Bermuda Risk Summit 2026 zeros in on AI, pricing pressure, and re/insurance's next chapter
The Bermuda Risk Summit returns March 9-11 at the Hamilton Princess & Beach Club, and the timing couldn't be sharper. With rates easing in property reinsurance and capital at record highs, senior leaders will be weighing how to grow without giving away the store.
EY-Parthenon chief economist Gregory Daco will headline again with a keynote titled "Great Rebalance: The Next Phase of Global Growth." He'll unpack how shifts in monetary and fiscal policy, demographics, labor markets, and artificial intelligence are changing the operating environment. "In 2026, the focus shifts from diagnosis to adaptation, as supply shocks increasingly drive economic outcomes and uncertainty becomes a constant," Daco said. Expect a clear push for practical strategy, not theory.
Why this year matters for re/insurance
AM Best moved its global reinsurance outlook to stable from positive, citing faster reductions in property re pricing. After multiple hard years, leverage has swung back toward buyers. It's the sixth straight year with insured catastrophe losses above US$100 billion, yet capacity keeps building.
Heading into 2026, estimates point to roughly US$540 billion in traditional capital and US$120 billion in ILS capital. That blend is resetting terms, attachments, and structures. The message: discipline will be tested, cycle speed is increasing, and differentiation will come from data, execution, and balance sheet agility.
What to watch in Bermuda
- Pricing and cycle signals: Track risk-adjusted rate-on-line, attachment migration, and quota share cedes across peak zones. Watch for how retro behaves and whether cedants push for broader terms after a strong 1/1.
- Alternative capital: ILS inflows are back. Expect debate on cat bond pipeline, sidecar terms, collateral mechanics, and how basis risk is being managed in wildfire and heat exposures.
- Cat resilience: Wildfire and heat risk will get airtime. Look for updates on event definitions, secondary peril modeling, and portfolio aggregation controls to prevent silent accumulation.
- AI for productivity: Practical uses in underwriting, exposure data hygiene, claims triage, and portfolio steering. The edge will come from faster feedback loops, better data governance, and auditability-especially for regulatory and rating scrutiny. For role-focused workflows and practical modules, see AI Productivity Courses.
- Private credit and the asset side: How insurers and reinsurers are using private markets for yield while managing liquidity, duration, and RBC/BSCR impacts.
Questions to bring to your team
- Where can we trade rate for structure (or vice versa) without weakening expected margin?
- Which perils or regions justify incremental exposure given our view of frequency drift and loss creep?
- What is our minimum data standard for underwriting this year, and how will we enforce it with brokers and cedants?
- Which AI use cases are ready for production now, and how will we monitor bias, drift, and control failures?
- How does rising ILS capacity change our retro strategy and peak-zone aggregates?
Program highlights
The agenda spans reinsurance performance, alternative capital, catastrophe resilience, wildfire and heat risk, AI, and private credit. CEO-level discussions and targeted networking will frame the capital cycle and near-term growth plays.
EY returns as headline sponsor for the fifth year. Craig Redcliffe, EY Bermuda partner and regional insurance leader, said Daco's participation supports the firm's goal of delivering forward-looking economic insight to industry leaders. Kendaree Burgess, managing director of the Bermuda Business Development Agency, noted, "Gregory Daco brings clarity at a moment when businesses need it most," adding that his 2025 session set a benchmark for this year's agenda.
Useful context and next steps
- For background on the outlook shift and recent cycle signals, see AM Best's resources at ambest.com.
- If you're formalizing AI skills for underwriting, actuarial, or claims teams, explore role-based options at Complete AI Training.
Bottom line: 2026 is about allocation and execution. Go in with a clear view on where you'll add exposure, where you'll pass, and how AI and alternative capital will help you hold margins while competitors chase volume.
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