Willis Group Holdings plc has opened a new office on the island of Malta to serve its growing captive and commercial insurance clients in the region.A pioneer in providing Maltese based captive management services, Willis’ Malta operation has experienced substantial growth in the past year. Seven full time Willis associates based in Floriana now bring the services of the wider Group to bear on a growing portfolio of local clients.
The official office opening took place on September 19th and the Chairman of the Malta Financial Services Authority, Professor Joe Bannister, attended as a guest speaker.
“The presence of a global insurance broker such as Willis is proof that Malta is a jurisdiction of repute with solid regulation,” said Bannister. “The presence of Willis assumes great importance because it shows that Malta—now a Member State of the EU—is able to attract large multinationals to the island. The indications are that we are going to continue achieving this despite the economic and financial turbulence.”
Commenting on the news, Nigel Goodlad, Managing Director of Willis Management (Malta) Limited said: “We are now even better positioned to take our insurance company management business forward in an attractive EU location and modern office environment. Malta has a number of unique characteristics that make it an interesting location for our clients. The combination of the ability to write risk across the European Economic Area (EEA), an accessible regulator and a pleasant place to do business makes for an attractive business proposition.”
Malcolm Cutts Watson, Chairman of the Willis Global Practice - International, added: “Malta is an expanding financial services centre with close links to many European financial hubs enabling European organisations to easily set up their captives here. They are impressed by the business centric experience provided by Malta. This applies not only to captives but also third party underwriters writing commercial books of risk.”
The new office is located at Development House on St. Anne Street in Floriana, just outside the Maltese capital of Valletta.
Willis Group Holdings plc is a leading global insurance broker. Through its subsidiaries, Willis develops and delivers professional insurance, reinsurance, risk management, financial and human resource consulting and actuarial services to corporations, public entities and institutions around the world. Willis has more than 400 offices in nearly 120 countries, with a global team of approximately 17,000 employees serving clients in virtually every part of the world. Additional information on Willis may be found at www.willis.com.