Reinsurance Group of America (RGA) has entered into an agreement with Tokio Marine & Nichido Life Insurance Co., Ltd. (Anshin Life) to reinsure a block of whole life insurance policies through coinsurance. The transaction follows a similar reinsurance block deal completed by the two companies a year ago.
In 2024, RGA and Anshin Life completed a reinsurance transaction involving approximately ¥100 billion (US$690 million) in paid-up whole life policies. That deal marked an early expansion of their collaboration, focusing on risk management strategies commonly adopted by Japanese life insurers seeking to enhance capital efficiency through reinsurance partnerships.
The agreement expands RGA’s presence in the Japanese market, where the company has maintained longstanding operations. Gaston Nossiter (pictured above), senior vice president for Japan and Asia Pacific Financial Solutions at RGA, said that the ongoing partnership with Anshin Life reflects RGA’s focus on understanding and working within Japan’s reinsurance market.
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“This latest transaction underscores our role as a trusted, long-term partner, dedicated to collaborating with insurers to address critical challenges. It reaffirms our ability to support our clients’ evolving needs with innovative, customized financial solutions that directly tackle their most pressing concerns,” Nossiter said.
RGA reported an adjusted operating income of US$1.34 billion for 2024, with net premiums increasing 18.3% year-over-year to US$17.8 billion. This growth was driven by strength across several business segments, including pension risk transfer and investment income, reflecting the reinsurer’s broader strategy to expand its solutions portfolio globally.
Asset-intensive reinsurance transactions, such as those between RGA and Anshin Life, have become increasingly common among Japanese life insurers. These transactions are used to improve capital ratios and manage exposure to long-term interest rate risks, aligning with efforts by insurers to optimize their asset-liability management practices in a persistently low-yield environment.
In May 2024, Anshin Life also entered into a separate asset-intensive reinsurance agreement with Pacific Life Re. That deal, which covered in-force whole-of-life policies, was aimed at further strengthening Anshin Life’s long-term interest rate risk management and asset-liability strategies.
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