Nippon Life to strengthen overseas biz

January 4, 2018

Tokyo- Nippon Life Insurance Co. will strengthen its overseas business because its domestic asset management operations have become less profitable due to protracted superlow interest rates, President Yoshinobu Tsutsui has said.

The company will trim administrative work by using artificial intelligence and robot technologies, Tsutsui said in a recent interview.

Meanwhile, more resources will be allocated to overseas human resources capable of competing on the global stage, he also said.

Nippon Life will consider acquiring or making investments in foreign insurance and asset management companies, particularly in advanced economies including North America, according to Tsutsui.

In Asia, "we'll consider such moves in countries where markets are large enough and the middle class is forecast to expand," he said.

"The Japanese insurance market is vibrant although it is often viewed negatively because of the country's aging and shrinking population," Tsutsui observed.

Given the size of the domestic market, Nippon Life needs to establish a subsidiary that supplies insurance and other products to banks and insurance sales agents, he also said. Jiji Press