Zurich Singapore taps seasoned leader as new head of accident & health

Zurich Singapore taps seasoned leader as new head of accident & health | Insurance Business Asia

Insurance News

Zurich Singapore taps seasoned leader as new head of accident & health

Extensive industry experience and market knowledge deemed crucial to expansion plans

Insurance News

By
Roxanne Libatique

Zurich Insurance Company (Singapore) Ltd (Zurich Singapore) has announced the appointment of Nixon Ooi as its new head of accident and health.

Ooi (pictured) will report directly to Alexandra Cowley, chief underwriting officer for Singapore, and will be tasked with overseeing underwriting, portfolio management, and the development of propositions within the accident and health segment.

Cowley said that Ooi’s extensive industry experience and deep market knowledge will be crucial as Zurich Singapore aims to expand its accident & health business across Asia.

“With his leadership, customer focus, and deep understanding of the market, Nixon is very well positioned to enhance our proposition, ensuring that Zurich Singapore’s offerings remain competitive and responsive to customer needs,” she said.

Zurich Insurance Group’s financial results for H1 2024

This leadership change comes as Zurich Insurance Group reported its financial results for the first half of 2024 (H1 2024).

In the property and casualty (P&C) division, Zurich posted a BOP of $2.22 billion, slightly down from $2.25 billion in the previous year, though this represented a 3% increase in local currency terms. The life insurance segment achieved a record BOP of $1.05 billion, compared to $939 million in the first half of 2023. Meanwhile, Farmers BOP grew to $1.12 billion from $993 million.

The group credited its overall strong performance to sustained results in the P&C segment, significant gains in life insurance, and continued growth in Farmers. It noted that the commercial P&C market remains favourable, with rate adjustments aligning with loss-cost trends.

Despite challenges from weather-related events, the retail and SME P&C segments showed improvement, driven by rate increases and enhanced customer retention.

The combined ratio for P&C increased by 0.7 percentage points to 93.6%, largely due to catastrophe losses. Zurich emphasised its cautious approach to reserving and ongoing efforts to improve the profitability of its retail operations.

Zurich Group CEO Mario Greco expressed satisfaction with the results, noting strong performance across all business segments and the favourable market conditions that present opportunities for further profitable growth.

“This will continue to enable us to deliver strong returns for our shareholders,” he said.