Full Capacity: Insights from the IUMI conference in Singapore

September 13 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 insight. The ongoing protests in Indonesia will likely result in “substantial” losses, InsuranceAsia News reported.  

A large degree of these claims will be made under all risk programs that extend to provide indemnification under the applicable perils. The PV market will be expected to respond via specialist wordings, or specifically those which entail coverage for SRCC and malicious damage, experts told InsuranceAsia News. 

However, an expansion in political violence market capacity is set to soften the impact for (re)insurers. 

On the up. Over the past two decades, the global P&C insurance market has doubled in size to US$2.4 trillion, and projections from the Swiss Re Institute’s latest Sigma report suggest that it is on track to nearly double again, reaching US$4.3 trillion by 2040.  

At the heart of this expansion is a hard market that has propelled P&C premiums to grow at or above the rate of economic growth.  

Yet, while the market is expanding, concentration across nine of the 11 major markets analysed, including Japan, South Korea, China, Australia, and India, is reducing with the top five firms holding smaller market shares than they did in 2004.  

Sticky wicket. The recent softening of warranty and indemnity (W&I) insurance rates is raising eyebrows across the market. Driven by an influx of primary underwriting capacity and fierce competition among insurers, this trend is concerning, especially in light of a notable increase in high-payout claims. 

This growth in players, capacity and talent has created a highly competitive environment, with the market voicing concerns about reduced margins and rate adequacy. 

Despite these challenges, demand for W&I coverage in the region remains robust, particularly in markets like India, Japan, South Korea, China, and Southeast Asia, where M&A activity is gradually rebounding. 

Embracing the unfamiliar 

I spent the last week in sunny Singapore, a welcome change from the typhoon-hit Hong Kong, covering the International Union of Marine Insurance’s annual conference. 
 
It was a bustling event that brought together more than 700 marine insurance industry professionals to the sprawling Resorts World Convention Centre on the leisurely Sentosa Island. 
 
No surprises here: the hot topic of the four-day confab was the choppy waters of trade wars and tariffs. 
 
It’s a jarring shift from the open market ethos that has long defined the industry. While the industry seems more worried about the uncertainty and volatility of it all, there was a collective realisation that the industry is not simply riding out a storm; it is navigating a fundamental shift in the way global trade interacts with the industry. 
 
While trade war was top of the agenda, the industry hasn’t lost sight of the real wars that are being waged. 
 
Neil Roberts, head of marine and aviation, for the Lloyd’s Market Association reminded us that insurance is doing what it does best: supporting trade.  
 
As he sagely pointed out, the real issue isn’t just the price of coverage; it’s the dire consequences when that coverage is absent. Cover is available and, for now, it is sustainable for the industry to continue to offer cover. 
 
IUMI president Frédéric Denèfle made a compelling case for a partnership between public fortitude and private expertise to craft bespoke solutions. 
 
Key discussions also included AI – where marine insurance is just beginning to feel the winds of change – as well as challenges in EV transportation and the rising spectre of container fires. 
 
Then there’s shipping’s green transition – a vexed issue for the industry, which seemingly has yet to find its bearings. 
 
There is the problem of multiple competing technologies – from green ammonia and LNG to methanol and even nuclear being tested. 
 
Ammonia, for example, is highly toxic, raising serious safety concerns for seafarers onboard. Nuclear reactors, meanwhile, could open a whole can of worms. 
 
With no clear technology victor in sight, the industry finds itself in a state of limbo, much like a ship caught in a doldrum. 
 
To add fuel (no pun intended) to the fire, the US is waving its legal sword, threatening anyone daring to dabble in decarbonisation. 
 
And it all comes a full circle for the industry – navigating the changing tides of trade and technology. 

People moves

Sompo Japan has expanded its commercial business team with the hires of Heiko Thienenkamp as COO and Hiroki Ohashi as head of financial lines, both based in Tokyo. 

In more hires in Japan, AIG has appointed Naoko Masu as its new head of multinational for Japan. 

Howden strengthened its Pacific cyber practice with the appointment of Jack Bassett from Lockton. 

To keep up with the latest appointments across the region, don’t miss our weekly people move roundup. 

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