Full Capacity: Plugging into the data centre gold rush

November 15 2025 by

Welcome to Full Capacity, a weekly briefing on all the most important developments of the past week with a personal take on the news from our editor-in-chief, Mithun Varkey, delivered to your inbox every Saturday.  

IAN exclusive. We exclusively reported that the Vietnam market is set to see a new reinsurer launch soon. Led by former PVI Re (now Hanoi Re) executive Le Hoai Nam, Alpha Re is backed by a local private corporation and banks and will have a charter capital of US$30 million.

Nat cat brief. Hannover Re has reported US$105 million in losses from March’s earthquake in Myanmar, which also affected Thailand.  

Australia’s IAG said it has received over 10,000 claims across its brands due to several significant weather events across the eastern part of the country, including the hailstorm that struck Queensland on October 26.  

M&A updates.  It has been yet another busy week for industry rainmakers. We saw yet another broker deal, with Resilium Partners-owned Cornerstone Risk Group completing the acquisition of Brisbane-based MRC Insurance and launching a corporate and specialty division. 

Meanwhile, the bid for AUB Group saw PE giant CVC joining EQT as a consortium partner.  

In other deal news, DB Insurance’s acquisition of US specialty Fortegra is facing opposition from a minority shareholder, Veradace Partners, a 5% shareholder of Fortegra owner Tiptree. 

Crypto capacity. Crypto specialist insurer 1B-i Holdings has set up operations in Singapore with a management services entity and is in the process of applying for an underwriting licence in Labuan. 

Led by former Aon exec John Morley, 1B-i aims “to be underwriting in Q1 2026” pending regulatory approvals. 

Rating trend. Aon’s global CEO for commercial risk solutions, Joe Peiser, in an exclusive interview with InsuranceAsia News, said that the current rate reduction in the primary market is expected to be temporary, suggesting that “it’ll probably last through 2026 and then bottom out”. 

Data centre disruption 

The multi-trillion-dollar data centre gold rush is redefining the global landscape, and the insurance industry is in the thick of it. 

As Asian powerhouses like China, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Japan scramble to grab a piece of this lucrative pie, it could be transformative for the regional (re)insurance market. 

Aon’s own Joe Peiser, in an exclusive interview with InsuranceAsia News, captured this perfectly: it’s “the single biggest opportunity” for the (re)insurance sector. 

With a construction pipeline in Asia soaring by over US$160 billion, data centres could be game changers. 

Aon’s Terence Williams points out, “Never has the insurance industry had to deal with such large limits for single-location platforms.”  

This seismic shift means that insurers must rethink their traditional approaches to property markets, with Aon rolling out a global practice to oversee projects from conception through to construction and operation. 

But they’re not alone. Willis has jumped on the bandwagon, launching a dedicated data centre practice in Asia, spearheaded by Lay See Ong.  

Allianz highlighted the enormity of the opportunity in Asia, noting that greater Beijing alone accounts for about 10% of the global hyperscale capacity, with projections showing the region’s IT load could double to over 8GW by 2030. Across Asia Pacific, 3.2GW of capacity was already under construction as early as 2025. 

The world’s first commercial underwater data centre is now operational in China, showcasing how cutting-edge solutions can tackle the challenges of modern tech infrastructure.  

Insurers and reinsurers alike must scramble to source the necessary capacity and the underwriting and technical expertise to navigate the choppy waters.  

Data centres face a broad spectrum of risks, including natural hazards, business interruption, environmental exposures, and cyber threats, across every stage of their lifecycle, from financing and construction to operations.  

And they also involve an array of stakeholders – from financiers and developers to operators and tenants – all of whom face a myriad of risks. 

As if that weren’t enough, the electricity demand from global data centres is projected to skyrocket, surpassing 945 TWh by 2030 – that’s more than the entire consumption of the country of Japan. 

Ageing grid infrastructure is yet another challenge that could have a domino effect in the region. 

Colin Taylor, managing director at Halliwell, a technical consultant owned by loss-adjusting specialist McLarens, said his firm has identified data centres as a key opportunity in the region. 

It focuses on pre-loss consulting to mitigate risks that extend beyond traditional engineering practices, aiming to pinpoint potential failures before they occur. 

The hyperscale investments also present opportunities for insurers from an asset management perspective. 

Tokio Marine just acquired a majority stake in Acore Capital, a US investment manager specialising in commercial real estate debt, which has funded US$134 million for a 15MW data centre in the US and US$125.3 million for a multi-state digital infrastructure portfolio. 

While AI is disrupting our lives in many ways, for the (re)insurance markets, its potential impact on underwriting, broking, and investment may prove to be the most enduring. 

People moves

Willis said that it had promoted Conor Keating to head of cyber for Asia, and Carlos Grijalva to head of cyber sales for Asia.  

HDI Global has tapped John Morrell as head of energy and power underwriting to lead its newly created Middle East energy hub. 

The Ardonagh-owned broking network Aviso Group has promoted chief broking officer Jeff Moule to CEO.  

To keep up with the latest people moves in the region, don’t forget to check out our weekly people move round-up. 

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