Gibraltar has established a new category of protected cell company (PCC) specifically tailored for the insurance linked securities (ILS) sector. The new category of PCC to be known as a SPV PCC will be regulated under Gibraltar’s Insurance Companies (Special Purpose Vehicles) Regulations 2009.
SPV PCCs will only be permitted to establish cells that are 100% collateralised and as a result the solvency capital requirement for the core capital of the SPV PCC will be £500. Albert Isola, Gibraltar’s Minister of Financial Services stated “This is yet another example of how we can innovate and work together with the private sector and the regulator to be at the forefront of new quality business for our Jurisdiction.
The launch of SPV PCCs is the next step in our ambition to become the premier ILS jurisdiction within the European Union. The SPV PCCs will complement Gibraltar’s existing standalone insurance SPVs.” When Gibraltar’s financial services regulator, the GFSC, published its ILS Guidelines in 2014 it established concise timescales for the authorisation of insurance linked securities. The SPV PCCs will be subject to the same timescales to ensure the insurance and capital markets can structure ILS transactions in Gibraltar with confidence that the authorisation process will be swift and transparent whilst at all times maintaining the regulatory integrity and reputation of the jurisdiction.
