Asian Insurance Forum 2023 to put forward suggestions to enhance financial resilience

3 December 2023

The Asian Insurance Forum (AIF), the annual flagship event of the Insurance Authority (IA), will be held this coming Friday (8 December 2023), welcoming more than 20 prominent local and overseas speakers and over 1,000 participants joining in person or online. I look forward to hearing everyone’s insightful perspectives during this remarkable event.

Event theme

The theme of this year’s AIF is “Striving for Enhanced Global Financial Stability and Resilience”. We have incorporated a taste of the Orient – bamboo – into our visual design. Known for its evergreen nature, and unique blend of flexibility and strength, bamboo represents humility, resilience and resourcefulness. It symbolises Hong Kong’s role as a “super-connector” and “super value-adder”, bridging the Mainland and the rest of the world and striving for a sustainable future for global financial markets.

Last month in Tokyo, I attended the Annual Conference of the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS), where we discussed a number of critical issues, including narrowing the catastrophe protection gap, how insurance products can address societal needs, and the impact of tightening fiscal policy, which increases credit and liquidity risks. These issues coincide with what we are going to discuss at the AIF. Amid the increasing uncertainties from higher-for-longer interest rates, tepid economic growth, post-pandemic industrial transformation and heightened geopolitical tensions, there is a need for all sectors to put our heads together to generalise our experience and formulate measures to enhance financial stability.

Panel discussion topics

The four panel discussions in this year’s AIF cover topics on promoting the overall development of society, such as Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG). As the public expects more contributions from the financial sector in these areas, one of our panels will discuss the implications of these issues and the potential business value arising from them.

The high speed of Web3 development and the new trends of decentralisation and tokenisation pose challenges to regulators, but they also provide opportunities for the insurance industry to leverage its unique capabilities. Another panel discussion will explore the synergies generated from positive interaction between Web3 and the insurance sector.

The other two panel discussions will feature senior representatives from the World Bank, multinational insurance groups, a rating agency and asset management companies, who will share their insights on Hong Kong’s positioning as a risk management centre, and the emerging risks currently facing the global economy.

Internationalisation

To make the AIF a truly global event, this time we are having both the Secretary General and the Deputy Secretary General of the IAIS to be our keynote speaker and panelist respectively. Since Hong Kong will be hosting a meeting of the Macroprudential Monitoring Working Group of the IAIS, regulatory counterparts from about 10 jurisdictions in Europe, America and Asia, as well as representatives from the Mainland regulatory authorities, will also join the AIF this year, bringing together a diverse and esteemed group of professionals in the audience.

The entire AIF will be live-streamed. Stakeholders all over the world and members of the public are welcome to register and attend the event online for free. For more details, visit the AIF website (aif.ia.org.hk).

Clement Cheung
Chief Executive Officer, Insurance Authority
3 December 2023

(This is a summary translation of the Chinese article. If there is any inconsistency or ambiguity between the English version and the Chinese version, the Chinese version will prevail.)