S&P Global Market Intelligence offers our top picks of insurance news stories and more published throughout the week. Please note that some entries may have links to third-party sources that may require a subscription.
India to list five general insurers and other capital offerings
* The Indian government approved plans to list five state-owned general insurance companies. The general insurers are New India Assurance Co. Ltd., National Insurance Co. Ltd., Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd., United India Insurance Co. Ltd. and General Insurance Corp. of India.
* MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings Inc. is seeking to raise ¥50 billion through the issuance of 30-year subordinated and unsecured bonds.
* HDFC ERGO General Insurance Co. Ltd. raised 3.5 billion Indian rupees in a private placement of unsecured nonconvertible debentures.
Regulatory developments
* Taiwan's Financial Supervisory Commission is looking to rein in domestic insurers' investments in global corporate bonds. Taiwan's insurers had invested NT$2.498 trillion in international corporate bonds as of November 2016. Issuers of these corporate bonds often redeem the bonds early, raising concerns that it could threaten the stability of the investments held by insurers.
* China's State Council relaxed rules on foreign investment in the financial sector as a way to further open up the economy. The council will loosen restrictions on foreign investment in the banking, securities, investment management, futures, insurance, credit ratings and accounting sectors.
Companies set up new insurance ventures
* India's Coverfox, an online insurance portal, has filed an application to establish a general insurance company, Acko General Insurance.
* Hong Kong's FWD Ltd. is close to forming a joint venture life insurance company in China. FWD will likely apply for a life insurance license in China this year, said David Wong, the company's CEO for Hong Kong and Macau.
* Coface SA and the Paris branch of Bank of China Ltd. launched a credit insurance joint venture. The scheme allows Bank of China's clients easier access to Coface's credit insurance products.
M&A updates
* Nan Shan Life Insurance Co. Ltd. will acquire Chaoyang Life Insurance Co. Ltd. from the Taiwanese government. The Taiwanese government is set to pay NT$200 million to Nan Shan Life to acquire the loss-making insurer, said an official from Taiwan's FSC.
* ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Co. Ltd. acquired an 8.41% stake in Fino Paytech Ltd. for 1 billion Indian rupees.
In other news
* Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Co. received a license to provide nonlife reinsurance in Malaysia. The company opened an office in Kuala Lumpur.
* The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India fined HDFC Standard Life Insurance Co. Ltd. 1.5 million rupees for a number of violations, including substantial payouts to brokers and corporate agents.
* Standard Chartered Plc entered into a 15-year agreement with Allianz SE to distribute the insurer's products in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and China. The new partnership arrangements will be implemented throughout 2017.
* ClearView Wealth Ltd. and Sony Life Insurance Co. Ltd. agreed to exchange information and increase their coordination to fuel efficiency and growth, including expanding ClearView Wealth's presence in the independent financial adviser market.
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