Latest Asia Headlines

All the headlines from our Asia Topic Page, ordered by recency.

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...

Singapore Tightens Rules for Sharing Economy that Could Disrupt Asia Ambitions

Feb 27 2017 // Singapore, a keen early adopter of the sharing economy, has fired a warning shot across the bow of Airbnb and Uber with tighter rules that could shake up their business models and growth ambitions in Asia.The rules, some...

Uber Suspends Service in Taiwan After Authorities Raise Fines

Feb 2 2017 // Uber Technologies Inc. said it will suspend its service in Taiwan from Feb. 10, firing the latest salvo in the ride-hailing service company’s long-running dispute with the island’s authorities.Uber’s move...

JLT Re Appoints Pang as Philippines Managing Director

Feb 1 2017 // JLT Re, the global provider of reinsurance broking and consultancy, announced the appointment of William Pang as managing director for JLT Re Philippines, subject to regulatory approval.Pang will be relocating to Manila in...

Trump Orders U.S. Exit from Pacific Trade Pact and Reset on NAFTA

Jan 23 2017 // President Donald Trump abruptly ended the decades-old U.S. tilt toward free trade by signing an executive order to withdraw from an Asia-Pacific accord that was never ratified and promising to renegotiate the North...

Allianz & Standard Chartered Form Bancassurance Partnership in Asia

Jan 19 2017 // Standard Chartered Bank and Allianz have formed a 15-year bancassurance partnership for the distribution of Allianz’s general insurance products, including travel, personal accident, fire and motor insurance...

BHSI Wins License to Write Reinsurance in Malaysia

Jan 17 2017 // Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway has won a license to provide reinsurance services in Malaysia, the billionaire investor’s group said, as it expands operations in Asia.Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance...

Supply Chain Risks Underinsured in APAC: Zurich Insurance/BCI Survey

Jan 13 2017 // Six out of 10 organizations in Asia Pacific experienced at least one supply chain disruption in the past year, with one in four incidents costing more than US$1 million, according to a survey conducted by the Business...

XL Catlin Invests $4M in Insurtech Microinsurance Startup, Stonestep

Dec 19 2016 // XL Catlin’s venture fund, XL Innovate, committed $4 million in first-round financing to Stonestep, a property/casualty insurtech startup looking to streamline how microinsurance is sold in emerging markets.The Series...

Guy Carpenter Appoints Nash as President of New International Division

Dec 13 2016 // Guy Carpenter & Co. announced the appointment of James Nash to the newly created role of president, International, subject to regulatory approval. Nash, who currently runs Guy Carpenter’s Asia Pacific operations,...

Credit Guarantee & Investment Facility Signs Inaugural Treaty Led by Munich Re

Dec 7 2016 // The Credit Guarantee and Investment Facility (CGIF)* announced it has executed its inaugural reinsurance treaty, with a panel of market leading private reinsurers, led by the specialist credit reinsurance team of Munich...

Uber Drivers in Taiwan Threatened with Fines of $780,000 in Draft Rules

Dec 6 2016 // Investors and companies are getting a preview of how the Taiwan government’s plan to become “Asia’s Silicon Valley” might fare.Uber Technologies Inc., one of Silicon Valley’s most disruptive...

Emerging Markets to Drive Insurance Sector Growth in 2017: Swiss Re

Nov 28 2016 // The global economy is expected to grow moderately over the next two years, supporting continued growth in insurance premium volumes, according to a Swiss Re report.Growth in global non-life premiums is forecast to fall...