HARNESSING OPPORTUNITIES

By most measures, Singapore is a mature, saturated market for insurance. Yet, as wealth grows and an ageing demographic becomes more entrenched, there is no shortage of opportunities for insurers.

- Genevieve Cua

Rising levels of wealth, for instance, raise the need for income and asset protection, as well as mechanisms for multi-generational wealth planning which insurance instruments lend themselves to.

Longevity is yet another trend. By next year, Singapore will be classified as "super aged", where more than one in five people will be aged 65 or older. Longer lives intensify the need not just for health and disability protection, but also for savings and investments to fund decades in retirement.

Swiss Re, in a survey of 12,000 consumers across 12 Asian markets, found strong interest in life and health products. But it also found barriers to purchase, including high prices, lack of awareness and knowledge, and product irrelevance.

Swiss Re estimated that the health protection gap in Asia reached US$258 billion in premium equivalent in 2024. The gap has increased by 21 per cent since the survey was last conducted in 2017.