Called "Shinhan Tontine Annuity Insurance," the insurance offers higher pension payouts the longer the policyholder lives.
Insurance companies are facing pressure as major corporate general agencies (GAs) push for new incentives for third-year contract retention.
Korean insurers are expected to recalibrate their capital strategies to focus on accumulating sustainable core capital in the wake of an announcement by the Financial Services Commission and Financial Supervisory Service about new capital ratio requirements that are to be implemented on 1 January 2027. Otherwise, the insurers may face binding constraints and regulatory intervention.
Korea's Financial Services Commission and Financial Supervisory Service have announced that, starting 1 January 2027, the core capital K-ICS ratio will be mandatory for all insurers under the Korea Insurance Capital Standards (K-ICS).
South Koreans in their 40s and 50s are growing anxious about their retirement and old-age preparedness. More than 60% of the Koreans participating in a study on retirement planning and allied topics revealed that they are not prepared for old age, despite broad awareness of the need for retirement planning.
Major non-life insurers in South Korea have confirmed that auto insurance premiums will rise by 1.3%-1.4% this year, marking the first increase in five years since 2021.
The number of elderly drivers in a super-aged South Korea is increasing rapidly and so is the number of traffic accidents involving them. In 2020, elderly drivers accounted for 14.8% of traffic accidents; in 2024, this grew to 21.5%.
The Non-Life Insurance Association of Korea and the Korea Institute of Criminology and Justice Policy are forming a cooperative framework to strengthen efforts to curb insurance fraud, which has been described as a crime that undermines public livelihoods.
The South Korean insurance industry is expected to face greater challenges in 2026, amid slowing growth and mounting pressures on profitability and financial soundness, according to an outlook published by the Korea Insurance Newspaper in collaboration with the Insurance Research Institute. The report says the overall industry is likely to soften, with initial premiums expected to decline slightly on a year-on-year basis.
Insurers in South Korea have tightened the liability insurance protocol, as fires and related mishaps involving electric vehicles (EVs) continue to rise in the country.