London-headquartered independent credit and political risk insurance (CPRI) broker BPL, has opened a new office in Japan.
The move reflects growing demand from Japanese financial institutions, trading houses, multinational corporates and investors for specialist credit and political risk insurance solutions. This is particularly the case for Japanese banks seeking credit insurance to help secure regulatory capital relief and support portfolio and risk management.
The Japan office, located in Tokyo, will focus on delivering tailored CPRI solutions across non-payment insurance, political risk cover and structured portfolio transactions, drawing on BPL’s four decades of market leadership and operations in the world’s major CPRI hubs – London, Paris, New York, Singapore, Hong Kong and Geneva. The new office is in the process of applying for registration as an insurance broker with the regulatory authority in Japan and expects to get its operational licence this year.
BPL Group CEO James Reynolds said, “The opening of our Japan office is a signal of intent – we mean to be proactive in enhancing our service for our clients in Japan and APAC, while using the firepower from our recent minority investment from Preservation Capital Partners for considered but confident growth.”
BPL Japan CEO Ken Iwakura said, “I am excited to join the BPL team and lead the group’s efforts to enter the Japanese credit and political risk insurance market at a time of growing demand.”