SG’s life insurers see 32.2% leap in new business premiums in Q1’24

This is equivalent to S$1.4b.

Life insurers in Singapore saw their first quarter (Q1’24) weighted new business premiums climb 32.2% year-on-year (YoY) to S$1.37b, data from the Life Insurance Association (LIA) showed. 

“The life insurance industry is starting the year positively by focusing and achieving progress in narrowing our nation’s protection gap as we grow the sector as a whole. While the concerns about the potential impact of the macroeconomic environment remain pertinent, the industry continues to be agile to swiftly respond to consumer needs in Singapore. Our priority remains in helping the population meet their financial and protection needs,” Dennis Tan, President, of LIA Singapore, said in a statement.

Single premium policies saw a 46.4% increase in weighted premiums, amounting to S$500.4 million, attributed to a more stable macroeconomic environment and economic recovery in Singapore.

A 25.2% increase in annual premium policies was recorded, totalling S$866.5m in weighted premiums. This trend underscores a focus on meeting protection needs in Singapore.

The sales of non-participating products rose to 42% of total sales in this period.

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The industry recorded S$33.8b in total sum assured, an 11.9% increase from Q1 2023. An additional 35,000 Singaporeans and Permanent Residents were covered by integrated shield plans (IPs) by the end of Q1 2024, totalling 2.94 million lives (approximately 70% of the population).

Total new business premiums for individual health insurance reached S$98.6m, a 5.3% increase YoY. IPs and IP rider premiums accounted for 82.9% of this amount.

The industry paid out S$5.01b to policyholders and beneficiaries, a 94.6% jump YoY.

The industry’s workforce also grew by 1.6% to 9,743 employees as of 31 March 2024, driven by expansions in risk management areas. About 13,297 representatives held exclusive contracts with tied-agency companies.

The overall Finance and Insurance sector is expected to grow by 3.4%, according to a recent Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) survey.

“As we pursue efforts to drive this growth, we remain cautiously optimistic and adaptable, noting also that the median forecast of headline inflation came in at 3.1%.” Tan added.