Global employee benefits network IBN (International Benefits Network) in December 2018 expanded its network of independent employee benefit consulting firms into Africa by adding RCL as member for Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. Founded in 2014 and based in Kenya, RCL is an actuarial consultancy firm which provides actuarial, financial modeling and risk management advice to governments and governmental organizations, public and private pension scheme trustees and sponsors, (re)insurance companies, not-for-profit

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in November 2018 released the 2018 edition of Health at a Glance: Europe. This report is led by the European Commission and designed to assist member states in improving the health of their citizens and the performance of their health systems. The report cites “two overarching trends [that] warrant special mention”: [T]he steady increase in life expectancy has slowed considerably in

Generali in November 2018 launched Generali Global Pension (GGP), a global business unit dedicated to pensions. The initiative is in line with Generali’s strategic targets of “consolidating its global leadership in Employee Benefits, and accelerating the growth of its asset management business.” GGP will provide multinational corporations with pensions de-risking solutions and cross-border plans. It will also create an additional distribution channel for Generali’s multi-boutique asset-management platform and develop

Accounting standard setting body IASB (International Accounting Standards Board) in November 2018 decided to defer the effective date for International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 17 – Insurance Contracts – to January 1, 2022. IFRS 17 deals with the recognition of income arising from insurance contracts and its presentation in annual accounts. At the same time, the temporary exemption to IFRS 9 that was included in IFRS 4 also was

Employer-provided health care benefits costs are expected to increase modestly around the globe in 2019, according to the 2019 Global Medical Trends Survey of medical insurers published in November 2018 by Willis Towers Watson (WTW). Insurers blame the high cost of medical technology and the overuse and overprescribing of services as major factors in escalating costs and caution that soaring pharmacy costs will become a significant factor over the

Aon has identified that many UK employees do not accurately record sickness absence. Published in November 2018, this insight was obtained by conducting group risk market reviews for employers. Group risk insurers require information on who is absent, the reason for their absence, duration, and more information such as prognosis. Aon, through its market review activity, has seen that some employers either do not record their employees’ absences or

The 2018 edition of the annual event of the Cross Border Benefits Alliance-Europe (CBBA-Europe) will deal with both pensions (November 27) and healthcare (November 28 in the morning) at cross-border and pan-European level. High-level speakers including representatives of the European Parliament, European Commission, multinational companies, social partners, pension funds, insurance companies, national and international trade associations and academic experts will discuss these topics, against a backdrop of the most

AIG in November 2018 appointed Peter Bilsby to the newly created position of global head of specialty, reporting to Christopher Townsend, chief executive officer of AIG General Insurance. Bilsby will have responsibility for the global energy, marine, aviation and credit insurance lines businesses – which includes trade credit. Previously, Bilsby was CEO of Talbot Group, acquired by AIG in July 2018 as part of Validus. Before serving as CEO,

Pension assets continued to rise in 2017, to the tune of USD 43.4 trillion in the OECD area for the first time, with almost all countries showing positive investment results according to the new Pension Markets in Focus 2018 report published in October 2018 by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). This annual report, which now covers 87 countries, gives an overview of private pension systems worldwide

OECD, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in November 2018 issued a new report, The Institutional Structure of Insurance Regulation and Supervision, which presents the results of a stocktaking of the institutional structure of insurance regulation and supervision practices in 50 OECD and non-OECD countries. The report is based on responses to a questionnaire circulated to OECD and non-OECD countries, with cooperation from the International Association of Insurance

Generali Global Health (GGH) in November 2018 announced the appointment of John Kaye as Head of Business Development, EMEA. He reports to Chief Commercial Officer Stuart Leatherby and is located in London. Prior to joining GGH, Kaye worked at Cigna International for 16 years, with roles in Client Services and Business Development in the Middle East and Asia, before becoming Managing Director for Europe. Previously, he was Client Manager

A survey conducted by Swiss Life in Switzerland, France, Germany, Austria, and the United Kingdom and published in November 2018 found that only 46% of respondents feel confident about their current financial situation. The differences in the individual countries are huge: 65% of Swiss respondents said they feel comfortable with their finances and only 27% feel financially stressed. By contrast, financial confidence in Austria (48%), Germany (44%) and the

Generali Global Health (GGH) in November 2018 appointed Ran Wang as Head of Market Development for the Asia-Pacific Region, based in Singapore and reporting to Chief Commercial Officer Stuart Leatherby. GGH is Generali’s specialist division for international private health insurance (iPMI). Both GGH and Generali have a strong focus on the Asia-Pacific region. Ran joins GGH from Aetna International, where he held the position of Regional Head of Strategy and

Generali in September 2018 changed its organizational structure. Group CEO Philippe Donnet adapted Generali’s organization to carry out the new Strategic Plan 2019-2021 and better support “integrated projects at Group level and a strong involvement of the operating companies within the Group.” A new position of General Manager reports to the Group CEO. Frédéric de Courtois is in charge of the Group CFO; Group Chief Marketing & Customer Officer;

Lloyd’s in October 2018 confirmed it will be able to write facultative and excess of loss treaty reinsurance on Lloyd’s Brussels paper from January 1, 2019 across all markets in the European Economic Area (EEA). Should the UK not secure Solvency II reinsurance equivalence in 2019, Lloyd’s will be ready to process proportional treaty reinsurance business through Lloyd’s Brussels from January 1, 2020. In any event, the market said

Generali in October 2018 launched a new Cyber Insurance division as well as a start-up, CyberSecurTech, to address cyber risks. The new division combines cyber insurance products with Generali CyberSecurTech, led by CEO Remo Marini, and which will deploy cyber risk assessment methodologies for customers. Generali recently launched the in-house designed and developed Majorana technology platform. It collects and analyses customer data, starting from an assessment of the customer’s

AIG in October 2018 received approval from British courts for its European subsidiary, AIG Europe Limited (AEL) to transfer its business into two new entities: American International Group UK Limited (AIG UK), based in London, UK, and AIG Europe SA (AESA) in preparation for Brexit. AESA’s headquarters are in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg, and has 21 branches across the European Economic Area and Switzerland. It is led by Christophe Nicolas

In need of great employees to take your company to the next level? Look no further than Global Benefits Vision. GBV is proud to introduce GBV Open Jobs, where employers and recruiting firms can advertise open positions on the home page of the only independent, knowledge-oriented global employee benefits and global mobility website. Listings on Open Jobs can include links, embedded images, videos, and PDF files to help make

Aon in October 2018 announced it had established a “New Ventures” group and appointed its senior leaders. The stated goal is “to further accelerate the creation of new sources of value for [our] clients”. Aon in 2018 already created the “Aon Operating Committee”; appointed two new co-presidents – Michael O’Connor and Eric Andersen; and transitioned to a single Aon brand. The “New Ventures” initiative is a component of the

Global brokerage Arthur J. Gallagher (Gallagher) in October 2018 acquired global employee benefits and global mobility firm Richter International Consulting, based in Issaquah, Washington – U.S.A, near Seattle. Richter International designs international benefits programs for multinational companies and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and their employees. Offerings include: expatriate health plans, international employee assistance plans (EAP), international medical and security assistance programs, traveler medical insurance, business travel accident insurance, disaster preparedness

IPMI provider Generali Global Health (GGH) in October 2018 enhanced its Global Choice iPMI product by adding the My Digital Doctor app. Using a smart phone or tablet, beneficiaries now can schedule video and phone consultations with a global, multilingual team of doctors 24 hours a day. Through the new app, GGH members are able to discuss all aspects of primary care; manage ongoing conditions with a doctor and

AIRINC in October 2018 appointed Joanna Wakeham as General Manager, EMEA, reporting to President & CEO Steve Brink. She will be based in London, U.K. Jo will be responsible for EMEA client relationships and will lead business development activities in the region. Her experience mostly is with relocation management companies. She most recently held the role of senior vice president at BGRS (formerly Brookfield), and previously was Global Client

According to figures released in October 2018 by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), global foreign direct investment (FDI) fell by 41% in the first half of 2018 to an estimated $470 billion from $800 billion in the same period in 2017, mainly due to large repatriations of accumulated foreign earnings from United States parent companies affiliates abroad. This comes on the heels of US tax

Willis Towers Watson (WTW) in October 2018 announced it would expand its existing partnership with InsurTech platform Plug and Play. WTW will now have access to all of Plug and Play’s InsurTech international platforms, which include Beijing, Munich, New York, Silicon Valley, Singapore and Tokyo. WTW and Plug and Play also partner on innovation platforms dealing with health and wellness, as well as on transforming management structures, company culture

According to research published in October 2018 by Swiss Re Institute, the research arm of Swiss Re, the health protection gap in Asia reached US$1.8 trillion in 2017 and exhibits a growing trend. The corresponding global figure is $2.9 trillion, with the difference coming mostly from Latin America ($0.7 trillion) and Africa ($0.3 trillion). Central and Eastern Europe comes in at $143 billion. To put these figures into perspective, in

Finding out which laws and regulations apply in the U.S. and especially when crossing the U.S. border sometimes is a complex matter. Case in point: the marijuana industry is legal in certain U.S. States such as Colorado or California but is illegal as per federal law. So what happens when a marijuana industry official enters the U.S. by way of, say, San Francisco International airport? The U.S. Customs and

Willis Towers Watson (WTW) in October 2018 appointed Pamela Thomson-Hall as head of its Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEEMEA) region, which includes more than 40 countries. Based in London, UK, and reporting to Adam Garrard, Head of International, she was also named head of Corporate Risk and Broking (CRB) for the same CEEMEA region. Pamela Thomson-Hall joined WTW in 1999 as General Counsel for the