FWD Group

Last updated
FWD Group
Company type Private
Industry Financial services (insurance)
Founded2013 in Hong Kong
Founder Richard Li
Headquarters
Hong Kong
Areas served
Hong Kong, Macau, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, Japan, Singapore, Cambodia [1]
Key people
  • Huynh Thanh Phong (CEO)
  • Frederick Ma (Chairman)
  • Simeon Preston (COO)
  • Sid Sankaran (CFO) [2]
  • Binayak Dutta (Managing Director) [3]
AUM US$63 billion (2021) [1]
Owner Apollo Global Management, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Huatai Securities, Li Ka Shing Foundation, Metro Pacific Investments and Pacific Century Group [1]
Number of employees
6,100 (2021 [1] )
Parent Pacific Century Group
Website fwd.com

FWD Group is an insurance company based in Hong Kong. [4] [5] [6] [7] Founded in 2013 [8] as the insurance arm of Pacific Century Group, the company provides life and medical insurance, general insurance and employee benefits [9] in Asia. [10] As of 2021, the FWD managed approximately US$63 billion in assets. [11] The company filed for its IPO in 2022 and refiled its Main Board listing application with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on March 13, 2023. [12] [13]

Contents

The company celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2023 and currently operates in Hong Kong, Japan, Macau, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia. [1]

History

2010s

FWD Financial Centre in 2013 in Hong Kong. HK Sheung Wan Des Voeux Road Central Fu Wei Jin Rong Zhong Xin FWD Financial Centre ING Tower name sign Sept-2013.JPG
FWD Financial Centre in 2013 in Hong Kong.

Richard Li of Pacific Century Group formed FWD Group in 2013 [8] after purchasing ING Group’s insurance and pension units in Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand for US$2.1 billion. [5] [10] Swiss Re bought a 12.3% stake in FWD Group in 2013 [14] for $425 million. [15] Huynh Thanh Phong joined as CEO in 2013. [11] The company then expanded into the Philippines in 2014 and Indonesia in 2015. Expanding into three more countries in 2016, [4] [8] that year FWD Group acquired Shenton Insurance in Singapore, [9] also purchasing a unit from Great Eastern Holdings Ltd. in Vietnam [8] for $35 million. [16] In late 2016, FWD agreed to buy AIG's Fuji Life Insurance Co. in Japan. [8] By April 2017, FWD had [17] $24.4 billion in assets under management [4] and sponsored the Clockenflap music festival. [18] In 2018 FWD agreed to purchase an Indonesian life insurance venture, PT Commonwealth Life, from the Commonwealth Bank of Australia for $300 million. [19] When the acquisition completed in 2020, PT Commonwealth Life was rebranded PT FWD Life Indonesia. [20] FWD Group also purchased HSBC’s stake in a Malaysian insurance joint venture in 2018, [19] acquiring 49% of HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia), [16] now renamed FWD Takaful (Malaysia). [21]

In June 2019, FWD Group purchased MetLife's business in Hong Kong [7] [14] reportedly for around $400 million. [10] That month, FWD Group agreed to buy SCB Life Assurance, the life insurance business of Thailand’s Siam Commercial Bank, for $3 billion, "reflecting the largest insurance deal in Southeast Asia in terms of value." [7] [22] FWD also launched its Malaysian takaful (Islamic insurance) market at the end of July 2019. [23] By August 2019, FWD had applied for a license to enter a joint venture in China. Having spent $6 billion on mergers and acquisitions since its founding, [6] in November 2019, FWD agreed to acquire Vietcombank-Cardif Life Insurance, a joint venture between Vietcombank and BNP Paribas Cardif, [24] for $400 million. [16] FWD announced in December 2019 it would exit its group medical insurance business in Singapore by December 2020. [25] [26]

2020s

FWD Tower in Jakarta, Indonesia. SCBD Jakarta.jpg
FWD Tower in Jakarta, Indonesia.

In March 2020, Prudential acquired a bancassurance partnership in Thailand from FWD Group for $753 million. [27] The same month, FWD Vietnam Life became the largest life insurer in Vietnam by charter capital. [28] In June 2020, FWD Group purchased a minority stake in the life insurance arm of PT Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI), PT Asuransi BRI Life, for a reported $300 million. [29] By September 2020, press reported that FWD Group was considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong. [14] That month, the company purchased a stake in IPP Financial Advisers. [30] As of 2020, FWD Group had $50.9 billion in assets under management and 7.5 million customers. [14] By 2021, the company managed approximately US$63 billion in assets and had 6,100 employees in Asia. [1]

In 2022, the company's Value of New Business reached US$823 million, up 29% compared to 2021, and its segmental adjusted operating profit before tax was US$334 million, representing an 83% increase over the previous year. [31] [4]

In 2023, the company entered the Malaysian life insurance market through an investment in Gibraltar BSN Life Berhad, which was renamed FWD Insurance Berhad. Alongside other investors, FWD Group acquired a stake from The Prudential Insurance Company of America, a wholly owned subsidiary of the US-based, NYSE-listed Prudential Financial, Inc. (PFI). [32] [33] On March 13, 2023, FWD refiled its Main Board listing application for its Hong Kong IPO, with total private placement amounting to US$1.825 billion since December 2021. [34] In May of the same year, the company appointed Sid Sankaran as a Managing Director and it Chief Financial Officer (CFO). [2] In August, FWD Group received investment-grade credit ratings from Fitch Ratings and Moody’s. Fitch assigned FWD Group a long-term Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of “BBB+” with a stable outlook; Moody’s assigned a Baa2 issuer rating to FWD Group with a positive outlook. [35]

For the year 2023, the company’s Value of New Business reached US$991 million, up 22% compared to 2022, and its operating profit after tax was US$372 million, up 27% from 2022. [36]

In March 2024, FWD completed an additional investment for a 21% stake in FWD Takaful Berhad, making it the majority shareholder with a 70% holding. [37] In May of the same year, the company launched a new health business, FWD HealthyMe, and appointed Dr. Sarah Salvilla as Chief Health Officer. [38]

Community involvement and corporate social responsibility

From 2017-2020, FWD Group was the title sponsor of the North Pole Marathon, supporting environmental protection efforts. The company also collaborated with EcoMatcher to plant forests in the Philippines, Thailand, and Indonesia. [39]

In April 2020, FWD Philippines launched a Covid-19 Charity Drive to donate to healthcare workers and provide essential supplies across its operational regions. [40] In 2022, the company collaborated with Junior Achievement Asia Pacific to introduce JA SparktheDream, a program focused on teaching financial literacy, innovation, and social awareness to primary school students, teachers, parents, and volunteers. [41]

To commemorate its 10th anniversary in 2023, FWD initiated the 10 Grants in 10 Markets program, offering grants to support charitable programs focused on financial inclusion. [42]

Business

Since its foundation in 2013, FWD has expanded to operate in 10 markets including Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Cambodia. [1] Notable acquisitions of the company include MetLife's business in Hong Kong and SCB Life Assurance in Thailand. [7]

FWD provides a range of insurance products, including life and medical insurance, general insurance, employee benefits, and health services such as FWD HealthyMe. [10] [38]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Li</span> Hong Kong businessman

Richard Li Tzar-kai is a Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist. The founder and chairman of the private investment group Pacific Century Group (PCG), Li started his career in the 1990s with the founding of STAR TV, a pan-Asian television network. After founding PCG in 1993, he went on to establish PCCW and HKT Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DFI Retail Group</span> Asian retail company

DFI Retail Group Holdings Limited is a Hong Kong–based retail company with legal bases in Bermuda and Singapore. A subsidiary of the Jardine Matheson Group, it is a major East and Southeast Asian retailer involved in the processing and wholesaling of food and health and beauty products. Jardine Strategic, a publicly listed holding company, has an attributable 78 percent stake in the firm. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, with secondary listings on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Bermuda Stock Exchange (BSX).

Pacific Century Group (PCG), chaired by Richard Li, is an Asia-based private investment group founded in 1993 with interests in technology, media and telecommunications, financial services, infrastructure, property and other investments. It operates mainly in the Asia-Pacific region, including Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maybank</span> Malaysian bank

Malayan Banking Berhad is a Malaysian universal bank, with key operating "home markets" of Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. According to the 2020 Brand Finance report, Maybank is Malaysia's most valuable bank brand, the fourth-top brand amongst the ASEAN countries and ranked 70th among the world’s most valuable bank brands.

Chubb Limited is a Swiss company incorporated in Zürich, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) where it is a component of the S&P 500. Chubb is a global provider of insurance products covering property and casualty, accident and health, reinsurance, and life insurance and is the largest publicly traded property and casualty insurance company in the world. Chubb operates in 55 countries and territories and in the Lloyd's insurance market in London. Clients of Chubb consist of multinational corporations and local businesses, individuals, and insurers seeking reinsurance coverage. Chubb provides commercial and personal property and casualty insurance, personal accident and supplemental health insurance, reinsurance, and life insurance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">People's Insurance Company of China</span> Chinese insurance company

The People's Insurance Company (Group) of China Limited, known as PICC Group or just PICC, is a Chinese listed insurer. The Chinese Central Government is the controlling shareholder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">OCBC Bank</span> Singaporean multinational banking and financial services corporation

Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Limited, abbreviated as OCBC, is a Singaporean multinational banking and financial services corporation headquartered at the OCBC Centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charoen Pokphand</span> Largest private company in Thailand

The Charoen Pokphand Group Company, Ltd. (CP) is a Thai conglomerate based in Bangkok. It is Thailand's largest private company and the largest privately held Royal Warrant holder of the Thai Royal Family. The company describes itself as having eight business lines covering 13 business groups. As of 2020, the group has investments in 21 countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Eastern Life</span> Singaporean insurance company

Great Eastern Life Assurance Co. Ltd, often known as Great Eastern Life or simply Great Eastern, is a Singaporean multinational insurance company and subsidiary of OCBC Bank operating in the Southeast Asia region. Founded in 1908 by Alfred Hewton Fair, it is the largest and oldest life insurance company in Singapore and Malaysia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CIMB</span> Universal bank based in Malaysia

CIMB Group Holdings Berhad is a Malaysian universal bank headquartered in Kuala Lumpur and operating in high growth economies in ASEAN. CIMB Group is an indigenous ASEAN investment bank. CIMB has a wide retail branch network with 1,080 branches across the region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AIA Group</span> Hong Kong-based multinational insurance and finance company

AIA Group Limited, often known as AIA, is an American-Hong Kong–based multinational insurance and finance corporation. It is the largest publicly traded life insurance group in the Asia-Pacific region. It offers insurance and financial services, writing life insurance for individuals and businesses, as well as accident and health insurance, and offers retirement planning, and wealth management services, variable contracts, investments and securities.

China Taiping Insurance Holdings Company Limited (CTIH) formerly China Insurance International Holdings Company Limited (CIIH), is a Chinese insurance conglomerate. The company has strong Chinese Central Government background despite being incorporated in Hong Kong. It is considered as a red chip company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ageas</span> Belgian-listed international insurance Group

Ageas is a Belgian multinational insurance company co-headquartered in Brussels. Ageas is Belgium's largest insurer and operates in 13 countries worldwide. The company was renamed from Fortis Holding in April 2010 and consists of those insurance activities remaining after the breakup and sale of the financial services group Fortis during the financial crisis of 2007-2010.

Catcha Group is an international Internet group founded by entrepreneur Patrick Grove. The Group controls a number of publicly listed and private media, new media, online classifieds and e-commerce businesses, and is one of the largest investors in the digital sector in emerging markets, notably ASEAN. Catcha Group and its related entities have completed over 50 investments either directly or indirectly, as sole, majority or minority shareholders.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Overseas Bank</span> Singaporean regional bank

United Overseas Bank Limited, often known as UOB, is a Singaporean regional bank headquartered at Raffles Place, Singapore, with branches mostly found in Southeast Asia countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cordlife</span> Consumer health company

Incorporated in May 2001, Cordlife Group Limited, is a consumer health company and one of the leading providers of cord blood and cord lining banking services in Asia. Cordlife has been listed on the mainboard of SGX since March 2012.

Kerry Logistics Network Limited is a listed company engaged in third party logistics, freight services, warehouse operations, and supply chain services. It was listed on 19 December 2013, raising over US$280 million, as a spin-off of Kerry Properties Limited.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Etiqa</span> Malaysian life insurance company

Etiqa is an insurer and takaful operator in ASEAN. It is a member of the Maybank Group, offering life and general insurance policies, as well as, family and general takaful plans. It has over 10,000 agents, 46 branches, 17 offices, and a bancassurance network consisting of over 490 branches, cooperatives, brokers, and online platforms across Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Cambodia. Etiqa is a digital insurance/takaful player in Malaysia with over 55% of market share in online premiums/contributions as of 2020. It is also a bank assurance player in Malaysia, in Digital Life Insurance in Singapore, and a Group Medical insurer in the Philippines.

J&T Express is an international delivery company founded in August 2015 in Jakarta, Indonesia. Its core business is express services and cross-border logistics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RRJ Capital</span> Hong Kong private equity firm

RRJ Capital is a private equity firm based in Singapore. It is one of the largest private equity firms based in Asia.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Lockett, Hudson (2021-06-17). "Hong Kong tycoon Richard Li's FWD to raise up to $3bn in US IPO". Financial Times.
  2. 1 2 "Sid Sankaran joins FWD Group Holdings". The Royal Gazette. 2023-05-31. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  3. ↑ "Our Team;" FWD Group
  4. 1 2 3 4 Baigorri, Manuel (2021-06-17). "Tycoon Richard Li Insurer FWD Files for $2 Billion U.S. IPO". www.bloomberg.com.
  5. 1 2 "Hong Kong Insurer FWD Group Eyes Singapore Listing". Insurance Journal. July 31, 2018.
  6. 1 2 Soon, Stella (September 20, 2019). "Asian insurer FWD is expanding aggressively in Asia". CNBC.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Richard Li's FWD acquires life insurance unit of Thailand's Siam Commercial Bank". South China Morning Post. July 1, 2019.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "AIG Agrees to Sell Japan Life Business to Hong Kong's FWD Group". Carrier Management. 15 November 2016. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  9. 1 2 Hermesauto (4 December 2019). "FWD to pull out of group medical insurance business in Singapore". The Straits Times.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Richard Li's FWD Group acquiring an Asian insurance empire" . www.ft.com. 28 June 2019.
  11. 1 2 "FWD's Huynh Thanh Phong - 'You have to find the right way to connect'"; FT
  12. ↑ "Billionaire Richard Li's FWD Files for Hong Kong IPO". Wall Street Journal. February 28, 2022.
  13. ↑ "Billionaire Li's FWD Filing HK IPO Application Again, Sources Say". Wall Street Journal. March 13, 2023.
  14. 1 2 3 4 "Richard Li's FWD Plans Up to $3 Billion Hong Kong IPO - Bloomberg" . 23 September 2020.
  15. ↑ "Pacific Century sells FWD stake to reinsurer". South China Morning Post. 17 October 2013. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  16. 1 2 3 "FWD Group 'close to acquiring Vietcombank' for $400m". www.internationalinvestment.net. 2019-09-24. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  17. ↑ Daga, Sumeet Chatterjee, Anshuman (2017-04-19). "Thailand's Siam Commercial in exclusive talks with FWD for $3 billion insurance sale: sources". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-03-04.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  18. ↑ "Why FWD does not act like a traditional insurance brand and sponsors music festivals". The Drum. 23 November 2017.
  19. 1 2 "FWD to bag CBA's Indonesia unit". The Jakarta Post. 24 October 2018. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  20. ↑ "FWD Life rebrands business as acquisition completed". The Jakarta Post. 8 June 2020.
  21. ↑ Ching, Ooi Tee (2019-03-26). "Salim Majid Zain now heads FWD Takaful | New Straits Times". NST Online. Retrieved 2021-06-28.
  22. ↑ "SCB, FWD Group set to reach life insurance deal". Bangkok Post. 30 March 2019.
  23. ↑ "Brand launch for Takaful provider | The Star". www.thestar.com.my. 29 July 2019.
  24. ↑ Vu, Anshuman Daga, Khanh (12 November 2019). "FWD in insurance distribution deal with Vietcombank bank, buys venture". Reuters. Retrieved 2021-03-04.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  25. ↑ Hermesauto (4 December 2019). "FWD to pull out of group medical insurance business in Singapore". The Straits Times. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  26. ↑ "FWD Singapore to drop group medical insurance". www.internationalinvestment.net. 2019-12-05. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  27. ↑ "Prudential signs $753 mn deal with FWD Group". mint. 2020-03-19. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  28. ↑ "Vietnam: FWD group strengthens life business". Asia Insurance Review. 28 April 2020. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  29. ↑ "FWD to buy stake in Indonesian life insurer for about US$300 million". South China Morning Post. 2020-06-23. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  30. ↑ "FWD Insurance buys minority stake in financial advisory company". www.spglobal.com. 9 September 2020. Retrieved 2021-03-04.
  31. ↑ "Hong Kong Tycoon's FWD Nears Filing for $1 Billion IPO". Bloomberg. February 27, 2022.
  32. ↑ "FWD enters Malaysian life insurance with Gibraltar BSN investment". Insurance Business. February 21, 2023.
  33. ↑ Or, Mary (2023-04-04). "FWD Group acquires majority stake in Gibraltar BSN". www.insurancebusinessmag.com. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  34. ↑ "Life Insurer FWD Refiles Hong Kong Listing Application". news.ambest.com. 2023-03-14. Retrieved 2024-07-31.
  35. ↑ Cueto, Junalyn (2023-08-26). "FWD Group announces inaugural investment grade ratings". www.insurancebusinessmag.com. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  36. ↑ "Insurer's profit jumps 27pc to US$372m". The Standard. 2024-03-17. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  37. ↑ Jain, Saumya (2024-03-18). "FWD Group becomes majority stakeholder of FWD Takaful Berhad - Reinsurance News". Reinsurance News. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  38. 1 2 Libatique, Roxanne (2024-05-07). "FWD Group unveils new health business". Insurance Business. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  39. ↑ "FWD continues North Pole marathon sponsorship and introduces Hong Kong celebrity team". Marketing-Interactive. 2020-03-12. Retrieved 2024-08-01.
  40. ↑ "FWD Insurance enhances coverage with Covid-19 Assist – The Manila Times". www.manilatimes.net. 4 May 2020. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
  41. ↑ "FWD's financial literacy programme expands to 7 markets to boost financial literacy in Asia". Marketing-Interactive. 2023-05-23. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
  42. ↑ Chan, Yiu Wai (2023-08-15). "FWD Group marks 10th anniversary with region-wide community initiatives". Marketing-Interactive. Retrieved 2024-08-06.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.