Jersey Insurance Business Transfer Schemes

According to a report earlier this year published by Grant Thornton (Global Insurers – Mergers & Acquisitions) "... improved macroeconomic conditions in developed countries, allied to the availability of attractive financing options is having a positive effect on [insurance] firms' appetite to re-enter the M&A market." They also suggest that domestic consolidation has emerged as a key theme in developed markets. We have witnessed more activity and consolidation in recent years in the insurance sector, particularly in Appleby's Guernsey, Isle of Man and Jersey offices.

Insurance practitioners planning a merger or acquisition need to consider when part of the target's business is conducted in Jersey that it is likely that the jurisdiction of the Jersey courts may overlap with the jurisdiction of foreign courts and that a Jersey scheme of transfer may be required in order that the business transfer is recognised in Jersey.