The (Re)in Essence
Friday 01 Mar 2024 edition
• HSBC Life Hong Kong set a new Guinness World Record by selling a US$250 million individual life insurance policy this year.
• Ultra-high-net-worth individuals are increasingly turning to life insurance solutions as a tool to facilitate wealth transfers and legacy planning.
• HSBC has sold 10 other policies worth US$50 million or more over the past year.
• Philippines flood and tropical cyclone risks combine to inflict potential losses, as a proportion of GDP, eight times greater than the second most at-risk country - the US.
• Seven of the ten most exposed countries globally from a list of 36 jurisdictions analysed by the Swiss Re Institute are located in Asia Pac.
• Private capital could play a greater role in combating climate change, with green issues currently making up less than 5% of the global bond market.
• The Paris Agreement aims to limit climate change to 1.5°C is ‘improbable’, and a 2.7°C warming by 2100 is now likely.
• S&P Global Ratings affirms Blue Cross (Asia-Pacific) Insurance's ratings at 'A+' with a stable outlook.
• Affirmation comes after S&P's new framework for risk-based capital criteria from 15 Nov 2023.
• S&P expects Blue Cross to have strong capital and earnings until 2025.
• A rating change within the next two years is seen as unlikely by S&P.
• Keiji Nishizawa is set to resign as Chairman of Sompo Japan Insurance according to Nippon.com.
• Moves would come after Sompo Japan was implicated in a scandal with Bigmotor, a used car dealership, which led to an FSA raid and improvement order for the insurer to improve internal controls and monitoring.
• Involvement in 'cartel' activity with other major Japanese insurers also believed to be a contributor to decision.
• Giichi Shirakawa, President of Sompo Japan, left the business in January.
• Tokio Marine & Nichido, Sompo Japan, Mitsui Sumitomo, and Aioi Nissay Dowa will sell all cross-shareholdings valued at JPY6.5tn (US$43bn) over the new few years, according to Nikkei Asia
• Cross-shareholdings is a practice where companies hold stock in one another to cement business relationships and is common in Japan.
• Move follows FSA investigation into alleged collusion to set premiums.
• Business improvement order, resulting from investigation, asked insurers to accelerate sales of cross-shareholding sales.
Minnitt, who was Head of Singapore, will now oversee Aon's strategy across the new sub-region.
Oliver's role grows as he takes on additional responsibility for Thailand, and Vietnam in addition to the Philippines,
