In an era of economic volatility and rapid digital transformation, Asia’s insurance landscape presents both formidable challenges and extraordinary opportunities. As Allianz Asia’s Mr Vojtech Pivný settles into his role, the region’s diverse markets demand a sophisticated balance between financial discipline and customer-focused innovation.
The Asia-Pacific region has long been characterised by its economic dynamism, but recent years have brought heightened volatility to both macroeconomic conditions and regulatory frameworks. For Allianz Asia’s CFO Vojtech Pivný, strengthening financial resilience sits at the heart of his immediate agenda.
“Our financial strategy is more than a series of targets – it is the compass guiding our purpose to secure a better tomorrow for millions across the region,” Mr Pivný said. This philosophy underpins a multifaceted approach to maintaining robust balance sheets whilst ensuring disciplined risk-taking across diverse markets.
Central to this strategy is the alignment of capital deployment with risks they can predict and hedge properly. In an environment where inflation pressures persist and investment markets remain volatile, such prudent capital management becomes not merely a safeguard but a competitive advantage. He added that capital efficiency serves as a core enabler of affordability and customer value, allowing the company to offer competitive and sustainable products without burdening customers with unnecessary costs.
Beyond balance sheet management, significant investment is flowing into human capital development. Upskilling teams across markets to strengthen local capabilities, financial governance, and regulatory fluency represents a crucial pillar of the strategy. This focus on people ensures that Allianz Asia remains not only compliant but genuinely future-ready as markets evolve.
Leveraging strength through diversification
Allianz Asia is entering this transformative period from a position of considerable strength. The company’s diversified business model spans health and P&C insurance, with strong market positions across both mature and emerging Asian markets. This diversification provides natural resilience against market-specific shocks whilst offering multiple avenues for growth.
In the near term, Mr Pivný’s focus centres on disciplined capital allocation guided by local solvency developments. Best-in-class asset-liability matching helps manage interest rate volatility, whilst cost efficiency measures aim not merely to reduce expenses but to keep products affordable and margins sustainable. This customer-centric approach to cost management distinguishes the strategy from traditional cost-cutting exercises.
Looking further ahead, the ambition extends to strengthening financial governance and embedding economic value-based frameworks. These initiatives enable profitable growth whilst maintaining alignment with both shareholder expectations and customer needs. He is clear that financial decisions never lose sight of the human element, noting that customers rely on insurers to be present when it matters most – a responsibility that shapes every strategic choice.
Allianz Asia also sees an opportunity to contribute beyond its own operations. By bringing global best practices in capital and risk management to support regulatory evolution across the region, the company aims to add value across the broader industry, facilitating the development of more sophisticated and resilient insurance markets throughout Asia.
Leading retail insurance
The strategic vision Mr Pivný outlined for Allianz Asia is both ambitious and focused. “Our ambition is to become a leading retail insurer in the markets we operate in by 2030, with a focus on life and health protection that is scalable, relevant, and capital-efficient,” he said.
Achieving this ambition requires a multifaceted approach. Strengthening governance and balance sheet discipline provides the foundation, whilst investments in sustainable growth levers – including agency channels, digital platforms, and strategic partnerships – drive expansion. As markets throughout the region transition towards more sophisticated solvency and accounting regimes, Allianz Asia positions itself to both navigate and support these regulatory developments.
Crucially, the strategy recognises that people represent the heartbeat of the organisation. “We develop them through a culture of continuous learning, empowerment, and inclusivity,” he said.
Navigating Asia’s complex insurance landscape
Asia’s insurance landscape reflects the broader characteristics of the region: diverse, fragmented, and rapidly evolving. Mr Pivný identified several trends shaping the market, beginning with the widening protection gap in Southeast Asia. In many markets, private insurance plays a crucial role in supplementing underdeveloped social welfare systems, creating both social responsibility and commercial opportunity.
Demographic shifts compound these challenges and opportunities. By 2030, an estimated 60% of Asia’s population will be under 40 years old. This younger demographic cohort brings different expectations – demanding digital-first solutions whilst often remaining significantly underinsured. He framed this dual challenge of financial and digital inclusion not as a risk but as a growth opportunity, one that requires innovative approaches to product design and distribution.
On the regulatory front, many Asian markets are transitioning to more sophisticated solvency and accounting regimes. Rather than viewing this evolution as a compliance burden, he sees Allianz Asia as well-positioned to navigate and actively support these changes. Leveraging global expertise in capital, risk, and balance sheet management, the company aims to help shape regulatory frameworks in partnership with local authorities.
“Ultimately, our ability to combine global capability with local relevance differentiates us,” he said, “enabling us to build solutions that are technically sound and tailored to Asia’s unique demographic, economic, and digital dynamics.”
Commitment to growth and impact
Looking specifically at 2026, Mr Pivný confirmed that Allianz Asia has set clear financial targets aligned with the group’s Capital Markets Day commitments. These include double-digit operating profit growth, return on equity of 17%, and driving operating capital generation through disciplined expansion of life and health portfolios. Strong New Business Value growth in recent years has created a foundation for sustainable operating profit, which the team expects to build upon.
However, he is emphatic that success cannot be measured purely in financial terms. Every capital and product decision now incorporates a customer-focused lens to ensure that strategy delivers real protection outcomes for families and businesses across Asia. Simultaneously, efforts to strengthen the financial function support long-term scalability, agility, and trust – both internally within the organisation and externally with stakeholders.
“While strong performance matters, our true measure of success lies in the trust we earn, the lives we touch, and the confidence we inspire,” he said. This perspective frames success through customer assurance, employee growth and wellbeing, and contributions to communities – metrics that complement rather than replace traditional financial indicators.
As he elaborated, the team gauges impact through these qualitative measures alongside quantitative targets, recognising that sustainable financial performance ultimately flows from delivering genuine value to customers and communities. A