Myanmar Opens Doors to Foreign Insurers

In a significant move towards financial liberalization, the country issued its first-ever licenses to five foreign fully owned life insurers. It also awarded licenses to six joint ventures to operate in the country.

Myanmar’s Financial Regulatory Department has issued full licenses to Prudential, Dai-ichi Life, AIA, Chubb and Manulife to issue life insurance policies through fully-owned subsidiaries in the country, «The Myanmar Times» reported on Thursday.

The five firms were granted provisional licenses in April.

With a fast-growing middle class and an urbanized and tech-savvy population, the domestic insurance market is a lucrative one. The country currently has one of the lowest insurance rates globally with only 4 percent of the population having any cover, but could be worth some $2.66 billion in 10 years, the report said, citing data by local insurer IKBZ Insurance.

A total of six licenses were also awarded to joint ventures between foreign and local firms.

Licenses were granted to three life insurance JVs: Capital Life Insurance and Taiyo Life Insurance; Citizen Business Insurance and Thai Life Insurance; and Grand Guardian Life Insurance and Nippon Life Insurance.

Licenses were granted to three non-life insurance JVs: AYA Myanmar General Insurance and Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance; Grand Guardian General Insurance and Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance; and IKBZ Insurance and Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance.