging from Class A insurers to Class E insurers.

Classification as a Class 3B Insurer. A body corporate is registrable as a Class 3B insurer where (i) 50% or more of its net premiums written or (ii) 50% or more of its net loss and loss expense provisions, represent unrelated business and its total net premiums written from unrelated business are $50,000,000 or more. IGI Bermuda is registered as a Class 3B insurer with the BMA in Bermuda and is regulated as such under the Insurance Act.

Minimum Paid-Up Share Capital. A Class 3B insurer is required to maintain fully paid up share capital of at least US$120,000.

Principal Representative and Principal Office. A Class 3B insurer is required to maintain a principal office and to appoint and maintain a resident principal representative in Bermuda. IGI Bermuda has appointed Marsh IAS Services (Bermuda) Ltd. as its principal representative. The address of IGI Bermuda’s principal office is Park Place, 1^st Floor, 55 Par-la-Ville Road, Hamilton HM11, Bermuda. Without a reason acceptable to the BMA, an insurer may not terminate the appointment of its principal representative, and the principal representative may not cease to act as such, unless 30 days’ notice in writing to the Authority is given of the intention to do so.

It is the duty of the principal representative to forthwith notify the BMA where the principal representative reaches the view that there is a likelihood of the insurer (for which the principal representative acts) becoming insolvent, or on it coming to the knowledge of the principal representative, or the principal representative having reason to believe that a reportable “event” has occurred. Examples of a reportable “event” include a failure by the insurer to comply substantially with a condition imposed upon it by the BMA relating to a solvency margin or a liquidity or other ratio, a significant loss reasonably likely to cause the insurer to fail to comply with its enhanced capital requirement (“ECR”) (discussed below) and the occurrence of a “material change” (as such term is defined under the Insurance Act) in its business operations.

Within 14 days of such notification to the BMA, the principal representative must furnish the BMA with a written report setting out all the particulars of the case that are available to the principal representative.

Where there has been a significant loss which is reasonably likely to cause the insurer to fail to comply with its ECR, the principal representative must also furnish the BMA with a capital and solvency return reflecting an ECR prepared using post-loss data. The principal representative must provide this within 45 days of notifying the BMA regarding the loss.

Furthermore, where a notification has been made to the BMA regarding a material change, the principal representative has 30 days from the date of such notification to furnish the BMA with unaudited interim statutory financial statements in relation to such period as the BMA may require, together with a general business solvency certificate in respect of those statements.

Head Office. A Class 3B insurer is required to maintain its head office in Bermuda. In determining whether the insurer satisfies this requirement, the BMA shall consider, inter alia, the following factors: (i) where the underwriting, risk management and operational decision making of the insurer occurs; (ii) whether the presence of senior executives who are responsible for, and involved in, the decision making related to the insurance business of the insurer are located in Bermuda; and (iii) where meetings of the board of directors of the insurer occur. In making its determination, the BMA may also have regard to (a) the location where management of the insurer meets to effect policy decisions of the insurer; (b) the residence of the officers, insurance managers or employees of the insurer; and (c) the residence of one or more directors of the insurer in Bermuda. This provision does not apply to an insurer that has a permit to conduct business in Bermuda under the Companies Act or the Non-Resident Insurance Undertakings Act 1967. IGI Bermuda’s Head Office remediation plan was assessed. It was concluded that, among other things, there must be a frequent presence of the senior executives who are responsible for and involved in the decision making related to the insurance business in Bermuda. IGI Bermuda may need to continue to enhance its infrastructure in Bermuda to ensure that it is managed and directed from Bermuda, which may result in additional operational cost. IGI Bermuda’s Head Office remediation plan may be changed based on additional guidance by the BMA, subsequent legislative requirements and/or any other governmental issuances which may affect the interpretation of the Head Office requirements and thus impact IGI Bermuda’s remediation plan.

Loss Reserve Specialist. A Class 3B insurer is required to appoint an individual approved by the BMA to be its loss reserve specialist. In order to qualify as an approved loss reserve specialist, the applicant must be an individual qualified to provide an opinion in accordance with the requirements of the Insurance Act and the BMA must be satisfied that the individual is fit and proper to hold such an appointment.

The Class 3B insurer is required to submit annually an opinion of its approved loss reserve specialist with its capital and solvency return in respect of its total general business insurance technical provisions (i.e. the aggregate of its net premium provisions, net loss and loss expense provisions and risk margin, as each is reported in the insurer’s statutory economic balance sheet). The loss reserve specialist’s opinion must state, among other things, whether or not the aggregate amount of technical provisions shown in the statutory economic balance sheet as at the end of the relevant financial year (i) meets the requirements of the Insurance Act and (ii) makes reasonable provision for the total technical provisions of the insurer under the terms of its insurance contracts and agreements.

Annual Financial Statements. A Class 3B insurer is required to prepare and submit, on an annual basis, audited IFRS or GAAP financial statements (as defined below) and audited statutory financial statements.

A Class 3B insurer is required to prepare and submit to the BMA financial statements which have been prepared under generally accepted accounting principles or international financial reporting standards (“GAAP financial statements”).

The Insurance Act prescribes rules for the preparation and substance of statutory financial statements (which include, in statutory form, a balance sheet, an income statement, a statement of capital and surplus and notes thereto). The statutory financial statements include detailed information and analysis regarding premiums, claims, reinsurance and investments of the insurer.

The insurer’s annual GAAP financial statements and the auditor’s report thereon and the statutory financial statements are required to be filed with the BMA within four months from the end of the relevant financial year (unless specifically extended with the approval of the BMA).

The statutory financial statements do not form a part of the public records maintained by the BMA but the GAAP financial statements are available for public inspection.

Declaration of Compliance. At the time of filing its statutory financial statements, a Class 3B insurer is also required to deliver to the BMA a declaration of compliance, in such form and with such content as may be prescribed by the BMA, declaring whether or not the Class 3B insurer has, with respect to the preceding financial year (i) complied with all requirements of the minimum criteria applicable to it; (ii) complied with the minimum margin of solvency as at its financial year end; (iii) complied with the applicable ECR as at its financial year end; (iv) complied with applicable conditions, directions and restrictions imposed on, or approvals granted to, the Class 3B insurer; and (v) complied with the minimum liquidity ratio for general business as at its financial year end. The declaration of compliance is required to be signed by two directors of the Class 3B insurer, and if the Class 3B insurer has failed to comply with any of the requirements referenced in (i) through (v) above or observe any limitations, restrictions or conditions imposed upon the issuance of its license, if applicable, the Class 3B insurer will be required to provide the BMA with particulars of such failure in writing. A Class 3B insurer shall be liable to civil penalty by way of a fine for failure to comply with a duty imposed on it in connection with the delivery of the declaration of compliance.

Annual Statutory Financial Return and Annual Capital and Solvency Return. A Class 3B insurer is required to file with the BMA a statutory financial return no later than four months after its financial year end (unless specifically extended with the approval of the BMA).

The statutory financial return of a Class 3B insurer shall consist of (i) an insurer information sheet, (ii) an auditor’s report, (iii) the statutory financial statements (including notes to the unconsolidated financial statements) and (iv) the statutory declaration of compliance.

The insurer information sheet shall state, among other matters, (i) whether the general purpose financial statements of the insurer for the relevant year have been audited and an unqualified opinion issued, (ii) the minimum margin of solvency applying to the insurer and whether such margin was met, (iii) whether or not the minimum liquidity ratio applying to the insurer for the relevant year was met and (iv) whether or not the insurer has complied with every condition attached to its certificate of registration. The insurer information sheet shall state if any of the questions identified in items (ii), (iii) or (iv) above is answered in the negative, whether or not the insurer has taken corrective action in any case and, where the insurer has taken such action, describe the action in an attached statement.

The directors are required to certify whether the minimum solvency margin has been met, and the independent approved auditor is required to state whether in its opinion it was reasonable for the directors to make this certification.

Where an insurer’s accounts have been audited for any purpose other than compliance with the Insurance Act, a statement to that effect must be filed with the statutory financial return.

In addition, each year the insurer is required to file with the BMA a capital and solvency return along with its annual statutory financial return. The prescribed form of capital and solvency return comprises the insurer’s Bermuda Solvency Capital Requirement (“BSCR”) model or an approved internal capital model in lieu thereof (more fully described below), together with such schedules as prescribed by the Insurance (Prudential Standards) (Class 4 and Class 3B Solvency Requirement) Rules 2008, as amended from time to time.

Neither the statutory financial return nor the capital and solvency return is available for public inspection.

Quarterly Financial Return. A Class 3B insurer, not otherwise subject to group supervision, is required to prepare and file quarterly financial returns with the BMA on or before the last day of the months of May, August and November of each year. The quarterly financial returns consist of, among other matters: (i) quarterly unaudited financial statements for each financial quarter (which must minimally include a balance sheet and income statement and must also be recent and not reflect a financial position that exceeds two months) and (ii) a list and details of material intra-group transactions that the insurer is a party to and the insurer’s risk concentrations that have materialized since the most recent quarterly or annual financial returns, details surrounding all intra-group reinsurance and retrocession arrangements and other intra-group risk transfer insurance business arrangements that have materialized since the most recent quarterly or annual financial returns and (iii) details of the ten largest exposures to unaffiliated counterparties and any other unaffiliated counterparty exposures exceeding 10% of the insurer’s statutory capital and surplus.

Public Disclosures. Pursuant to the Insurance Act, all commercial insurers and insurance groups are required to prepare and file with the BMA, and also publish on their website, a financial condition report. The BMA has discretion to approve modifications and exemptions to the public disclosure rules, on application by the insurer if, among other things, the BMA is satisfied that the disclosure of certain information will result in a competitive disadvantage or compromise confidentiality obligations of the insurer.

Independent Approved Auditor. A Class 3B insurer must appoint an independent auditor who will audit and report on the insurer’s GAAP financial statements and statutory financial statements, each of which are required to be filed annually with the BMA. The auditor must be approved by the BMA as the independent auditor of the insurer. If the insurer fails to appoint an approved auditor or at any time fails to fill a vacancy for such auditor, the BMA may appoint an approved auditor for the insurer and shall fix the remuneration to be paid to the approved auditor within 14 days, if not agreed sooner by the insurer and the auditor. IGI Bermuda’s BMA-approved independent auditor is Ernst & Young Bermuda.

Non-insurance Business. No Class 3B insurer may engage in non-insurance business unless that non-insurance business is ancillary to its core business. Non-insurance business means any business other than insurance business and includes carrying on investment business, managing an investment fund as operator, carrying on business as a fund administrator, carrying on banking business, underwriting debt or securities or otherwise engaging in investment banking, engaging in commercial or industrial activities and carrying on the business of management, sales or leasing of real property.

Minimum Liquidity Ratio. The Insurance Act provides a minimum liquidity ratio for general business insurers. A Class 3B insurer engaged in general business is required to maintain the value of its relevant assets at not less than 75% of the amount of its relevant liabilities. Relevant assets include cash and time deposits, quoted investments, unquoted bonds and debentures, first liens on real estate, investment income due and accrued, accounts and premiums receivable, reinsurance balances receivable, funds held by ceding reinsurers and any other assets which the BMA, on application in any particular case made to it with reasons, accepts in that case.

There are certain categories of assets which, unless specifically permitted by the BMA, do not automatically qualify as relevant assets, such as unquoted equity securities, investments in and advances to affiliates and real estate and collateral loans.

The relevant liabilities are total general business insurance reserves and total other liabilities less deferred income taxes and letters of credit, guarantees and other instruments.

Minimum Solvency Margin and Enhanced Capital Requirements. The Insurance Act provides that the value of the statutory assets of an insurer must exceed the value of its statutory liabilities by an amount greater than its prescribed minimum solvency margin (“MSM”).

The MSM that must be maintained by a Class 3B insurer with respect to its general business is the greater of (i) $1,000,000, or (ii) 20% of the first $6,000,000 of net premiums written; if in excess of $6,000,000, the figure is $1,200,000 plus 15% of net premiums written in excess of $6,000,000 or (iii) 15% of the aggregate of net loss and loss expense provisions and other insurance reserves or (iv) 25% of the ECR (as defined below) as reported at the end of the relevant year.

Class 3B insurers are also required to maintain available statutory economic capital and surplus at a level equal to or in excess of its ECR which is established by reference to either the BSCR model or an approved internal capital model.

The BSCR model is a risk-based capital model which provides a method for determining an insurer’s capital requirements (statutory economic capital and surplus) by taking into account the risk characteristics of different aspects of the insurer’s business. The BSCR formula establishes capital requirements for ten categories of risk: fixed income investment risk, equity investment risk, interest rate/liquidity risk, currency risk, concentration risk, premium risk, reserve risk, credit risk, catastrophe risk and operational risk. For each category, the capital requirement is determined by applying factors to asset, premium, reserve, creditor, probable maximum loss and operation items, with higher factors applied to items with greater underlying risk and lower factors for less risky items.

While not specifically referred to in the Insurance Act (or required thereunder), the BMA has also established a target capital level (“TCL”) for each Class 3B insurer equal to 120% of its ECR. The TCL serves as an early warning tool for the BMA and failure to maintain statutory capital at least equal to the TCL will likely result in increased regulatory oversight.

Any Class 3B insurer which at any time fails to meet its MSM requirements must, upon becoming aware of such failure, immediately notify the BMA and, within 14 days thereafter, file a written report with the BMA containing particulars of the circumstances that gave rise to the failure and setting out its plan detailing specific actions to be taken and the expected timeframe in which the insurer intends to rectify the failure.

Any Class 3B insurer which at any time fails to meet its applicable ECR shall, upon becoming aware of that failure, or of having reason to believe that such a failure has occurred, immediately notify the BMA in writing and within 14 days of such notification file with the BMA a written report containing particulars of the circumstances leading to the failure; and a plan detailing the manner, specific actions to be taken and time within which the insurer intends to rectify the failure and within 45 days of becoming aware of that failure, or of having reason to believe that such a failure has occurred, furnish the BMA with (i) unaudited statutory economic balance sheets and unaudited interim statutory financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP covering such period as the BMA may require; (ii) the opinion of a loss reserve specialist in relation to the total general business insurance technical provisions as set out in the economic balance sheet, where applicable; (iii) a general business solvency certificate in respect of the financial statements; and (iv) a capital and solvency return reflecting an ECR prepared using post failure data where applicable.

Eligible Capital. To enable the BMA to better assess the quality of the insurer’s capital resources, a Class 3B insurer is required to disclose the makeup of its capital in accordance with the recently introduced ’3-tiered eligible capital system’. Under this system, all of the insurer’s capital instruments will be classified as either basic or ancillary capital which in turn will be classified into one of three tiers based on their “loss absorbency” characteristics. Highest quality capital will be classified as Tier 1 Capital, and lesser quality capital will be classified as either Tier 2 Capital or Tier 3 Capital. Under this regime, up to certain specified percentages of Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 Capital may be used to support the Class 3B insurer’s MSM, ECR and TCL.

The characteristics of the capital instruments that must be satisfied to qualify as Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 Capital are set out in the Insurance (Eligible Capital) Rules 2012, and amendments thereto. Under these rules, Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 Capital may, until January 1, 2026, include capital instruments that do not satisfy the requirement that the instrument be non-redeemable or settled only with the issuance of an instrument of equal or higher quality upon a breach, or if it would cause a breach, of the ECR.

Where the BMA has previously approved the use of certain instruments for capital purposes, the BMA’s consent will need to be obtained if such instruments are to remain eligible for use in satisfying the MSM and the ECR.

Code of Conduct. The Insurance Code of Conduct (the “Insurance Code of Conduct”) prescribes the duties, standards, procedures and sound business principles with which all insurers registered under the Insurance Act must comply. The BMA will assess IGI Bermuda’s compliance with the Insurance Code of Conduct in a proportional manner relative to the nature, scale and complexity of its business. Failure to comply with the requirements of the Insurance Code of Conduct will be taken into account by the BMA in determining whether IGI Bermuda is conducting its business in a sound and prudent manner as prescribed by the Insurance Act, may result in the BMA exercising its powers of intervention and investigation (see below) and will be a factor in calculating the operational risk charge under the insurer’s BSCR or approved internal model. In December 2021, the BMA released a consultation paper on the revisions to the Insurance Code of Conduct and following a review of the public consultation feedback, the revisions to the Insurance Code of Conduct were finalized and became effective on 31 August 2022 (with a six-month transition period for conduct-related additions and a 12-month transition period to comply with the new provisions/amendments of all other sections of the document). The most significant changes to the Insurance Code of Conduct relate to corporate governance, including introducing a requirement that an insurer, such as IGI Bermuda, include an appropriate number of independent non-executive directors on its board. The BMA clarified that the revisions would not create a requirement for independent non-executive directors for all boards, but would be influenced by a number of factors, including the nature, size and complexity of the insurer’s business, its business model and whether it is a part of an insurance group. The Insurance Code of Conduct was also amended to require board members to review and assess the fitness and propriety of board membership, committees, and chief and senior executives at least every three (3) years and/or upon a material change to business activities or risk profile. Other changes include a requirement for insurers, such as IGI Bermuda, to demonstrate the economic impact of risk mitigation techniques originating from reinsurance contracts and the addition of “Sustainability Risk” as a material risk that should be considered in risk management strategies.

Cyber Risk Code of Conduct. The BMA has recognized that cyber incidents can cause significant financial losses and/or reputational impacts across the insurance industry and has implemented the Insurance Sector Operational Cyber Risk Management Code of Conduct (the “Cyber Risk Code”) to ensure that those operating in the Bermuda insurance sector can mitigate such risks. The Cyber Risk Code prescribes the duties, requirements, standards, procedures and principles which all insurers, insurance managers and insurance intermediaries (agents, brokers and insurance market place providers) registered under the Insurance Act must comply. The Cyber Risk Code is designed to promote the stable and secure management of information technology systems of regulated entities and requires that all registrants implement their own technology risk programmes, determine what their top risks are and develop an appropriate risk response. This requires all registrants to develop a cyber risk policy which is to be delivered pursuant to an operational cyber risk management programme and appoint an appropriately qualified member of staff or outsourced resource to the role of Chief Information Security Officer. The role of the Chief Information Security Officer is to deliver the operational cyber risk management programme.

It is expected that the cyber risk policy will be approved by the registrant’s board of directors at least annually. The BMA will assess a registrant’s compliance with the Cyber Risk Code in a proportionate manner relative to the nature, scale and complexity of its business. While it is acknowledged that some registrants will use a third party to provide technology services and that they may outsource their IT resources (for example, to an insurance manager where applicable), when so outsourced, the overall responsibility for the outsourced functions will remain with the registrant’s board of directors. Failure to comply with the requirements of the Cyber Risk Code will be taken into account by the BMA in determining whether a registrant is conducting its business in a sound and prudent manner, as prescribed by the Insurance Act, and may result in the BMA exercising its powers of intervention and investigation.

Recovery Planning. The Insurance Act was recently amended to empower the BMA to make rules for recovery planning. It is anticipated that when these rules are implemented, the BMA will require certain commercial insurers to develop recovery plans. Any requirement to prepare a recovery plan under such new rules or requirements shall take into account the nature, scale, complexity and risk profile of the insurance business so conducted by the insurer or insurance group.

Restrictions on Dividends and Distributions. A Class 3B insurer is prohibited from declaring or paying a dividend if it is in breach of its MSM, ECR or minimum liquidity ratio or if the declaration or payment of such dividend would cause such a breach. Where an insurer fails to meet its MSM or minimum liquidity ratio on the last day of any financial year, it will be prohibited from declaring or paying any dividends during the next financial year without the approval of the BMA.

In addition, a Class 3B insurer is prohibited from declaring or paying in any financial year dividends of more than 25% of its total statutory capital and surplus (as shown on its previous financial year’s statutory balance sheet) unless it files (at least seven days before payment of such dividends) with the BMA an affidavit signed by at least two directors (one of whom must be a Bermuda resident director if any of the insurer’s directors are resident in Bermuda) and the principal representative stating that it will continue to meet its solvency margin and minimum liquidity ratio. Where such an affidavit is filed, it shall be available for public inspection at the offices of the BMA.

Reduction of Capital. No Class 3B insurer may reduce its total statutory capital by 15% or more, as set out in its previous year’s financial statements, unless it has received the prior approval of the BMA. Total statutory capital consists of the insurer’s paid in share capital, its contributed surplus (sometimes called additional paid in capital) and any other fixed capital designated by the BMA as statutory capital (such as letters of credit).

A Class 3B insurer seeking to reduce its statutory capital by 15% or more, as set out in its previous year’s financial statements, is also required to submit an affidavit signed by at least two directors (one of whom must be a Bermuda resident director if any of the insurer’s directors are resident in Bermuda) and the principal representative stating that the proposed reduction will not cause the insurer to fail its relevant margins and such other information as the BMA may require. Where such an affidavit is filed, it shall be available for public inspection at the offices of the BMA.

Policyholder Priority. In the event of a liquidation or winding up of an insurer, policyholders’ liabilities receive prior payment ahead of general unsecured creditors. Subject to the prior payment of preferential debts under the Employment Act 2000 and the Companies Act, the insurance debts of an insurer must be paid in priority to all other unsecured debts of the insurer. Insurance debt is defined as a debt to which an insurer is or may become liable pursuant to an insurance contract, excluding debts owed to an insurer under an insurance contract where the insurer is the person insured. Insurance contract is defined as any contract of insurance, capital redemption contract or a contract that has been recorded as insurance business in the financial statements of the insurer pursuant to the Insurance Accounts 1980 or the Insurance Account Rules 2016, as applicable.

Fit and Proper Controllers. The BMA maintains supervision over the controllers of all registered insurers in Bermuda.

A controller includes (i) the managing director of the registered insurer or its parent company; (ii) the chief executive of the registered insurer or of its parent company; (iii) a shareholder controller; and (iv) any person in accordance with whose directions or instructions the directors of the registered insurer or of its parent company are accustomed to act.

The definition of shareholder controller is set out in the Insurance Act but generally refers to (i) a person who holds 10% or more of the shares carrying rights to vote at a shareholders’ meeting of the registered insurer or its parent company, or (ii) a person who is entitled to exercise 10% or more of the voting power at any shareholders’ meeting of such registered insurer or its parent company, or (iii) a person who is able to exercise significant influence over the management of the registered insurer or its parent company by virtue of its shareholding or its entitlement to exercise, or control the exercise of, the voting power at any shareholders’ meeting.

A shareholder controller that owns 10% or more but less than 20% of the shares as described above is defined as a 10% shareholder controller; a shareholder controller that owns 20% or more but less than 33% of the shares as described above is defined as a 20% shareholder controller; a shareholder controller that owns 33% or more but less than 50% of the shares as described above is defined as a 33% shareholder controller; and a shareholder controller that owns 50% or more of the shares as described above is defined as a 50% shareholder controller.

Where the shares of the registered insurer, or the shares of its parent company, are traded on a recognized stock exchange, and a person becomes a 10%, 20%, 33% or 50% shareholder controller of the insurer, that person shall, within 45 days, notify the BMA in writing that he has become such a controller. In addition, a person who is a shareholder controller of a Class 3B insurer whose shares or the shares of its parent company (if any) are traded on a recognized stock exchange must serve on the BMA a notice in writing that he has reduced or disposed of his holding in the insurer where the proportion of voting rights in the insurer held by him will have reached or has fallen below 10%, 20%, 33% or 50% as the case may be, not later than 45 days after such disposal.

Where the shares of an insurer, or the shares of its parent company, are not traded on a recognized stock exchange (i.e. private companies), the Insurance Act prohibits a person from becoming a shareholder controller unless he has first served on the BMA notice in writing stating that he intends to become such a controller and the BMA has either, before the end of 45 days following the date of notification, provided notice to the proposed controller that it does not object to his becoming such a controller or the full 45 days has elapsed without the BMA filing an objection. Where neither the shares of the insurer nor the shares of its parent company (if any) are traded on any stock exchange, the Insurance Act prohibits a person who is a shareholder controller of a Class 3B insurer from reducing or disposing of his holdings where the proportion of voting rights held by the shareholder controller in the insurer will reach or fall below 10%, 20%, 33% or 50%, as the case may be, unless that shareholder controller has served on the BMA a notice in writing stating that he intends to reduce or dispose of such holding.

Any person who contravenes the Insurance Act by failing to give notice or knowingly becoming a controller of any description before the required 45 days has elapsed is guilty of an offence and liable to a fine of $25,000 on summary conviction.

The BMA may file a notice of objection to any person who has become a controller of any description where it appears that such person is not, or is no longer, a fit and proper person to be a controller of the registered insurer. Before issuing a notice of objection, the BMA is required to serve upon the person concerned a preliminary written notice stating the BMA’s intention to issue formal notice of objection. Upon receipt of the preliminary written notice, the person served may, within 28 days, file written representations with the BMA which shall be taken into account by the BMA in making its final determination. Any person who continues to be a controller of any description after having received a notice of objection shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine of $25,000 (and a continuing fine of $500 per day for each day that the offence is continuing) or, if convicted on indictment, to a fine of $100,000 and/or two years in prison.

Notification by Registered Person of Change of Controllers and Officers. All registered insurers are required to give written notice to the BMA of the fact that a person has become, or ceased to be, a controller or officer of the registered insurer within 45 days of becoming aware of such fact. An officer in relation to a registered insurer means a director, chief executive or senior executive performing duties of underwriting, actuarial, risk management, compliance, internal audit, finance or investment matters.

Notification of Cyber Reporting Events. Every insurer is required to notify the BMA forthwith on it coming to the knowledge of the insurer, or where the insurer has reason to believe that a Cyber Reporting Event has occurred. Within 14 days of such notification the insurer must also furnish the BMA with a written report setting out all of the particulars of the Cyber Reporting Event that are available to it. A Cyber Reporting Event includes any act that results in the unauthorised access to, disruption, or misuse of electronic systems or information stored on such systems of an insurer, including breach of security leading to the loss or unlawful destruction or unauthorised disclosure of or access to such systems or information where there is a likelihood of an adverse impact to policyholders, clients or the insurer’s insurance business, or an event that has occurred for which notice is required to be provided to a regulatory body or government agency.

Notification of Other Events. Every insurer is required to forthwith notify the BMA on it coming to the knowledge of the insurer, or where the insurer has reason to believe that the insurer has failed to comply with a condition imposed upon it by the BMA or that the insurer, or a shareholder controller or officer of the insurer is involved in any criminal proceedings whether in Bermuda or abroad.

Notification of Material Changes. All registered insurers are required to give notice to the BMA of their intention to effect a material change within the meaning of the Insurance Act. For the purposes of the Insurance Act, the following changes are material: (i) the transfer or acquisition of insurance business being part of a scheme falling under section 25 of the Insurance Act or section 99 of the Companies Act, (ii) the amalgamation with or acquisition of another firm, (iii) engaging in unrelated business that is retail business, (iv) the acquisition of a controlling interest in an undertaking that is engaged in non-insurance business which offers services and products to persons who are not affiliates of the insurer, (v) outsourcing all or substantially all of the company’s actuarial, risk management, compliance or internal audit functions, (vi) outsourcing all or a material part of an insurer’s underwriting activity, (vii) the transfer, other than by way of reinsurance, of all or substantially all of a line of business, (viii) the expansion into a material new line of business, (ix) the sale of an insurer, and (x) outsourcing of an officer role.

No registered insurer shall take any steps to give effect to a material change unless it has first served notice on the BMA that it intends to effect such material change and before the end of 30 days, either the BMA has notified such company in writing that it has no objection to such change or that period has lapsed without the BMA having issued a notice of objection.

Before issuing a notice of objection, the BMA is required to serve upon the person concerned a preliminary written notice stating the BMA’s intention to issue a formal notice of objection. Upon receipt of the preliminary written notice, the person served may, within 28 days, file written representations with the BMA which shall be taken into account by the BMA in making its final determination.

Group Supervision. The BMA may, in respect of an insurance group, determine whether it is appropriate for it to act as its group supervisor. An insurance group is defined as a group of companies that conducts insurance business. The BMA may make such determination where it ascertains that (i) the group is headed by a “specified insurer” (that is to say, it is headed by either a Class 3A, Class 3B or Class 4 general business insurer or a Class C, Class D or Class E long term insurer or another class of insurer designated by order of the BMA); or (ii) where the insurance group is not headed by a “specified insurer”, where it is headed by a parent company which is incorporated in Bermuda; or (iii) where the parent company of the group is not a Bermuda company, in circumstances where the BMA is satisfied that the insurance group is directed and managed from Bermuda or the insurer with the largest balance sheet total is a specified insurer.

Where the BMA determines that it should act as the group supervisor, it shall designate a specified insurer that is a member of the insurance group to be the designated insurer (the “Designated Insurer”) and it shall give to the Designated Insurer and other applicable insurance regulatory authority written notice of its intention to act as group supervisor. Before the BMA makes a final determination whether or not to act as group supervisor, it shall take into account any written representations made by the Designated Insurer submitted within such period as is specified in the notice.

The BMA may exclude any company that is a member of an insurance group from group supervision on the application of the Designated Insurer, or on its own initiative, provided the BMA is satisfied that (i) the company is situated in a country or territory where there are legal impediments to cooperation and exchange of information, (ii) the financial operations of the company have a negligible impact on insurance group operations or (iii) the inclusion of the company would be inappropriate with respect to the objectives of group supervision.

The BMA may, on its own initiative or on the application of the relevant Designated Insurer, include within group supervision a company that is a member of the group that is not on the Register of Group Particulars (described below) if it is satisfied the financial operations of the company in question may have a material impact on the insurance group’s operations and its inclusion would be appropriate having regard to the objectives of group supervision.

Once the BMA has been designated as group supervisor, the Designated Insurer must ensure that the insurance group of which it is a member appoints (i) an individual approved by the BMA who is qualified as a group actuary to provide an opinion on the insurance group’s insurance technical provisions in accordance with the requirements of Schedule XIV “Group Statutory Economic Balance Sheet” of the Insurance (Prudential Standards) (Insurance Group Solvency Requirement) Rules 2011 and (ii) an auditor approved by the BMA to audit the financial statements of the group.

Pursuant to its powers under the Insurance Act, the BMA will maintain a register of particulars for every insurance group (the “Register of Group Particulars”) for which it acts as the group supervisor, detailing the names and addresses of (i) the Designated Insurer; (ii) each member company of the insurance group falling within the scope of group supervision; (iii) the principal representative of the insurance group in Bermuda; (iv) other competent authorities supervising other member companies of the insurance group; and (v) the insurance group auditors. The Designated Insurer must immediately notify the BMA of any changes to the above details entered on the Register of Group Particulars.

As group supervisor, the BMA will perform a number of supervisory functions including (i) coordinating the gathering and dissemination of relevant or essential information for going concerns and emergency situations, including the dissemination of information which is of importance for the supervisory task of other competent authorities; (ii) carrying out supervisory reviews and assessments of the insurance group; (iii) carrying out assessments of the insurance group’s compliance with the rules on solvency, risk concentration, intra-group transactions and good governance procedures; (iv) planning and coordinating through regular meetings held at least annually (or by other appropriate means) with other competent authorities, supervisory activities in respect of the insurance group, both as a going concern and in emergency situations; (v) coordinating enforcement actions that may need to be taken against the insurance group or any of its members; and (vi) planning and coordinating meetings of colleges of supervisors in order to facilitate the carrying out of the functions described above.

The BMA may, for the purposes of group supervision, make rules applying to Designated Insurers which take into account any activities of the insurance group of which they are members or of other members of the insurance group. Such rules may make provision for: the assessment of the financial situation of the insurance group; the solvency position of the insurance group (including the imposition of prudential standards in relation to ECR, capital and solvency returns, insurance reserves and eligible capital that must be complied with by the Designated Insurers); the system of governance and risk management of the insurance group; intra-group transactions and risk concentrations; and supervisory reporting and disclosure in respect of the insurance group.

In addition, the BMA may, after consultation with other competent authorities, determine whether an insurance group, for which the BMA is the group supervisor, is an internationally active insurance group under the Insurance Act. The Insurance Act also provides for a framework pursuant to which the BMA may designate a member of an Internationally Active Insurance Group (IAIG) as its ‘head of the IAIG’ for the purposes of IAIG supervision. In determining the member of an IAIG to be designated as the Head of the IAIG, the BMA shall have regard to the member that exercises control over all insurers in the group and other members of the group which may pose a risk to the insurance business of the group.  

We are not currently subject to group supervision, but are currently in discussions with the BMA regarding its proposed institution of group-wide supervision by the BMA on the group.

Supervision, Investigation, Intervention and Disclosure. The BMA may, by notice in writing served on a registered person or a designated insurer, require the registered person or designated insurer to provide such information and/or documentation as the BMA may reasonably require with respect to matters that are likely to be material to the performance of its supervisory functions under the Insurance Act. In addition, it may require such person’s auditor, underwriter, accountant or any other person with relevant professional skill of such registered person or designated insurer to prepare a report on any aspect pertaining thereto. In the case of a report, the person so appointed shall immediately give the BMA written notice of any fact or matter of which he becomes aware or which indicates to him that any condition attaching to his registration under the Insurance Act is not or has not or may not be or may not have been fulfilled and that such matters are likely to be material to the performance of its functions under the Insurance Act. If it appears to the BMA to be desirable in the interests of the clients of a registered person or relevant insurance group, the BMA may also exercise these powers in relation to subsidiaries, parent companies and other affiliates of the registered person or designated insurer.

If the BMA deems it necessary to protect the interests of the policyholders or potential policyholders of an insurer or insurance group, it may appoint one or more competent persons to investigate and report on the nature, conduct or state of the insurer’s or the insurance group’s business, or any aspect thereof, or the ownership or control of the insurer or insurance group. If the person so appointed thinks it necessary for the purposes of the investigation, such person may also investigate the business of any person who is or has been at any relevant time, a member of the insurance group or of a partnership of which the person being investigated is a member. In this regard, it shall be the duty of every person who is or was a controller, officer, employee, agent, banker, auditor, accountant, barrister and attorney or insurance manager to produce to the person appointed such documentation as the appointed person may reasonably require for purposes of the investigation, and to attend and answer questions relevant to the investigation and to otherwise provide such assistance as may be necessary in connection therewith.

Where the BMA suspects that a person has failed to properly register under the Insurance Act or that a registered person or designated insurer has failed to comply with a requirement of the Insurance Act or that a person is not, or is no longer, a fit and proper person to perform functions in relation to a regulated activity, it may, by notice in writing, carry out an investigation into such person (or any other person connected thereto). In connection therewith, the BMA may require every person who is or was a controller, officer, employee, agent, banker, auditor, accountant, barrister and attorney or insurance manager to make a report and produce such documents in his care, custody and control and to attend before the BMA to answer questions relevant to the BMA’s investigation and to take such actions as the BMA may direct. The BMA may also enter any premises for the purposes of carrying out its investigation and may petition the court for a warrant if it believes a person has failed to comply with a notice served on him or there are reasonable grounds for suspecting the completeness of any information or documentation produced in response to such notice or that its directions will not be complied with or that any relevant documents would be removed, tampered with or destroyed.

If it appears to the BMA that the business of the registered insurer is being conducted in a way that there is a significant risk of the insurer becoming insolvent or being unable to meet its obligations to policyholders, or that the insurer is in breach of the Insurance Act or any conditions imposed upon its registration, or the minimum criteria stipulated in the Insurance Act is not or has not been fulfilled in respect of a registered insurer, or that a person has become a controller without providing the BMA with the appropriate notice or in contravention of a notice of objection, or the registered insurer is in breach of its ECR, or that a designated insurer is in breach of any provision of the Insurance Act or the regulations or rules applicable to it, the BMA may issue such directions as it deems desirable for safeguarding the interests of policyholders or potential policyholders of the insurer or the insurance group. The BMA may, among other things, direct an insurer, for itself and in its capacity as designated insurer of the insurance group of which it is a member, (a) not to take on any new insurance business, (b) not to vary any insurance contract if the effect would be to increase the insurer’s liabilities, (c) not to make certain investments, (d) to realize certain investments, (e) to maintain in, or transfer to the custody of, a specified bank, certain assets, (f) not to declare or pay any dividends or other distributions or to restrict the making of such payments, (g) to limit its premium income, (h) not to enter into specified transactions with any specified person or persons of a specified class, (i) to provide such written particulars relating to the financial circumstances of the insurer as the BMA thinks fit, (j) (as an individual insurer only and not in its capacity as designated insurer) to obtain the opinion of a loss reserve specialist and submit it to the BMA and/or (k) to remove a controller or officer.

The BMA has the power to assist other regulatory authorities, including foreign insurance regulatory authorities, with their investigations involving insurance and reinsurance companies in Bermuda if it is satisfied that the assistance being requested is in connection with the discharge of regulatory responsibilities and that such cooperation is in the public interest. The grounds for disclosure by the BMA to a foreign regulatory authority without consent of the insurer are limited and the Insurance Act provides for sanctions for breach of the statutory duty of confidentiality.

Cancellation of Insurer’s Registration. An insurer’s registration may be cancelled by the BMA at the request of the insurer or on certain grounds specified in the Insurance Act. Failure by the insurer to comply with its obligations under the Insurance Act or if, the BMA believes that the insurer has not been carrying on business in accordance with sound insurance principles, would be examples of such grounds.

Certain Other Bermuda Law Considerations. All Bermuda “exempted companies” are exempt from certain Bermuda laws restricting the percentage of share capital that may be held by non-Bermudians. However, exempted companies may not participate in certain business transactions, including (1) the acquisition or holding of land in Bermuda except that required for their business and held by way of lease or tenancy for a term not exceeding more than 50 years or, with the consent of the Minister of Economic Development (the “Minister”) granted in his discretion, land which is used to provide accommodation or recreational facilities for officers and employees of the company for a term not exceeding 21 years, (2) the taking of mortgages on land in Bermuda to secure an amount in excess of $50,000 without the consent of the Minister, (3) the acquisition of any bonds or debentures secured by any land in Bermuda, other than certain types of Bermuda government securities or securities issued by Bermuda public authorities, or (4) the carrying on of business of any kind in Bermuda, except in furtherance of business carried on outside Bermuda or under license granted by the Minister. Generally it is not permitted without a special license granted by the Minister to insure Bermuda domestic risks or risks of persons of, in or based in Bermuda.

All Bermuda companies must comply with the provisions of the Companies Act regulating the payment of dividends and the making of distributions from contributed surplus. A company may not declare or pay a dividend, or make a distribution out of contributed surplus, if there are reasonable grounds for believing that: (a) the company is, or would after the payment be, unable to pay its liabilities as they become due; or (b) the realizable value of the company’s assets would thereby be less than its liabilities.

Under the Economic Substance Act 2018 and related regulations thereunder (collectively, the “ESA”), each entity resident in Bermuda that carries on a “relevant activity” is required to comply with the economic substance requirements under the ESA, unless resident for tax purposes in a jurisdiction outside Bermuda that is not on the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes. Engaging in insurance business in accordance with the Insurance Act constitutes a “relevant activity”.

In relation to carrying on the relevant activity of insurance, compliance with the ESA also requires compliance with requirements in the Companies Act relating to corporate governance and requirements of the Insurance Act and other instruments (including the Insurance Code of Conduct) made thereunder. The Registrar of Companies will have regard to an insurer’s compliance with the Insurance Act and the Companies Act in his assessment of compliance with economic substance requirements and on the basis that an insurer complies with such requirements, the insurer will generally be considered to operate in Bermuda with adequate substance. An insurer will be required to complete and file a declaration form, and the Registrar of Companies will also have regard to the information provided in the declaration form in making his assessment of compliance with economic substance requirements.

Bermuda Exchange Control Regulation. The permission of the BMA is required, under the provisions of the Exchange Control Act 1972 of Bermuda and related regulations, for all issuances and transfers of shares (which includes our common shares) of Bermuda companies to or from a non-resident of Bermuda for exchange control purposes, other than in cases where the BMA has granted a general permission. The BMA, in its notice to the public dated June 1, 2005, has granted a general permission for the issue and subsequent transfer of any securities of a Bermuda company from and/or to a non-resident of Bermuda for exchange control purposes for so long as any “Equity Securities” of the company (which include our common shares) are listed on an “Appointed Stock Exchange” (which include Nasdaq). In granting the general permission the BMA accepts no responsibility for our financial soundness or the correctness of any of the statements made or opinions expressed in this annual report.

Although IGI Bermuda is incorporated in Bermuda, IGI Bermuda is classified as a non-resident of Bermuda for exchange control purposes by the BMA. Other than transferring Bermuda Dollars out of Bermuda, there are no restrictions on IGI Bermuda’s ability to transfer funds into and out of Bermuda or to pay dividends in currency other than Bermuda Dollars to nonresidents of Bermuda who are holders of our common shares.

Personal Information Protection Act 2016. Bermuda’s principal data protection and privacy legislation is the Personal Information Protection Act 2016 (“PIPA”). At present, the majority of the operative provisions of PIPA (which include: conditions for use and consent to use of personal information, specific obligations on organizations that use personal information, overseas data transfer assessment obligations and access, rectification and erasure rights for individuals) are not yet in force in Bermuda. In June 2023, the Bermuda Government and the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Bermuda announced that the remaining operative provisions of PIPA will become fully implemented on 1 January 2025.

PIPA (once in force) applies to every organization (which includes any individual, entity or public authority) that uses personal information in Bermuda where that personal information is used by automated or other means which form, or are intended to form, part of a structured filing system. For the purposes of PIPA, “personal information” means any information about an identified or identifiable individual (meaning a natural person), and “use” or “using” are very broadly defined and effectively include possessing or carrying out any operation on personal information. To the extent that IGI Holdings and IGI Bermuda use or holds individuals’ personal information in Bermuda, it will be in scope and must comply with the provisions of PIPA.

UK Regulatory Framework

General. UK insurance companies are regulated by the PRA and the FCA. The PRA is responsible for the prudential regulation of banks, building societies, credit unions, insurers and major investment firms and the FCA is responsible for the prudential regulation of all other firms and the conduct of business regulation of all authorised financial services firms. A subsidiary of IGI, IGI UK, is authorized by the PRA to effect and carry out (re)insurance contracts in the UK in all classes of general (non-life) business and is regulated by both the PRA and the FCA.

Following Brexit, the UK began a process of “onshoring” EU legislation whereby the UK replicated EU law in UK legislation and regulation and then amended it so that it would be operationally effective following the end of the Brexit transition period on December 31, 2020. As an automatic consequence of the UK’s departure from the EU’s single market, passporting rights to and from the UK ended at the end of the transition period. Passporting is the exercise of the right available to a firm authorised in one EEA member state to carry on certain activities covered by an EU single market directive in another EEA member state, on the basis of its home state authorisation. For firms based in the UK, this meant the loss of access to EU markets. As of the end of the transition period, IGI UK has lost its passporting rights in the EU, such that it can no longer write insurance business in European Economic Area (“EEA”) countries under the “freedom of services” regime or write insurance business through a place of business in an EEA member state under the “freedom of establishment” regime using the rights contained in the European Council’s Solvency II Directive. IGI is currently engaging with relevant EU member states to ensure adherence to individual run-off regimes that have been established. In addition, in June 2021 IGI acquired an EU insurance operation in Malta, which enables IGI to pursue business in the EU.

Restrictions on Dividend Payments. The company law of England and Wales prohibits English companies, including IGI UK, from declaring dividends to their shareholders unless they have profits available for distribution. The determination of whether a company has profits available for distribution is based on its accumulated realized profits and other distributable reserves less its accumulated realized losses. While the UK insurance regulatory rules impose no statutory restrictions on a general insurer’s ability to declare a dividend, the PRA’s rules require each authorized insurance company within its jurisdiction to maintain its solvency margin at all times. For ordinary share capital to count as tier 1 capital for solvency purposes, dividends must be capable of being cancelled at any time prior to payment, and the PRA can prohibit a UK insurance company from paying a dividend.

Solvency Requirements. Under the EU directive covering capital adequacy, risk management and regulatory reporting for insurers (the “Solvency II Directive”), an insurer has the option of seeking the approval of a full or partial internal model from its regulator or to use a standard formula to calculate its capital requirements. The provisions of the Solvency II Directive were implemented in the UK by the Solvency 2 Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/575) and through the PRA Rulebook and supervisory statements published by the PRA. In light of Brexit, the UK has onshored the Solvency II regime and amended the rules so that firms can continue to operate effectively after the end of the transitional period. The UK is currently consulting on making certain amendments to Solvency II as implemented in the UK.

Onshored Solvency II Regime Reports and Returns. Under the onshored Solvency II regime, IGI UK is required to disclose to the PRA quarterly and annually Quantitative Reporting Templates (“QRTs”). The QRTs report quantitative information on a Solvency II and local GAAP basis including, among other things, the balance sheet and own funds, Solvency II capital position, invested assets, premiums, claims and technical provisions, reinsurance and group specific information. IGI UK must also complete a set of annual National Specific Templates (“NSTs”) which are only applicable to solo firms (i.e., specific companies as against groups). An annual Solvency and Financial Condition Report (“SFCR”), which must include a mixture of narrative information and a sub-set of the QRTs, must also be submitted and posted on IGI’s website. Similarly, IGI UK must submit an annual Own Risk and Solvency Assessment (“ORSA”) to the PRA. The ORSA report is produced annually and provides a summary of all of the activity and processes during the preceding year to assess and report on risks and ensure that our overall solvency needs are met at all times including a forward-looking assessment. It also explains the linkages between business strategy, business planning and capital and risk management processes.

Change of Control Prior Notifications. The PRA (in consultation with the FCA) regulates the acquisition of “control” of any UK insurance company which is authorized under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (“FSMA”). The FCA regulates the acquisition of “control” of authorized firms that are only authorized and regulated by the FCA. Any legal entity or individual that (together with any person with whom they are “acting in concert”) directly or indirectly acquires 10% or more of the shares in a UK authorized insurance company, or their parent company, or is entitled to exercise or control the exercise of 10% or more of the voting power in such authorized insurance company or their parent company, would be considered to have acquired “control” for the purposes of the relevant legislation, as would a person who had significant influence over the management of such authorized insurance company by virtue of their shareholding or voting power in the authorized insurance company or parent. A purchaser of 10% or more of the common shares of the Company would therefore be considered to have acquired “control” of IGI UK. Under FSMA, any person proposing to acquire “control” over a UK authorized insurance company must give prior notification to the PRA of their intention to do so. The PRA would then have up to 60 working days (which may be extended by up to a further 30 working days) to consider that person’s application to acquire “control.” Acquiring control without having made the relevant prior application and having received the PRA’s approval (following consultation with the FCA) would constitute a criminal offense by the controller. In addition, if IGI UK fails to notify the PRA of the proposed change of control this could also result in action being taken against IGI UK. A person who is already deemed to have “control” will require prior approval of the PRA and the FCA if such person increases their level of “control” beyond certain percentages. These percentages are 20%, 30% and 50%. Similar requirements apply in relation to the acquisition and increase of control of a UK authorized person which is an insurance intermediary except that application for approval is made to, and decided by, the FCA and the threshold triggering the requirement for prior approval is 20% of the shares or voting power in the insurance intermediary or its parent company.

Senior Managers and Certification Regime. In December 2019, the FCA and PRA extended the application of the Senior Managers & Certification Regime (“SM&CR”), which previously applied to UK-regulated entities in the banking sector, to insurers, reinsurers, insurance intermediaries and other UK-regulated entities. The Senior Managers & Certification Regime is an enhanced individual accountability framework which built upon and replaced the previous regulatory framework of the Senior Insurance Managers Regime and the Approved Persons regime. The SM&CR seeks to ensure that senior persons who are effectively running insurance firms, or who have responsibility for other key functions at those firms, meet standards of fitness and propriety for acting with integrity, honesty and skill and that there is a clear allocation of responsibilities between senior managers.

Insurance Distribution Directive. On October 1, 2018, the Insurance Distribution Directive (“IDD”) came into force. IDD applies to all those who conduct insurance distribution to clients, such as insurers (i.e., IGI UK) and insurance intermediaries (including firms such as banks or retailers who provide insurance alongside their primary business), and whose clients range from individual consumers to large multinational organizations. The main provisions of IDD include conduct of business obligations, remuneration disclosure, cross-selling limitations and professional training requirements. As a result of Brexit and following the end of the transitional period on December 31, 2020, the Insurance Distribution (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 came into effect to address the deficiencies in retained EU law relating to the IDD arising from Brexit. Under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, directly applicable EU legislation made under the IDD was onshored and became part of the UK law at the end of the Brexit transitional period.

PRA requirements

IGI UK is subject to regulation by the UK FCA and the UK PRA. The onshored Solvency Capital Requirement (“SCR”) for IGI UK is governed by the onshored Solvency II regime which sets rules governing the level and quality of capital held by an insurer and the capital requirements applicable to that firm.

The onshored Solvency II measure of available capital (“Own Funds”) uses UK GAAP shareholders’ funds as a starting point and applies a number of specific adjustments prescribed under onshored Solvency II. The primary adjustments reflect the fact that onshored Solvency II is based on the principle of an economic balance sheet — outstanding reserves and associated reinsurance recoverables being considered on a discounted best-estimate basis. A full reconciliation between the onshored Solvency II and UK GAAP bases is provided in the annual Solvency & Financial Condition Report published on IGI’s website (www.iginsure.com).

The onshored Solvency II measure of required capital, the SCR, is calibrated using the Value at Risk (VaR) of the basic own funds of an insurance or reinsurance undertaking subject to a confidence level of 99.5% over a one-year year period, with a minimum of €4.0 million. IGI UK has chosen the onshored Solvency II Standard Formula (the “Standard Formula”) method to calculate its SCR.

IGI UK has assessed the appropriateness of the Standard Formula on both a qualitative and quantitative basis and considers it to provide an appropriate fit to IGI UK’s business and risk profile.

Specifically, the assessment confirms that the Standard Formula:

The Standard Formula SCR and associated onshored Solvency II Own Funds are recalculated at least quarterly and at other times in response to an actual or projected material change in the risk profile and the results reported in full to the Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee of the UK Board in addition to being communicated to the IGI Bermuda and IGI Holdings Boards.

The adequacy of the IGI UK’s Own Funds to meet the SCR is monitored on an ongoing basis and particularly in the event of an anticipated or actual material impairment in the level of Own Funds.

IGI UK’s audited statutory financial statements submitted to the PRA reflect the foregoing capital adequacy and solvency margin requirements, as well as IGI UK’s actual statutory capital surplus, which exceeded the PRA’s requirements by 52% and 57% in 2022 and 2021, respectively. IGI UK’s draft financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2023 also reflect the foregoing capital adequacy and solvency margin requirements, as well as IGI UK’s actual statutory capital surplus, which exceeded the PRA’s requirements by 76%.

Dubai International Financial Centre (“DIFC”)

IGI, our wholly owned subsidiary, is currently organized under the laws of the DIFC. The DIFC is a financial free zone with its own civil and commercial laws established in the Emirate of Dubai pursuant to Law No. (9) of 2004 issued by the Ruler of Dubai. The DIFC operates within a unique legal and regulatory framework that is distinct from those applicable in the rest of the United Arab Emirates (the “UAE”). Such framework was achieved through a synthesis of UAE federal law and Dubai law, pursuant to: (i) an amendment to Article (121) of the UAE Constitution which deals with the division of powers between Federal and Emirati authorities and allows enacting a financial free zone law, which in turn allows an Emirati Government to create a financial free zone within a particular Emirate; (ii) the enactment of the Federal Law No. (8) of 2004 which exempts financial free zones from all UAE federal civil and commercial laws, thereby permitting the DIFC to have its own civil and commercial laws modelled closely on international standards and principles of common law (although UAE criminal law still applies); and (iii) the Cabinet Resolution No. (28) of 2007 on the Executive Regulations of the Federal Law No. (8) of 2004.

Companies operating in the DIFC are subject to the DIFC Companies Law No. (5) of 2018, the DIFC Operating Law No. (7) of 2018, the DIFC Companies and Operating Regulations as well as other DIFC commercial legislation.

The DFSA administers the DIFC Regulatory Law, DIFC Law No. (1) of 2004. The DIFC Regulatory Law establishes the constitution of the DFSA and enables the creation of the regulatory framework within which entities may be licensed, authorized, registered and supervised by the DFSA.

Dubai Financial Services Authority (“DFSA”)

The DFSA is a financially and administratively independent body that was established on September 13, 2004 by Law No. (9) of 2004 issued by the Ruler of Dubai. The DFSA acts as the independent financial regulator in the DIFC, supervising regulated companies and monitoring their compliance with applicable laws and regulations. The DFSA’s powers as a regulator are granted to it under the provisions of DIFC Regulatory Law. As a result of such provisions, the DFSA is authorized to establish rules that enable it to respond swiftly to market developments and business needs. The DFSA has authority and responsibility for implementing the core financial services related laws that are applicable in the DIFC, including the DIFC Regulatory Law No. (1) of 2004, the DIFC Collective Investment Law No. (2) of 2010, the DIFC Markets Law No. (1) of 2012, the DIFC Law Regulating Islamic Financial Business No. (13) of 2004 and the Investment Trust Law No. (5) of 2006. Furthermore, subsidiary legislation is provided by “Rules” set out in the “DFSA Rulebook,” which is issued under the DIFC Regulatory Law. The DFSA Rulebook is made up of topic-area modules which specify their scope and the audience to whom they apply. The DFSA Rulebook contains additional commentary as guidance which is designed to assist DIFC participants in complying with their legal and related obligations. Certain other matters that are not Rules, such as application forms and returns, are contained in the DFSA Sourcebook modules, which also comprise topic-area modules.

Legislation, rules and regulations governing companies incorporated in the DIFC and financial activities in the DIFC are available on the websites of the DIFC and the DFSA at www.difc.ae and www.dfsa.ae, respectively. We have not independently verified the information contained on these websites and cannot provide any assurance as to the accuracy or completeness of such information. The information contained on these websites does not form a part of, and is not incorporated by reference into, this annual report.

Money Laundering and Financial Crime Regime in the UAE

IGI is registered in the DIFC and is subject to DFSA supervision for the purpose of anti-money laundering compliance in the DIFC. Under Article 70(3) of the DIFC Regulatory Law, the DFSA has jurisdiction for the regulation of anti-money laundering in the DIFC and is the relevant authority that licenses and supervises Relevant Persons in the DIFC for the purposes of the UAE Federal legislation relating to money laundering, terrorist financing, the financing of unlawful organizations or sanctions non-compliance. Further, the UAE criminal law applies in the DIFC and, therefore, companies registered in the DIFC must be aware of their obligations in respect of UAE criminal law as well as the DIFC Regulatory Law. Relevant UAE criminal laws include, but are not limited to, Federal Law No. 20 of 2018 regarding combating money laundering and terrorist financing, Federal Law No. 7 of 2014 regarding combating terrorism offenses, the implementing regulations under those laws and the UAE Penal Code.

Labuan, Malaysia

International General Insurance Co. Ltd. — Labuan Branch (the “Labuan Branch”), a branch of IGI for purposes of engaging in business in Malaysia, is licensed by the Labuan Financial Services Authority as a “second-tier offshore reinsurer,” which means that local brokers may only offer reinsurance business to IGI after first offering it to first-tier reinsurers.

The Labuan Branch is licensed to issue Labuan law-governed policies, including Islamic law-compliant re-takaful policies. The Labuan Branch obtained the approval of the Labuan Financial Services Authority to engage the Labuan Financial Services Authority’s Shariah Supervisory Council as its internal Shariah advisory board, which is permitted under the Directive on Islamic Financial Business in Labuan International Offshore Financial Center.

MFSA requirements

Following its acquisition in June 2021, IGI Europe is subject to regulation by the MFSA. The Solvency Capital Requirement (SCR) for IGI Europe is governed by the Solvency II regime which sets rules governing the level and quality of capital held by an insurer and the capital requirements applicable to that firm.

The Solvency II measure of required capital, the SCR, is calibrated using the Value at Risk (VaR) of the basic own funds of an insurance or reinsurance undertaking subject to a confidence level of 99.5% over a one-year period, with a minimum of €4.0 million. IGI Europe has chosen the Solvency II Standard Formula (the “Standard Formula”) method to calculate its SCR.

IGI has assessed the appropriateness of the Standard Formula on both a qualitative and quantitative basis and considers it to provide an appropriate fit to the Company’s business and risk profile.

Specifically, the assessment confirms that the Standard Formula:

The Standard Formula SCR and associated Solvency II Own Funds are recalculated at least quarterly and at other times in response to an actual or projected material change in the risk profile and the results reported in full to the board of directors of IGI Europe in addition to being communicated to the boards of directors of IGI and IGI Bermuda.

The adequacy of the Company’s Own Funds to meet the SCR is monitored on an ongoing basis and particularly in the event of an anticipated or actual material impairment in the level of Own Funds.

IGI Europe’s audited statutory financial statements submitted to the MFSA reflect the foregoing capital adequacy and solvency margin requirements, as well as IGI Europe’s actual statutory capital surplus. IGI Europe’s draft financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2023 also reflect the foregoing capital adequacy and solvency margin requirements, as well as IGI Europe’s actual statutory capital surplus, which exceeded the MFSA’s requirements by 108%.

Jordan

Our subsidiary, I.G.I Underwriting / Jordan ‘Exempted’ (“IGI Underwriting”), which is based in Amman, Jordan, is subject to regulation of the Insurance Supervision Department of Central Bank of Jordan. The Insurance Supervision Department replaced the Insurance Commission of Jordan pursuant to the restructuring of Institutions and Government Departments Law No 17 of 2014, Article D. The Central Bank of Jordan assumed the role of insurance supervisor and regulator from the Ministry of Industry, Trade and supply in June 2021 following the enactment of the Insurance Regulatory Law No 12 of 2021 and an insurance supervision department was established thereafter. IGI Underwriting is licensed in Jordan under Instruction No. (4) of 2010 “Instructions of Licensing and Regulating the Business & Responsibilities of the Coverholder.” As a licensed offshore entity, IGI Underwriting is required to update certain information with the Insurance Supervision Department annually, including information regarding the following:

Morocco

A representative office of International General Insurance Co. Ltd., which is based in Morocco and serves as our Africa hub, is regulated by the Casablanca Finance City.

Competition

The insurance and reinsurance industries are mature and highly competitive. Competition varies significantly on the basis of product and geography. Insurance and reinsurance companies compete on the basis of many factors, including premium charges, general reputation and perceived financial strength, the terms and conditions of the products offered, ratings assigned by independent rating agencies, speed of claims payments, reputation and experience in the particular risk to be underwritten, quality of service, the jurisdiction where the reinsurer or insurer is licensed or otherwise authorized, capacity and coverages offered and various other factors. Increased competition could result in fewer submissions for our products and services, lower rates charged, slower premium growth and less favorable policy terms and conditions, any of which could adversely impact our growth and profitability.

We compete with major U.S., UK, Bermudian, European and other domestic and international insurers and reinsurers and underwriting syndicates from Lloyd’s, some of which have longer operating histories, more capital and/or more favorable ratings than we do, as well as greater marketing, management and business resources. We also compete with capital market participants that create alternative products, such as catastrophe bonds, that are intended to compete with traditional reinsurance products. In addition to asset managers and reinsurers who provide collateralized reinsurance and retrocessional coverage, the availability of these non-traditional products could reduce the demand for both traditional insurance and reinsurance products.

In recent years, various institutional investors have increasingly sought to participate in the property and casualty insurance and reinsurance industries. Well-capitalized new entrants to the property and casualty insurance and reinsurance industries, or existing competitors that receive substantial infusions of capital, provide increasing competition, which may adversely impact our business and profitability. Further, an expanded supply of reinsurance capital may lower costs for insurers that rely on reinsurance and, as a consequence, those insurers may be able to price their products more competitively.

Litigation and Arbitration

There are no governmental, legal or arbitration proceedings to which we are a party which are expected to have a material effect on our financial position or profitability (including any such proceedings which are pending or threatened or which we are aware of), except as stated below. However, in any given year, litigation could arise which might have an adverse effect on our results for such year. See “Risk Factors — Risks Relating to Our Business and Operations — We are involved in legal and other proceedings from time to time, and we may face damage to our reputation or legal liability as a result”.

In addition, it is not unusual for commercial insurers to engage in disputes with reinsurers regarding the contractual obligations of such reinsurers. Reinsurance is an important risk mitigation measure because it enables us to cede portions of our underwriting risk to others. Although reinsurance does not discharge our subsidiaries from their primary obligation to pay for losses insured under the policies they issue, reinsurance does make the assuming reinsurer liable to the insurance subsidiaries for the reinsured portion of the risk. As of December 31, 2023, the amount owed to us from our reinsurers for paid claims was approximately $10.8 million and the portion of our case reserves due from reinsurers was approximately $117.4 million. In some cases, there can be disputes with reinsurers over their contractual obligations and their understanding of our maximum liability for the underlying insurance policy which is being reinsured. Insurers can seek to avoid reinsurance policies for a variety of reasons, including allegations that they did not appreciate our maximum liability. In some cases, these disputes and disagreements can result in arbitration or even litigation, initiated in some cases by us and in some cases by our reinsurers.

C. Organizational Structure

The following diagram depicts the organizational structure of the Company and its subsidiaries as of the date of this annual report.

D. Property, Plants and Equipment

IGI leases properties in each of the jurisdictions where it operates pursuant to long-term leases. The Company also directly holds a commercial building located in Amman, Jordan. Refer to Note 2(h) to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 18 of this annual report for further details about property and equipment. IGI does not consider any of these properties and leases to be material to its business.

ITEM 4A. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

Not applicable.

ITEM 5. OPERATING AND FINANCIAL REVIEW AND PROSPECTS

This section should be read in conjunction with the “Business” section and the consolidated financial statements of IGI which are included elsewhere in this annual report. The financial information contained herein is taken or derived from such consolidated financial statements, unless otherwise indicated. The following discussion contains forward-looking statements. Our actual results could differ materially from those that are discussed in these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include those discussed below and elsewhere in this annual report, particularly under “Risk Factors.”

Introduction

We are a highly-rated global provider of specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions in over 200 countries and territories. We underwrite a diversified portfolio of specialty risks including energy, property, construction and engineering, ports and terminals, general aviation, political violence, professional lines (non-U.S.), financial institutions, marine and treaty reinsurance. Our size affords us the ability to be nimble and seek out profitable niches that can generate attractive underwriting results. Our underwriting focus is supported by exceptional service to our clients and brokers. Founded in 2001, we and our predecessors have prudently grown our business with a focus on underwriting profitability and risk-adjusted shareholder returns. 

Our primary objective is to underwrite specialty products that maximize return on equity subject to prudent risk constraints on the amount of capital we expose to any single event. We follow a careful and disciplined underwriting strategy with a focus on individually underwritten specialty risks through in-depth assessment of the underlying exposure. We use data analytics and modern technology to offer our clients flexible products and customized and granular pricing. We manage our risks through a variety of means, including contract terms, portfolio selection and underwriting and geographic diversification. Our underwriting strategy is supplemented by a comprehensive risk transfer program with reinsurance coverage from highly-rated reinsurers that we believe lowers our volatility of earnings and provides appropriate levels of protection in the event of a major loss event.

We conduct our worldwide operations through three reportable segments under U.S. GAAP segment reporting: specialty long-tail, specialty short-tail and reinsurance. Our specialty long-tail segment includes (a) our professional lines of business, which includes our professional indemnity, directors and officers, legal expenses, intellectual property and other casualty lines of business, (b) our financial institutions line of business, (c) our marine liability line of business and (d) our inherent defects insurance line of business. Our specialty short-tail segment includes our energy (upstream, downstream and renewable), property, construction and engineering, political violence, ports and terminals, general aviation, marine cargo and contingency lines of business. Our reinsurance segment includes our inward reinsurance treaty business.

In addition, we have a corporate function (“Corporate”) which includes the activities of our holding company and certain functions, including investment management. Corporate includes investment income on a managed basis and other non-segment expenses, predominantly general and administrative, stock compensation, finance and transaction expenses. Corporate also includes the activities of certain key executives such as the President and Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Financial Officer. Our corporate expenses and investment results are presented separately within the corporate segment section.

Description of Certain Income Statement Line Items

The definition and method of calculation of certain line items from IGI’s consolidated income statement are provided below:

Gross written premiums

Gross written premiums comprise the total premiums receivable for the whole period of cover provided by contracts entered into during the accounting period. They are recognized on the date on which the policy commences. Premiums include any adjustments arising in the accounting period for premiums receivable in respect of business written in prior accounting periods. Rebates that form part of the premium rate, such as no-claim rebates, are deducted from the gross premium; others are recognized as an expense. Premiums also include estimates for pipeline premiums, representing amounts due on business written but not yet notified. We generally estimate the pipeline premium based on management’s judgment and prior experience.

Ceded written premiums

Ceded written premiums comprise the total premiums payable for the reinsurance cover provided by retrocession contracts entered into during the year and are recognized on the date on which the policy incepts. Premiums include any adjustments arising in the accounting period in respect of reinsurance contracts incepting in prior accounting periods.

Net change in unearned premiums

Unearned premiums related to gross written premiums constitutes the proportion of premiums written in a year that relate to periods of risk after the reporting date. Unearned premiums are calculated on a pro rata basis. The proportion attributable to subsequent periods is deferred as a provision for unearned premiums.

Unearned reinsurance premiums related to ceded written premiums constitute the proportion of premiums written in a year that relate to periods of risk after the reporting date. Unearned reinsurance premiums are deferred over the term of the underlying direct insurance policies for risk-attaching contracts and over the term of the reinsurance contract for losses-occurring contracts.

Investment income

Investment income is comprised of interest and dividend income, net of investment custodian fees and other investment expenses.

Net realized gain (loss) on investments

Net realized gain and loss on investments is comprised of realized gain and loss on the sale of fixed maturity securities available-for-sale at fair value, equity securities at fair value and other investments.

Net unrealized gain (loss) on investments

Net unrealized gain (loss) on investments includes unrealized loss on revaluation of equity securities at fair value and other investments, in addition to the unrealized gain (loss) on equity-method investments at fair value which the Company has elected to account for using the fair value option.

Change in allowance for expected credit losses on investments

Change in allowance for expected credit losses on investments include an allowance for expected credit losses (ECLs) for fixed maturity securities available-for-sale at fair value and fixed maturity securities held to maturity.

Change in fair value of derivative financial liabilities

The Company’s derivative financial liabilities include its warrants and outstanding earn out shares, which must be recorded at fair value with subsequent changes in fair value recorded in the consolidated statement of income at the end of each reporting period. The Company repurchased and redeemed all of its outstanding Warrants in September and October 2023.

Other revenues

Other revenues comprise mainly chartered flights revenues and rental income.

Net loss and loss adjustment expenses

Losses, comprising amounts payable to contract holders and third parties and related loss adjustment expenses, net of salvage and other recoveries, are charged to income as incurred. Losses comprise the estimated amounts payable, in respect of losses reported to us and those not reported at the consolidated statement of financial position date.

We generally estimate our losses based on appointed loss adjusters or leading underwriters’ recommendations. In addition, a provision based on management’s judgment and our prior experience is maintained for the cost of settling losses incurred but not reported at the consolidated statement of financial position date.

Net loss and loss adjustment expenses constitute losses and loss adjustments expenses net of reinsurers’ share of loss.

Net policy acquisition expenses

Net policy acquisition expenses represent commissions paid in relation to the acquisition and renewal of insurance and retrocession contracts which are deferred and expensed over the same period over which the corresponding premiums are recognized in accordance with the earning pattern of the underlying contract. Net policy acquisition expenses are net of ceding commissions received on business ceded under certain reinsurance contracts.

General and administrative expenses

General and administrative expenses is comprised of human resources expenses, business promotion, travel and entertainment expenses, statutory, advisory and rating expenses, information technology and software expenses, office operation expenses, depreciation and amortization, bank charges and board of directors’ expenses.

Change in allowance for expected credit losses on receivables

Change in allowance for expected credit losses on receivables includes an allowance for expected credit losses on premiums receivables and reinsurance recoverables.

Other expenses

Other expenses consist mainly of aircraft operational cost and depreciation.

Net foreign exchange gain (loss)

Gain (loss) on foreign exchange represents gains and/or losses incurred as a result of foreign currency transactions.

Income tax expense

Income tax expense reflects (1) income tax payable by IGI Labuan in accordance with the Labuan Business Activities Tax Act 1990, (2) tax payable by IGI Casablanca pursuant to the Casablanca Finance City Tax Code, (3) corporate tax payable by IGI UK and North Star Underwriting Limited in accordance with UK tax law and (4) corporate tax payable by IGI Europe in accordance with Malta income tax law. IGI Bermuda is a tax-exempt company. IGI Holdings (a DIFC-registered company) and IGI Dubai are not subject to income tax according to the UAE tax law, and IGI Underwriting is a tax-exempt company in Jordan. IGI Nordic AS is subject to income tax according to Norwegian tax law.

A. Operating Results

The following section reviews IGI’s results of operations during the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. The discussion includes presentations of IGI’s results on a consolidated basis and on a segment-by-segment basis. As of January 1, 2023, IGI began to prepare its consolidated financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Prior to January 1, 2023, IGI’s financial statements were prepared in accordance with IFRS as adopted by the International Accounting Standards Board. Accordingly, the results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2023 have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP and the results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, which were previously prepared in accordance with IFRS, are presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP.

Results of Operations — Consolidated

The following table summarizes IGI’s consolidated statement of income for the years indicated:

Year ended December 31, 2023 compared to year ended December 31, 2022 (Consolidated)

Gross written premiums

Gross written premiums increased 18.3% from $582.0 million in 2022 to $688.7 million in 2023. This was primarily due to 26.2% growth (or $83.3 million) in the specialty short-tail segment, and 94.0% growth (or $29.6 million) in the reinsurance segment, which was partially offset by a 2.7% decline (or $6.2 million) in the specialty long-tail segment. The increase in gross written premiums was the result of new business generated across most of the lines in our short-tail segment and our reinsurance segment, supported by the increase in overall premium renewal rates in these segments and benefitting from sustained hard market conditions in many of our reinsurance and short-tail lines.

Ceded written premiums

Ceded written premiums increased 1.2% from $189.2 million in 2022 to $191.5 million in 2023. The increase in ceded written premiums was due to the increase in gross written premiums, offset by a 10.7% decrease in facultative reinsurance purchases within the short-tail segment.

Net change in unearned premiums

Net change in unearned premiums increased more than two-fold from expense of $16.4 million in 2022 to expense of $50.0 million in 2023. The increase in net change in unearned premiums of $33.6 million was due to the increase in net written premiums in our short-tail segment and our reinsurance segment.

Net premiums earned

As a result of the foregoing, net premiums earned increased 18.8% from $376.4 million in 2022 to $447.2 million in 2023.

Investment income

Investment income (comprised of interest and dividend income, net of investment custodian fees and other investment expenses) increased 93.3% from $20.9 million in 2022 to $40.4 million in 2023. This was primarily due to a $19.4 million increase in interest income which was attributable to the rise in interest rates compared to the same period of 2022 along with a greater amount of funds invested in fixed maturity securities.

Net realized gain (loss) on investments

Net realized gain (loss) on investments reflects a net gain of $6.7 million in 2023 compared to a net loss of $0.7 million in 2022. This change was primarily due to a realized gain on the sale of equity securities benefiting from positive market conditions.

Net unrealized gain (loss) on investments

Net unrealized gain (loss) on investments reflects a net gain of $2.7 million in 2023 compared to a net loss of $5.5 million in 2022. This change was due to a mark to market revaluation gain recorded on equity securities and other investments during the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to an unrealized loss in the year ended December 31, 2022. This was offset by the unrealized loss on equity-method investments at fair value which decreased from a gain of $0.3 million in the year ended December 31, 2022 to a loss of $1.4 million in the year ended December 31, 2023.

Change in fair value of derivative financial liabilities

Change in fair value of derivative financial liabilities decreased from a gain of $4.6 million in 2022 to a loss of $27.3 million in 2023. The change of $31.9 million was a result of (1) the increase in the fair value of warrants upon settlement of warrants in cash pursuant to the Company’s offer to purchase all of its outstanding warrants at an average purchase price of $0.95 per warrant in cash and related redemption of warrants, and (2) the increase in the fair value of the earnout shares which was driven by an increase in the quoted market price of IGI’s common shares, as the market price crossed the first tranche in the vesting schedule of the earnout shares.

Net loss and loss adjustment expenses

Net loss and loss adjustment expenses increased 20.0% from $157.6 million in 2022 to $189.1 million in 2023. This was primarily due to the increase in current accident year losses in all segments in 2023 compared to 2022, which also included a higher current year catastrophe (“CAT”) losses within the short-tail and reinsurance segments. The increase in current accident year losses was partially offset by higher favorable development on loss reserves from prior accident years within the short-tail and reinsurance segments. See “Operating and Financial Review and Prospects — Reserves — Reserving Results & Development.”

IGI’s loss ratio increased by 0.4 percentage points from 41.9% for the year ended December 31, 2022 to 42.3% for the year ended December 31, 2023. This increase was primarily attributable to a lower favorable development on loss reserves from prior accident years, which was $39.3 million or 8.8 percentage points for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $42.0 million or 11.2 points for the year ended December 31, 2022. In addition, the increase in IGI’s loss ratio was attributable to the higher current accident year CAT losses, which were $38.3 million or 8.6 points for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $24.4 million or 6.5 points for the year ended December 31, 2022.

The tables below outline reported incurred losses on catastrophe events in the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022.