Insurance is one of the biggest financial services and the biggest insurance companies in the world are at the top of their game! We all need insurance in some point of our lives. Insurance, to live a happy and healthy life without worries of the future gnawing at us! And, these companies provide the much-needed assurance of solace from those never-ending worries and stress.
So what is insurance? Simply put, it is the process of transferring risk in exchange for payment. The insurer charges a fee from the insured, who in turn gets compensated for their losses if and when they occur. And, contrary to popular belief it is definitely not a new concept. It has always been around in some form. However, it is in the modern times that the concept has evolved and diversified and big firms have come into play. Now you can get covers for life risk or accident risk, along with the risk involved in a business that could cause severe implications to your wealth.
To ensure the future prosperity of families, life insurances have become the norm these days. And, companies are coming up with more personalized policies to suit individual needs and preferences. Newlyweds and new house owners, looking to start a family should definitely be surveying the best and the biggest insurance companies in the world and choose suitable policies for themselves and can also take a look at our other list 11 largest auto insurance companies in the US.
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Insurance companies offer risk management in different spaces. While life insurance companies operate in legacy planning, health insuring firms provides cover of medical costs and health emergencies. Property, casualty and accident insurers operate in providing protection and replacement of value of property or other assets, such as cars or vehicles. Broadly, these are the types of insurance companies that operate in the industry, however, there are other types of operators such as reinsurers. Companies can be categorized in Mutual or Stock insurance companies based on their ownership structure. A stock insurance company is held by stockholders, whereas, a mutual insurance company is owned by “contractual creditors” that are policyholders.
In the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak, insurance companies have also been hard hit as financial companies in general have been effected. Major players have lost brand value in the process. The insurance industry which is generally considered prepared for contingencies as such, might feel the brunt even as we step into 2021. US top player Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK-B) reported a $489m reinsurance loss in Q1. UK’s Llyod’s has reported estimated Covid-19 loss and reserves at 3,905 million dollars. Llyod’s has also conducted a study on the insurance industry and predicts that the total underwriting loss for the industry might go up to a 107 billion dollars. The effects may be company specific, and would largely depend on the portfolio investments of these companies and the industries they cover or cater to. With reduced travels due to shelter-in-place directives in the US, the auto insurance claims dropped sharply which led to Allstate Corp. (NYSE:ALL) to directly reduced claims and Progressive Corp. (NYSE:PGR) to discount its underwriting expenses. However, amidst the general anxiety and health concerns, the health insurance sector has picked up in 2020.
The Chinese players still remain at top of the most valued insurance companies, and that is evident on our list of biggest insurance companies in the world. The top insurance companies can be ranked according to a number of factors like market capitalization, revenue, profit, or total assets owned. For the purpose of our list, we have considered the strongest players in the insurance industry and ranked them according to their 2020 revenues. We have also focused on the Stock insurance companies.
check out the list of the biggest insurance companies in the world!
11. Manulife Financial
Revenue – 79628000 in thousands, USD
Canada’s Manulife Financial deals in life insurance, health insurance and travel insurance among other product offerings. The company is set to launch new Covid-19 travel insurance coverage and is looking at a 42% upside in stock post-Covid.
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10. The People’s Insurance Company (Group) of China Limited
Revenue – 81768700 in thousands, USD
Headquartered in Beijing and majorly owned by the Chinese Central Government, PICC, is a property & casualty stock insurance company. The company also has operations in asset management throughout China.
9. Aviva
Revenue – 91280200 in thousands, USD
The British MNC, is the largest general insurer and pensions provider in the UK. The company has operations across Europe and Asia with focus in China and other South East Asian nations.
8. Assicurazioni Generali
Revenue – 91824900 in thousands, USD
Along with being the largest insurance company in Italy, the Generali Group is also the eighth biggest insurance company in the world by 2020 revenue. The company has its operations in Europe, Middle East and East Asia while its US operations are limited to financial offerings only.
7. Japan Post Insurance
Revenue – 114411000 in thousands, USD
The privatization of Japan Kampo Life Insurance led to the formation of the company and since then it has been one of the top insurers according to net holdings. The company has assets over $665,955.43 million.
6. AXA
Revenue – 119114000 in thousands, USD
The French multinational group has a whopping customer base of 80 million world over. It has presence in several countries and its operations are divided into five segments focusing on life insurance, property insurance, casualty and international insurances and asset management each. With the amazing asset base of over $1000 billion, it is one of our list of the biggest insurance companies in the world.
5. Allianz
Revenue – 123925000 in thousands, USD
The German multinational is the largest financial service company based on revenue. It has its customer base spread through 70 countries with over 76 million customers. The main offerings are in the areas of life, health, property and casualty insurance and asset management.
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4. China Pacific Insurance
Revenue – 166943000 in thousands, USD
Better known as Pacific Insurance, the Chinese insurance giant is the second largest property insurance company, after PICC, in the country. The company offers integrated services through its subsidiaries ranging in life insurance, property insurance and reinsurance.
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3. Berkshire Hathaway
Revenue – 260492000 in thousands, USD
The American multinational was catapulted to the big league by none other than Warren Buffet and according to Forbes Global 2000, is the fifth largest company in the world. It delves into services relating to both insurance and reinsurance including life insurance, accident and health reinsurers and casualty reinsurer. It, along with its subsidiaries, maintains high levels of capital strength.
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2. Ping An Insurance
Revenue – 463385000 in thousands, USD
Chinese player, Ping An Group, deals with insurance, banking and financial services. It delves into life insurance, property and casualty insurance and insurance in overseas holdings through its subsidiaries. Its operations are mainly focused in China, Hong Kong and Macau, however, through its branches and representative agents it caters to more than 150 countries.
1. China Life Insurance
Revenue – 785684000 in thousands, USD
The largest life insurer in China in terms of total assets is also the biggest life insurance companies in the world currently. The company has a robust network of agents to acquire new customers and is a major player in China’s group life insurance sector.
See also 10 Largest Health Insurance Companies by Membership and 10 Largest Health Insurance Companies In America
This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.