HSBC Life, Hong Kong’s largest insurer by revenue, sees wealthy clients in Asia and the Greater Bay Area as a key growth driver for the near future, said Edward Moncreiffe, CEO of HSBC’s global insurance division.
“Asia is where we see the highest levels of wealth creation; Asia is also where we see the lowest levels of social security,” Moncreiffe, who was appointed to the role in April, said in an exclusive interview with the Post. It was his first interview since his appointment.
“Our key growth areas are the two international wealth centres of Hong Kong and Singapore, as well as the emerging wealth markets of China and India,” he said. “We are already one of the top three international Asian insurers in terms of new business volume and value. Around 90 per cent of our growth comes from Asia, and this is where we will continue to invest.”
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Moncreiffe, a former sports journalist, was previously the CEO of HSBC Life in Hong Kong and Macau. He replaced Greg Hingston, who left to pursue other opportunities.
Earlier this year, Moncreiffe was instrumental in the sale of a world-record US$250 million policy by HSBC Life, which helped the group’s new insurance value grow 77 percent to US$1.3 billion in the first half.
Moncreiffe expects the record to be broken soon, as such jumbo policies for estate planning are in high demand among wealthy individuals.
“High-powered clients will be a key growth driver for HSBC Life in the coming years as we see many first-generation entrepreneurs in Asia looking to pass on their businesses and wealth to the next generation,” he said.
Insurance agents approach mainland tourists in Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. Photo: Eugene Lee alt=Insurance agents approach mainland tourists in Canton Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. Photo: Eugene Lee>
“Since 2023, we have issued 15 policies with an insured amount of over US$50 million in Hong Kong and Singapore. We expect to be a leader in this space due to our creditworthiness and risk capacity.”
Life insurance sales in Hong Kong rose 12 percent in the first half of the year to a record high as mainland tourists and wealthy individuals in Hong Kong continued to buy in droves.
Sales of new life insurance policies rose to HK$115.9 billion (US$14.9 billion) from HK$103 billion in the same period last year, which was itself a record, according to data from the Insurance Authority released on Friday. The level is the highest since the authority was established in 2016.
Moncreiffe said he expects falling interest rates, which look a sure bet this month, to boost demand for insurance savings products. A rate cut would mean lower yields on term deposits, prompting people to opt for insurance policies for higher returns, he said.
Another growth driver for HSBC Life could come from the growing number of Hong Kongers living in the Greater Bay Area, where the insurer operates in eight of the 11 cities. This opens up opportunities to offer life, pension and medical plans to retirees in the developing region.
“We see an emerging trend not only of mainland people coming to Hong Kong to take out life insurance, but also of more and more Hong Kongers moving to the Greater Bay Area to retire,” he said.
Moncreiffe said another new trend this year among customers in Hong Kong is buying multi-currency savings plans.
“Hong Kong is a very international city where we have policyholders who want to send their children to Canada to study or buy property in the UK as an investment and retire in the Greater Bay Area,” he said. “They need insurance savings and annuity plans in different currencies.”
In addition, visitors from dozens of countries have purchased products in Hong Kong. Customers from as many as 49 different markets have purchased policies from HSBC Life in the past 12 months.
“To me, this shows that Hong Kong is fundamentally an international financial city and our products and services must be international,” Moncreiffe said.
This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP Facebook page and Twitter pages. Copyright © 2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
Copyright (c) 2024. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
