The newly appointed CEO of Willis Mexico, Hilaire Damiron, believes the insurance market is poised for growth in the coming years, despite the many problems the country currently faces. Among the many maladies compounding the current situation in Mexico are; the detrimental impact to the economy by the global financial crisis, a flu pandemic, a drug war and natural disasters, including several hurricanes that have caused extensive damage to important highways and rail-road links.

RSA, the parent company of Royal & Sun Alliance, has recently acquired GCAN Insurance from the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board in a cash deal worth US$420 million (EUR 303 million). With this acquisition, RSA effectively expands its foothold in the Canadian commercial insurance sector.

With the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa, preparing to institute a National Health Insurance (NHI) program in the next few years, South African government health officials are set to meet with their UK counterparts to learn from their experiences. The African National Congress released some of the details of their proposal for a National Health Insurance scheme towards the end…

Aviva has instituted a handful of changes to their international private medical insurance products, ranging from adjustments in applications and claims handling processes to minor changes to group policies. Aviva said it has introduced the adjustments, which are part of a larger package of improvements, to their offerings in order to make it easier for intermediaries to do business with them. One…

Liberty Mutual Group, based in the US state of Massachusetts, has announced the postponement of the initial public offering (IPO) of Liberty Mutual Agency Corp. (LMAC), citing the lacklustre demand from investors and the uncertain state of the US economy as main causes. Not so long ago it was heralded as the biggest IPO of 2010 in the US, Liberty Mutual Group had initially sought to raise almost US$1.3 billion (EUR 956 million) by selling 64.3 million Class A LMAC shares at an initial price of between US$18 (EUR 13.5) and US$20 (EUR 15) per share.

Allied World Assurance Company Holdings, Ltd. has established a healthcare division through its European operation, Allied World Europe, to sell health insurance solutions in European Markets. Allied World Assurance, which offers property, casualty and specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions as well as a growing international health insurance unit, intends to use the new European health…

South Africa's ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC) has released more information regarding their plan to mandate universal access to healthcare through a National Health Insurance Scheme. The Ministerial Advisory Committee on the NHI has produced a document providing a rough outline of the ANC's National Health Insurance (NHI) scheme, which is ready to be submitted to the ANC National…

Zurich International Life, based in the Middle East, has recently announced the launch of a new life insurance product called Protected Equity Plus (PEP). PEP is a single-premium, investment-linked insurance plan, which offers a guaranteed return upon maturity, even in the event of a stock market collapse in the Middle East.

Ping An Insurance (Group) Co. Ltd., listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, has recently announced that its board of directors has approved the plan to merge Ping An Bank Co. with the Shenzhen Development Bank Co.

China's insurance regulator, the China Insurance Regulatory Commission (CIRC), has laid out new rules allowing Chinese insurance companies to diversify their investment channels to include Private Equity and Real Estate. The new rules afford Chinese insurers the chance to invest up to 10 percent of assets in real estate, as well as investing a further 5 percent of assets into private equity investments…