The International Insurance Society (IIS) has announced Mr Shuzo Sumi, Chairman of the Board of Tokio Marine Holdings, as the 2018 Insurance Hall of Fame Laureate. Mr Sumi will be honoured at the 9 July gala awards dinner taking place at the IIS Global Insurance Forum at the InterContinental Hotel in Berlin, Germany, 8-11 July.
The Insurance Hall of Fame recognises insurance leaders who have made a broad, encompassing and lasting contribution to the insurance industry and who are recognised by their peers as successful leaders, innovators and visionaries. Nominees for the Insurance Hall of Fame are submitted by the IIS membership and evaluated for selection by the IIS Honors Committee, a body of senior insurance executives and academics. Recently inducted Laureates include: Mr Nikolaus von Bomhard of Munich Re, Mr Stephen Catlin of XL Catlin, Mr Brian Duperreault of AIG, Mr Denis Kessler of SCOR and Mr Ikuo Uno of Nippon Life.
“Induction into the Insurance Hall of Fame is the highest accolade in our industry and is a testament to Sumi-san’s outstanding achievements during his brilliant career at Tokio Marine. As an effective leader with innovative vision coupled with his deep commitment to issues surrounding resiliency, Sumi-san embodies the criteria of the Insurance Hall of Fame award,” said Mr James Vickers, Chairman of the IIS Honors Committee.
Challenged conventional standards to expedite claims to provide relief
“He led Tokio Marine’s overseas expansion and business process reforms which solidified its position as a market leader,” added Mr Mike Morrissey, IIS President and CEO “and following Japan’s earthquake, Sumi-san challenged conventional standards in order to expedite claims to provide relief for those in desperate need, exemplifying the role and purpose of the insurance industry.”
Mr Shuzo Sumi joined Tokio Marine in 1970. After becoming General Manager of the Commercial Lines Underwriting Department in 1998, Mr Sumi led the overseas expansion of the Tokio Marine Group. In 2000, Mr Sumi was assigned as Director and head of European business in London, and subsequently became President & Chief Executive Officer of Tokio Marine Group in 2007. With subsequent acquisitions of US and European insurance companies, Mr Sumi transformed the Tokio Marine Group into a truly major global insurance group.
In June 2011, Mr Sumi was appointed Chairman of The General Insurance Association of Japan in the wake of the East Japan Earthquake. In this role, he led the initiative to further develop the Japanese non-life insurance industry by focusing on modernising Japan’s earthquake insurance regime to enhance resiliency as well as to provide relief for those affected by the disaster. Mr Sumi has led research in the fields of climate change and natural catastrophe risks in his capacities as Vice Chairman of The Geneva Association and as Co-Chair of the Extreme Events and Climate Risk Working Group. A