Mr Clement Cheung,
JP, Commissioner of Insurance, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government,
may be new to the regulatory role but is by no means a stranger to duties concerning
industry liaison and regional co-operation. Our Deputy Editor Irene Yeo
speaks with him on the sidelines of the EAIC in Brunei.
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If Aviva says it
can do it, then it can. And the passion to achieve beyond borders and boundaries
comes from the very top. Asia Insurance Review talks to Aviva’s
Group Chief Executive Richard Harvey, a 35-year veteran of the insurance
industry who has seen through the whole rigmarole of most operations in the
business, from the back room to the technical underwriting, from product innovation
and frontline sales to marketing and, of course, the upper echelons of management
and boardroom. And he still evangelises the unique role of the insurance industry
in offering savings protection and investment services to the man in the street.
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Having spent more
than 28 years of his professional career in the life insurance industry and
many years in Asia, Mr Trevor Bull is currently MD of Tata AIG Life Insurance
Company, one of the largest private players in India. He has served American
International Assurance in Korea as Senior Vice President and General Manager
since July 2002. Prior to that, Mr Bull was with the American Life Insurance
Company (ALICO) in Japan. He speaks about the potential of the Indian market
and how he believes it will be a major driver to worldwide insurance growth.
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Following the purchase
of German life reinsurer Revios Reinsurance AG, SCOR Global Life or SCOR GL
will be now one of the top five largest life reinsurers in the world. With the
increase in size comes responsibility and the ability to offer better value
to customers, said Mr Christian Mounis, Executive Vice President, Senior
Management of SCOR Vie. Deputy Editor Irene Yeo speaks with Mr
Mounis and finds out the rationale behind the purchase and the challenges in
Asia for life reinsurers.
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Mr CT Juang
shares some of his initial thoughts and philosophies with Asia Insurance
Review as he takes over the helm of the former state-owned reinsurer of
Taiwan.
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Singapore is a
mature market but there are still lots of room for growth, said Mr Derek
Teo, President of the General Insurance Association (GIA) since 2005. As
the GIA celebrates its 40th anniversary this month, Mr Teo talks about the role
the Association can play for the next 40 years and the immediate challenges
of the Singapore general insurance industry today.
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China is a new
insurance market attracting worldwide attention with the promise of rapid development
and enormous potential. In this abstract from the Geneva Papers, Mr Wu Dingfu,
Chairman of the China Insurance Regulatory Commission, (CIRC) highlights the
emerging relationship between the development of the insurance sector and the
overall social and economic situation and explains how market development, risk
prevention and risk mitigation are the core elements of insurance regulation.
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The number of approved
insurance brokers in China has jumped from just three to nearly 300 in six years,
and looks set to increase even further under the WTO agreement. Mr Alex Yiu,
General Manager of JLT Lixin Insurance Brokers, a joint venture between JLT
and Guangdong Ricsson Enterprises, elaborates on what insurance brokers can
expect in this burgeoning market.
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As the price war
in motor insurance wages in China, it creates the same inevitable death spiral
for all players’ profit margins as it does in any other market. The question
that comes strongly to mind when witnessing this rush for market share and urge
to grow bigger: What is wrong with just being profitable? Mr Eddy Lo,
Head of Product Marketing, Personal Lines, Greater China at Swiss Re, examines
this seemingly obvious question, suggests potential paths to profit, and paints
a picture of the type of operation that stands a chance of getting it right
in China’s booming motor market.
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IFRS 4 Insurance
Contracts were issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB)
on 31 March 2004 as the first step in its project to achieve convergence of
widely varying accounting practices in insurance industries around the world.
With the mandatory application of IFRS 4 in many jurisdictions by 2005, China,
as one of the fastest-growing insurance markets in the world, would need to
consider the implications of this new accounting standard. Mr Raymond Li,
Principal of Actuarial Services with KPMG Hong Kong and Head of the actuarial
practice in Asia, examines the issue.
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As a special curtain
raiser to the 13th IAIS Conference later this month in Beijing, we present excerpts
of a speech from The Geneva Association’s Etudes et Dossiers no. 313 where
Mr Alessandro Iuppa, Chair of IAIS, shares his thoughts on the importance
of international collaboration on regulation and supervision of global financial
markets.
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Australia has one
of the world’s most sophisticated and well regulated insurance markets.
Here, IAG, a leading insurer in Australia, tells Asia Insurance Review
its views about the regulations in the country as well as how the current regulatory
regime can be further strengthened.
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The insurance industry
is a global business, and its regulation should be too. Obviously, each country
is different, and will have certain factors unique to it. But if we are to have
a robust, efficient insurance industry that gives policyholders the security
they deserve, its regulators must ensure that there are common principles and
standards in place. Mr Julian James, Director, Worldwide Markets, Lloyd’s
discusses the issues.
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In this special
curtain raiser to the International Association Insurance Supervisors (IAIS)
Conference in Beijing later this month, Mr Katsuo Matsushita, General
Manager of the General Insurance Association of Japan (GIAJ), looks at the issue
of trade barriers. He also calls for greater attention to the connection between
transparent high-level regulation and the role of insurance to support a sustainable
society, foreign direct investment and international trade.
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Mr Paul L. Horgan,
Partner and U.S. Insurance Advisory Practice Leader, PricewaterhouseCoopers
looks at the latest updates on the much debated issue of the Optional Federal
Charter (OFC) and gives insights into the two camps for and against the proposal.
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In a firm call
for the modernisation of the US Reinsurance Regulatory System, Mr Pierre
Ozendo, Member of the Executive Board, Chairman and CEO, Swiss Re America
Corp, stresses that both regulatory oversight and market discipline benefit
substantially from a framework that not only encourages but requires insurers
and reinsurers to fully understand the risks that they write.
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Mr Gordon Perchthold
and Ms Jenny Sutton have over 40 years of combined experience assisting
banks and insurance companies with the selection and implementation of a wide
range of solutions allowing these organisations to evolve. This article is a
continuation of a bi-monthly column on the selection of external service and
technology providers – this month, considerations in selecting Customer
Relationship Management Systems.
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Figures published
recently by Lloyd’s predict that directors’ & officers’ liability
insurance (D&O) premium income will grow by 25% in Asia Pacific by 2007,
reaching a regional total of US$185 million. This growth is being encouraged
by competitive premiums, cover enhancements, and underwriter competition. Set
against this there is an increase in Asian Corporate Governance, shareholder
activism and a tougher global D&O environment. Mr David Walters,
Director – Professional Risks, Miller Insurance Services Ltd, reviews the
current state of the Asian D&O market, and tries to predict its future.
He also examines some key negotiation points for D&O policy wordings..
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The modern medical
profession is undergoing major and frequent radical transformations fuelled
by advancements in medical science, developments in law and court decisions,
the deteriorating image of medical practitioners, as well as social, economic
and political influences. Mr Chan Hui Leong, Client Manager, Non-Life
Client Coordination Singapore Regional Centre of Competence, Casualty &
Bond at Munich Re, looks at one of the more disturbing effects of this development
- the trend towards increasing claims quantum for medical malpractice which
is painfully evident throughout the developed countries of the world.
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Messrs Alex
Letts, CEO, and Tom Curtis, Managing Director (Asia Pacific) of RI3K Ltd,
decipher the latest acronym to hit the tech world.
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In the second article
in our “back to basics” series, Mr Michael Mendelowitz, Partner,
and Ms Vanessa van Breda, Associate, in the Reinsurance and International
Risk team at Barlow Lyde & Gilbert, look at the unique structure of the
Lloyd’s market and the implications this has for issuing proceedings for
or against a Lloyd’s syndicate in the English courts.
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Business today
moves at incredible speeds, which is why decision makers are constantly looking
for ways to improve productivity, eliminate missed opportunities, and increase
revenues. Mr Mathia Nalappan, Vice President, Asia Pacific, Nokia Enterprise
Solutions, looks at how mobility can be a major business differentiator, helping
workers to become more informed, agile and empowered.
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Mr Ian Pollard,
Assistant Vice President, Professional Liability (Commercial) Financial Lines
Division, Southeast Asia & China Regions, looks at the rising growth of
professional liability protection in the region, driven by demand from “non-traditional”
industries such as the media, telecommunications and, significantly, Southeast
Asia’s vibrant Information Technology (IT) and business process outsourcing
(BPO) sectors.
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The rapid growth
in demand for liability insurance in Asia has given underwriters unprecedented
opportunity, but what about the downside? Mr Raj Ahuja of EMB says it
can be very easy to underestimate exposures.
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Mr Al Palmer,
Operations Vice President and Engineering Manager, FM Global – Asia, discusses
how businesses can cope with flood risks and looks at various issues to consider
if your business is within a flood risk zone.
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Mr Simon Hu,
Senior Director, Capital Markets/Business Development at Fitch Ratings, looks
into his crystal ball and presents a tongue-in-cheek look at what the stars
predict for the insurance market for 2007 and beyond - while sharing some surprises.
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Traditionally,
multinational insurance companies have allowed their in-country Asia Pacific
business units to operate their cash management programs in an independent,
decentralised manner. Local entities choose their own banking partners, adopt
unique internal processes and conduct daily cash management tasks with limited
coordination between entities or with their regional office. This is beginning
to change as companies consider a variety of strategies to standardise and regionalise
their cash management program in order to enhance control, reduce costs, and
achieve a greater level of visibility and automation throughout their operations.
Mr Andrew Fitzgerald, Vice President, Asia Pacific Cash Management Sales,
Global Transaction Services, Citigroup Corporate and Investment Banking looks
at this growing trend.
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This month we get
up close and personal with the man behind one of the world’s largest reinsurers
and the second-largest primary insurer in Germany, Dr Nikolaus von Bomhard,
CEO of Munich Re.
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