National Health Insurance In Taiwan - Taiwan Insurance Snapshots

National Health Insurance In Taiwan

On the surface the Taiwan market looks uninteresting: Taiwan is mired in a relatively low level of economic growth, especially compared to neighboring markets, and there has been a degree of negative sentiment around for years. In addition, the economy has been susceptible to swings in the local political environment. But this has also been a very high growth market over the past few years. Going forward, the factors that drove high growth rate remain intact: the island still enjoys a high savings rate, it has a large number of wealthy potential customers and a significant pool of untapped assets sitting in bank deposits. However, like many other Asian investors, it should be noted that investors in Taiwan have a reputation for seeking short-term gains and a high propensity for quickly switching their investment portfolios.

From 2002 to 2007 the Taiwan life insurance market grew at a compound annual growth rate of 18 percent, despite slow GDP growth during this period that averaged 4 percent. Regulatory changes in the Taiwanese banking industry have fuelled change in the Taiwan life insurance landscape. The period following the Asian financial crisis of 1997 produced financial reform in the shape of the Financial Holding Company (FHC) Act of 2001. The FHC Act allowed financial institutions to consolidate all their companies by forming a holding company that could include subsidiaries from all financial service sectors, including insurance.