Insurers eye acquisitions in Southeast Asia market
Some of the world’s largest insurance companies are eyeing two forthcoming opportunities in the Southeast Asia market.
Canada’s
Manulife is one of the bidders hoping to secure a large slice of the life insurance unit of Siam Commercial Bank according to Reuters. Sources close to the deal say that British firm Prudential and Asian firm AIA are also on the list of interested parties.
A 49 per cent stake in SCB Life Assurance is likely to cost around $3 billion and would be one of the largest deals of its kind in the region. The company has access to Siam’s 1,200 outlets, making it an attractive proposition.
Meanwhile, South Korean insurer ING Life could be sold to China Life Insurance or China Taiping Insurance who have emerged as interested parties in another $3 billion deal. Market Insight reports that there are 7 bidders left in the process.
Bank CEOs unsure if they’ve been hacked
Chief executives of some large financial institutions admit they don’t know if their business has been the target of a cyber incident in the last two years.
A survey by KPMG has found that 12 per cent of the 100 CEOs of banks with more than $20 billion in assets lacked the insights into whether their cyber security had been breached.
“Banks are under an onslaught of attacks from bad actors, so the fact that 12 per cent of banking CEOs reported that they don’t know if they’ve been compromised is troublesome. Cyber is a business bottom-line issue: a true CEO issue,” said Charlie Jacco, Financial Services Cyber Leader at KPMG.
At lower levels of management, the lack of awareness is greater with 47 per cent of executive vice presidents and managing directors, and 72 per cent of senior vice presidents unsure if they’ve been hacked.
Canada’s Intact Insurance to hire 150 insurance pros
Intact Insurance is to create a dedicated national team to grow its commercial lines specialty solutions business. The firm will be hiring around 150 insurance professions over the next few years.
"Our vision is to become a market leader and be widely recognized as the top provider of specialty insurance products and expertise. Our national scale, combined with our comprehensive suite of solutions, will provide brokers with the expertise and support they need to help them meet the changing needs of their customers," said Jean-Francois Blais, President, Intact Insurance.
Blais went on to say that, alongside the national team, Intact’s regional presence helps to support brokers and customers alike.
