A wave of foreign direct investment is poised to reshape not only infrastructure and manufacturing, but the insurance market that underpins them.
For Tokio Marine America president and CEO Kenyu Okuda (pictured), the opportunity is closely tied to the carrier’s historic role supporting Japanese companies expanding in the US. He told Insurance Business that this pipeline of capital could translate into a new stream of complex risks and premium growth.
“We will see a lot of foreign direct investment from Japan coming into the States, which will cascade down later on as risks that we will underwrite,” Okuda said. “We will probably see those risks coming through the clients that we cater to, and hopefully we will underwrite a slice of that pie so that it feeds into our overall growth.”
In July 2025, the United States and Japan announced a major trade and investment agreement as part of negotiations under the Trump administration. As part of that deal, Japan pledged up to $550 billion in investment in the US in exchange for lower US tariffs on Japanese goods. Those projects represent future property, liability, workers’ compensation and umbrella placements, noted Okuda.
However, Japanese multinationals in the US, from OEMs to retail and manufacturing firms, are not immune to political and economic uncertainty. And even as capital flows provide an optimistic outlook, natural catastrophe remains a defining risk.
From the California wildfires to severe convective storms, losses continue to mount across the industry. At the same time, secondary perils such as floods and tornadoes are reshaping exposure models.
“A couple of decades ago, we were all mindful of hurricanes and earthquakes, but that has been shifting,” said Okuda. “The overall trend is that we continue to see large Nat Cats and we continue to see protection gaps that the entire industry should address in the future so that, as a whole, we create a resilient society and make sure people can go on with their lives without being significantly disrupted.”
While his fundamental view of catastrophe risk has not changed, Okuda said events “constantly remind us that we have to be purposeful in our business, and make sure that we support clients and communities with their risk management and protection.”
Still, Okuda sees multinationals continuing to prove their resilience. “Everyone sees a certain level of volatility and uncertainty in the market, but that is nothing new,” he said. “Many companies have been able to adapt to changing market dynamics.”
Over the past two decades, the Tokio Marine group has expanded in the US through acquisitions, including Philadelphia Insurance Companies, Tokio Marine HCC, PURE Insurance and Delphi Financial Group. While Tokio Marine America focuses on standard commercial lines, it collaborates with sister companies for D&O, reps and warranties, and excess workers’ compensation.
“If we approach a client, we want to have a holistic proposition,” Okuda said. “We bring together collective expertise across the group.”
Okuda stepped into the CEO role last July after serving as chief of staff to the group CEO at Tokio Marine Holdings. His tenure comes at a symbolic moment: 2026 marks 50 years since Tokio Marine America formally established its US presence, though the broader group began writing business in the US in 1880.
“It has been seven or eight months into this new journey, and it has been pretty exciting,” Okuda said. “We are at a tipping point in terms of how the market is gradually gravitating towards a softer cycle.”
After five years of strong financial performance during a hard market, Tokio Marine America is preparing its next midterm plan for 2027 to 2029. Okuda said he is focused on maintaining “a competitive edge in changing market dynamics” while delivering “sustainable, profitable growth over the next market cycle.”
“We are very proud of that history,” the CEO said. “My ultimate mission is to make sure that we continue to thrive in this market, that we continue to serve the Japanese clientele that we mainly cater to, and that we work alongside our various sister companies in the States so that we enjoy group synergy.”
