Disruption by insurtech will be more profound across Asia than in the rest of the world, and competition is set to intensify.
2017 witnessed breakthroughs in the Asian insurance market driven by financial technology solutions. Singapore Life went live in June last year, making it the first new local life insurer to be licensed since 1970.
The firm embraces insurtech solutions allowing its customers to buy a policy either through an advisor or an online platform, which makes the process quicker. Insurer Axa, launched a new digital tool aimed at a younger demographic in Indonesia.
Scale and Size
Asia has the most to gain in the revolution of the insurance industry through technology. The region’s huge population size and rapidly emerging tech-savvy middle class, together with the low effectiveness of traditional insurance distribution gives it the additional impetus to take on this leading global role for insurtech.
The vast size of the Asian market geographically is also no barrier to insurtech solutions. Where the traditional advisor model can struggle to penetrate, insurers can utilize e-commerce partners.
End Users
Customers will be the biggest beneficiaries of the advances in the region through greater convenience, cheaper premiums and more personalized solutions. For their part the insurers which quickly implement tech solutions will benefit through cost savings while also raising brand and reputation awareness.
Laggards risk losing market share and loyalty. Swiss bank UBS in its report last year predicted insurtech could lead to total cost savings of around $300 billion a year for the Asian insurance industry by 2025.
