Latest Asia Headlines
All the headlines from our Asia Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Supreme Court Finds Government Can’t Block Disparaging Trademarks
Jun 19 2017 // The U.S. Supreme Court said the federal government can’t constitutionally withhold legal protections for trademarks seen as disparaging, throwing out a 70-year-old provision as a free-speech violation. The ruling was...
MAPFRE Gains 51% of Indonesian Insurer ABDA to Expand in South East Asia
Jun 13 2017 // Insurer MAPFRE, which already owned 31 percent of the insurer, has gained 51 percent and effective control of Indonesian insurance company PT Asuransi Bina Dana Arta Tbk (ABDA). The transaction was closed at a price of 90...
Shipping Losses Fall to Lowest in 10 Years as Technology Drives Safety
Jun 13 2017 // Large shipping losses have declined by 50 percent over the past decade and last year saw the lowest number of losses in the past 10 years. The favorable loss trend has been largely driven by improved safety, according to...
Matthews Joins Markel International Trade Credit Team in Singapore
Jun 12 2017 // Markel International, a specialist insurer, has appointed Dillon Matthews as trade credit underwriter and senior risk analyst in Singapore, in a move to strengthen and broaden its Asia Pacific resources. Matthews will...
Lloyd’s Insurers Launch Asia Political Risk Consortium
May 25 2017 // Three Lloyd’s insurers have joined forces to form a Political Risk Consortium in Asia, offering increased capacity for a wide range of political and contract frustration risks. Beazley, Chaucer and Talbot will work...
Swiss Re Corporate Solutions Names Rake as CEO Asia Pacific
May 25 2017 // Swiss Re Corporate Solutions has appointed Jonathan Rake as CEO Asia Pacific, based in Singapore. Rake will move from his current position as head South East Asia and assumes the new role on July 1, 2017. He succeeds Fred...
AXIS Re & China’s Renmin University Offer Actuarial Scholarship
Apr 24 2017 // Bermuda-based AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd. announced the launch of the “AXIS Re Actuarial Scholarship” in partnership with Renmin University in China. The scholarship fund will provide financial assistance to...
Global Insurance Industry Set to Grow by 4.5% in 2017-2018: Munich Re
Apr 21 2017 // The global insurance industry is set to grow more strongly at 4.5 percent per annum on average (3.0 percent in real terms, or adjusted for inflation) during 2017 and 2018, according to Munich Re. While premium income is...
Singapore Ranks Highest in Asia in Attracting Talent; No. 2 in Global Index
Apr 18 2017 // Singapore ranks the highest in Asia in attracting and developing talent, reflecting not only its world-class education system but how it’s adapting skills in the digital era. The city-state took the No. 2 spot behind...
Swiss Re Gears Up to Launch Subsidiary in Singapore in 2018
Apr 18 2017 // Swiss Re plans to launch in 2018 a subsidiary in Singapore, which will become the company’s regional headquarters for its reinsurance operations in Asia. The company, Swiss Re Asia, will be wholly owned by its...
Brit Appoints ArgoGlobal’s Lim as CEO of Brit Singapore
Apr 13 2017 // Brit Ltd. announced that it has appointed David Lim as CEO, Brit Global Specialty Singapore, with effect from May 15, 2017. Following the appointment, Lim, together with Charles Barrett, chief underwriting officer, Asia...
China’s Ant Financial to Offer Mobile Finance Services in Indonesia
Apr 12 2017 // Ant Financial, the finance affiliate of Alibaba Group Holding, and Indonesian media company Elang Mahkota Teknologi (Emtek) are to form a joint venture to offer payment and financial services in Indonesia. The Emtek tie-up...
Chubb Promotes Samuel as Head of Power & Utilities for Asia
Apr 11 2017 // Chubb has appointed Titus Samuel as the new head of Power and Utilities for Asia. Samuel will be based in Singapore and will report to Mick Peacock, head of Power and Energy for Asia Pacific. Prior to his new appointment,...
Insurtech Microinsurance Specialist, BIMA, Gets $16.8M Investment
Apr 10 2017 // BIMA, the insurtech firm that offers microinsurance in emerging markets, announced the close of an investment of US$16.8 million by Axiata Digital, the digital services arm of Axiata Group Berhad, one of Asia’s...
Uber’s Biggest SE Asia Rival, Grab, Buys Indonesian E-Commerce Platform
Apr 3 2017 // Grab, Uber Technologies Inc.’s biggest rival in Southeast Asia, will acquire Indonesian e-commerce startup Kudo for an undisclosed amount, striking its first deal since pledging to invest $700 million in its largest...
Citigroup to Seek Bancassurance Distribution Partners in APAC Region: Source
Mar 28 2017 // Citigroup Inc. will seek bids from global insurers keen to sell general insurance products across the U.S. bank’s Asia-Pacific markets, in a deal that could be worth at least $500 million, a source with knowledge of...
As China Liberalizes Financial Sector, It Seeks ‘Better Treatment’ Abroad
Mar 27 2017 // People’s Bank of China Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said the country is preparing to further open its financial sector, and that doing so will involve negotiations over how other nations treat Chinese investors. Areas of...
RMS Launches Agricultural Risk Models for India and China
Mar 15 2017 // RMS, the Newark, Calif.-based catastrophe risk management firm, has added agricultural risk models for India and China to its line of emerging risks models, and plans to expand coverage across Asia-Pacific and the...
BHSI Launches Accident & Health Solutions in Asia; Product Line Heads Named
Mar 6 2017 // Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Co. (BHSI) announced it has introduced group personal accident, corporate travel and expatriate medical insurance in Singapore and Hong Kong. The company also named Kok Leong Koo as...
Trump’s ‘America First’ Trade Policy Overlooks America’s Exports of Services
Mar 2 2017 // One thing that’s often missed in President Donald Trump’s complaints about the U.S. trade deficit is America’s $248 billion surplus in exports of services like education, financial services and...
