The Value of Curiosity
Liane Hirner, CFRO of VIG, has a strong belief in the merits of listening. It is a trait that has helped her navigate the shifts seen in life insurance in recent years, including macro volatility and the advent of trends
Life-Re Europe convened for its inaugural event on 14 April at Frankfurt’s Westin Hotel. The conference was attended by 200 people from around the continent from 90+ companies.
Panels at the event focused on the structural shift in life insurance markets, including the move into private assets, private capital and asset intensive reinsurance (AIR).
There was also discussion of legacy life books and increasingly difficult-to-sustain insurance business models in the continent’s life markets.
Regulations
The keynote speech by IVASS and a regulatory panel featuring the European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA) and the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) provided insights into supervisors’ work in this changing market and how they might harmonise the many moving parts in what is an incredibly complex business environment.
Speaking about the prospects for AIR in Europe, Rita Laura D’Ecclesia, Member of the Board of Directors, IVASS, showed an open-spirit to the prospects of innovation.
“The aim should not be to ban certain deals or to impose restrictions on the insurance market, but to get more transparency and to better understand the actual risks of these deals,” she said.
It was a message emphasised later in the regulators fireside chat, which had Dimitris Zafeiris, Head of Risks and Financial Stability Department at EIOPA, focus on the use of life reinsurance innovations like AIR. EIOPA is due to bring out a paper on AIR later this year. For life reinsurance to grow in Europe this kind of regulatory guidance will be crucial.
“I’m optimistic, but there is only one thing you need for that, which is regulatory certainty that it can happen,” said Carlos Montalvo Rebuelta, Partner; Global Insurance Regulatory Leader, PwC, in an earlier panel spotlighting the European life landscape.
Consolidation
Regulations were also discussed in a panel on consolidation in Europe. It is a market that looks primed to take off, as participants from Viridium, Frankfurter Leben and Milliman discussed.
Panels examining the influence of private equity in the life business and longevity risk transfer opportunities in countries like the Netherlands, rounded off a comprehensive examination of the many strands of the life debate.
While recognition, and appreciation, of diversity remains, there seems to be growing momentum building towards greater harmonisation to improve efficiency and help improve customer outcomes in what is a fragmented industry with, sometimes, too much choice.
Solutions are not easy. But the conversation continues.
