Kentucky Ranks 9th in U.S. for Captive Insurers

Kentucky is among the top 10 states in the nation and the top 25 locations in the world for captive insurers, according to the March 2008 issue of Business Insurance. A captive is a specialized type of insurance company formed to insure the business risks of a corporate parent or a number of similar corporations (such as a trade association). Captive insurers are licensed and regulated by the Kentucky Office of Insurance. During the last three years, Kentucky has updated its captive law, passed a resolution supporting the industry, and hired a full-time coordinator to handle market development and to oversee the regulation and licensing of these entities. The number of licensed captives in the commonwealth grew from 10 to 31 during 2007. According to Business Insurance, this growth places Kentucky ninth in the United States behind Vermont, Hawaii, South Carolina, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, the District of Columbia and New York. Internationally, Kentucky is tied for 21st place. Bermuda leads the world with 958 captives. Vermont, the top U.S. captive state, is third in the world with 567.