Magazine

Read the latest edition of AIR and MEIR as an Interactive e-book

Jun 2014

News


Asia: Japanese firms focussing more on ASEAN than China

Japanese firms are focussing more on ASEAN countries and moving away from China which had traditionally been the companies' key investment target as the Middle Kingdom appears to be undergoing a relative decline due to factors such as soaring personnel costs, said Dr Tomikazu Hiraga, Senior Research Fellow and General Manager for Asia, NLI Research Institute, in his new series on ASEAN Economic Integration and Japanese companies.

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Asia: Device to mitigate electronic losses

Stasis, a provider of scientific and technological products for the disaster recovery and insurance industries, has launched an electronic loss mitigation device to protect equipment from corrosion and help insurers save billions of dollars.

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Asia: Peak Re signs agreement with MacquarRe to access ANZ markets

Peak Reinsurance Co Ltd, a Hong Kong-based reinsurer has signed a cooperation agreement with MacquarRe, a Sydney-based reinsurance consultancy.

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China: Study says China's regulators can do more to encourage overseas forays

Although regulations in China allow insurance companies to invest up to 15% of their total assets overseas, the current percentage of Chinese insurers that have gone overseas is only 4%, according to a study made by the China Insurance and Social Security Research Center at Fudan University.

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India: New government likely to push FDI hike in insurance

With the new central government getting a majority of its own and not needing the support of its allies, passage of the Insurance Bill in Parliament has become easier given the pro-business stand of the new Prime Minister.

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India: GIC Re in talks for a nuclear insurance pool

GIC Re, India's national reinsurer, is discussing with the country's four public sector general insurers - New India Assurance, Oriental Insurance, National Insurance and United India - to set up the country's first nuclear insurance pool.

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India: ING Vysya Life is now Exide Life

ING Vysya Life Insurance Company has been renamed Exide Life Insurance Company, following Exide Industries acquiring 100% ownership of the insurance company last year.

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Indonesia: Highly exposed Jakarta has US$10 bln protection gap

Jakarta is highly exposed to natural disasters including risks of floods, earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions, said Swiss Re, and close to 28 million people in the Greater Jakarta area could potentially be affected if an earthquake or river floods strikes the city.

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Indonesia: Fairfax acquires 80% of Batavia Miratama Insurance

Toronto-headquartered Fairfax Financial Holdings has, through its wholly-owned subsidiary Fairfax Asia, entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire 80% of Batavia Mitratama Insurance ("Batavia"), an Indonesian insurer.

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FWD Life Insurance enters the Philippines

FWD Group has been granted a license to operate its life insurance business in the Philippines.

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Malaysia: AmBank Group and MetLife forge partnership

AMAB Holdings Sdn Bhd, and MetLife International Holdings, Inc have completed the signing of a stock purchase agreement which was witnessed by YAB Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, Prime Minister of Malaysia and President of the United States of America, Barack Obama when the latter visited the country in his four-country Asian tour in late April.

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Singapore: Contract certainty deadline by December 2014

With a market goal that 85% of all reinsurance contracts that are either purchased, intermediated or reinsured by MAS-regulated entities will be contract certain by December 2014, the Contract Certainty Working Group (CCWG) has reported that this target is achievable.

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Gard opens new office in Singapore

Gard has opened its 14th office in its global network in Singapore last month. The office will be led by Mr John Martin, who has extensive claims experience across Asia, and who has previously worked in the Gard offices in Hong Kong and Tokyo.

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Singapore is 2nd largest market for credit and political risk insurance in the world

Singapore is now the second largest market worldwide for credit and political risk insurance covers, after London. Premiums for the insurance held with Singapore-registered insurers have increased about 10.4% per year since 2008 to reach S$120.4 million (US$95.8 million) in 2013, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

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Singapore: Cyber-protector indemnity policy for individuals

Singapore is the first country outside of France to offer AXA's cyber-protector indemnity policy which will protect an individual against the loss of his "e-reputation", identity theft, unauthorised Web transactions and disputes with online merchants, said the French insurer to a local newspaper.

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Thailand: Removal of Premier is credit negative - S&P

The dismissal of Thailand's caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra by the country's Constitutional Court is a credit negative development.

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