In an interview with China Daily, Thierry Leger, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of French reinsurer SCOR, stated that the company will “massively” boost investments in the Chinese market to capture the country’s long-term growth prospects.
He added that he “disagrees strongly” with the arguments that China’s economic development has peaked because there remains potential in terms of consumer spending and digital transformation.
During the interview, Leger said: “China is expected to become the world’s second-largest market for reinsurance in the coming decade, encouraging global reinsurers like SCOR to ramp up investment in the country.”
Leger, added that the Chinese market offers “incredible growth potential” and is also expected to become SCOR’s second-largest market.
Moreover, Leger also explained that the sector’s growth prospects would be underpinned by China’s robust economic growth potential in the next 10 to 20 years, as well as by the current large gap in insurance protection, which will very much likely increase the demand for insurance and reinsurance.
In addition, Leger noted that China’s aging population will “boost the demand” for life insurance and health insurance products.
As well as this, the continued growth of China’s industrial sector will require more property coverage, and climate change will fuel demand for coverage related to natural disasters, he noted.
“China’s contribution to SCOR’s overall business is expected to increase to at least 10 to 15 percent in the coming 10 to 20 years, with income from insurance premiums in China set to double or even triple,” Leger said to China Daily.
“I’m convinced that the Chinese reinsurance market will become No 2 in the world in the next 10 years,” he continued.
“So that shows the importance of the Chinese market and the need for us to continue to invest in our people, in our expertise, in our tools and in our data in the Chinese market,” he added.
