The U.K. government will develop a corporate tax structure to allow insurance-linked securities to be domiciled in the United Kingdom, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced Wednesday in his budget presentation.
Mr. Osborne’s statement followed a pledge he made in December to explore ways to attract more global reinsurance business to the United Kingdom.
In his speech Wednesday, he presented his final budget before elections slated for May. Mr. Osborne said the government would work with regulators and the insurance and reinsurance industry to develop a corporate and tax regime to build on the United Kingdom’s position as a leading marketplace for reinsurance.
“The IUA welcomes the Chancellor’s comments on global reinsurance in the budget and looks forward to learning in more detail about his plans to help make the London market as competitive as possible,” Dave Matcham, CEO of the International Underwriting Association, said in a statement. “We hope this will prove a positive first step in a long-term project for our industry to work collaboratively with H.M. (Her Majesty’s) Treasury to explore more ways of attracting international business.”
Continued consolidation in the London market is being driven by the changing needs of customers and brokers, along with tighter capital rules for underwriters.