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Feb 2019

News


Asian

Asia: Cryptocurrency industry faces insurance hurdle

Cryptocurrency exchanges and traders in Asia are struggling to insure themselves against the risk of hacking and theft, reported Reuters. The lack of insurance is deterring large fund managers from investing in a nascent market.
 


Australia: Further actions required by industry and govt on insurance in super

The prospects of recent insurance-specific initiatives to address the deficiencies of insurance arrangements in superannuation are limited, noted the Productivity Commission.
 


Bangladesh: Two companies may receive insurance licences

The Bangladesh government is set to hand out licences for new insurance companies even though many recently established insurers are yet to find a toehold in the industry despite five years of operation.
 


China: Insurers struggle with immediate operational concerns

Small and medium-sized insurance companies are facing operational and financial pressures, according to an assessment by United Credit Ratings.
 


Hong Kong: First-ever blockchain system launched for motor insurance authentication

The Hong Kong Federation of Insurers (HKFI) has launched its Motor Insurance DLT-based Authentication System (MIDAS), a blockchain application to help authenticate motor insurance cover notes/policies. DLT stands for distributed ledger technology.
 


India: Farmers turn away from crop insurance scheme

Subscription to the government-backed flagship crop insurance scheme – named Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) – has seen a steep decline, driven by pay-outs which are either delayed by months or not settled altogether.
 


Indonesia: Reinsurer adds up 2018 Nat CAT claims

Reasuransi Indonesia Utama (Indonesia Re) has said that the total general reinsurance claims received due to the many natural disasters that hit Indonesia during 2018 reached more than IDR284bn ($20m).
 


Japan: Unusually high number of Nat CAT seen in 2018

Japan was hit by an unusually high number of weather-related disasters and geophysical natural catastrophes last year, according to a report by global reinsurance giant Munich Re.
 


Malaysia: Free national health insurance scheme launched

The National B40 Protection Scheme was launched on 1 January with an initial fund size of MYR2bn ($486m).
 


Pakistan: Regulator obliges insurers to have cyber cover

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has issued directives requiring insurers to have cyber risk insurance, because of the increase in such risks due to growing reliance on technology.
 


Singapore: InsurTech start-up signs MoUs for insurance solutions

InsurTech start-up PAL Network has signed memoranda of understanding (MOU) with Toyota Tsusho Corporation (Toyota Tsusho) and Allianz Malaysia to develop proof-of-concept (POC) using its blockchain technology for new smart contract-based insurance products.
 


South Korea: Regulator plans to conduct in-depth audits

The Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) will revive a comprehensive audit of financial institutions as early as March, according to the financial watchdog.
 


Taiwan: Life insurers look at US municipal bonds

Taiwan’s insurance companies are paying attention to the US municipal bond market, following an announcement in November by Taiwanese regulators that domestic life insurers could buy US municipal revenue bonds, reported Bloomberg.
 


Thailand: New insurance regulations take effect on 1 January


Vietnam: Insurance premiums jump in 2018

Total revenue in Vietnam’s insurance industry is estimated to have reached VND133tn ($5.7bn) in 2018, about 25% higher than in 2017 and exceeding the industry’s annual target of VND129.24tn set early last year, according to the Insurance Association of Vietnam (IAV). 
 


Global

Surge in UK insurance fraud cases in 2018 - KPMG

KPMG’s recently released Fraud Barometer found that the number of fraud cases reaching courts in the UK rose by 78% in 2018. The research, which records cases of alleged fraud with a value of more than £100,000 ($129,000) found that 453 cases with a total value of £1.2bn come to court across the UK last year.
 


Risk

APAC: Cyber a close second to business interruption among top concerns for companies - Allianz

Cyber risk has emerged as a core concern for Asia Pacific (APAC) businesses in 2019, just narrowly edged out by business interruption (BI) which continues to be top business threat for the seventh year running, according to the Allianz Risk Barometer 2019.