IAIS establishes insurers’ corporate governance task force

The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) today announced a new Corporate Governance task force. The IAIS already has corporate governance as a major block in its framework for supervision and has specific requirements for insurers within its overall principles and standards, but this task force is needed to review these existing requirements.

Good governance practices – including sound risk management and decision-making processes – are a key component of insurance supervision which supervisors expect all insurers to have in place. Effective corporate governance allows the supervisor to place reliance on the work performed by boards of directors, senior management, external auditors and actuaries. In so doing, the supervisory process operates more effectively, facilitating the stability of the insurance industry and hence confidence in the broader financial system and financial stability.

Under the leadership of Peter van den Broeke of De Nederlandsche Bank, the work of the task force will focus on those aspects of corporate governance which are specifically relevant for regulation and supervision of insurers and reinsurers. A particular emphasis will be on the protection of policyholders’ interests.

Peter van den Broeke commented: “Our main task will be to take stock of existing requirements, build on other general corporate requirements and to describe the main elements of a broad corporate governance framework applicable to insurers and to identify the elements more peculiar to insurance. This framework can then be progressed by other IAIS working parties and by IAIS members.”

The Corporate Governance task force, along with The IAIS common structure for the assessment of insurer solvency released today, recognise the importance of establishing a broad corporate governance framework within which the further work of the IAIS on solvency assessment, reinsurance and other matters can proceed in an integrated and consistent manner.

( This is the Press release of IAIS)

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