Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2023 gazetted
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The Bill seeks to amend the Insurance Ordinance (Cap. 41) and other relevant legislation for providing the legal framework to implement a Risk-based Capital (RBC) regime for the Hong Kong insurance industry.
"The Bill will serve to enhance Hong Kong's insurance regulatory regime in alignment with international standards, thereby reinforcing Hong Kong's status as an international financial centre and a risk management centre. The new regime, which will replace the existing rule-based capital adequacy regime, will render the capital requirements imposed on insurance companies more sensitive to their asset and liability matching, risk profile and mix of products, thereby further strengthening the financial soundness of the Hong Kong insurance industry," a spokesperson for the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau said.
The International Association of Insurance Supervisors issued the Insurance Core Principles to prescribe global insurance regulatory standards, including principles for a risk-based approach to capital adequacy requirements. To prepare for the implementation of the new regime, the Government and the Insurance Authority (IA) have maintained close contact with the industry and conducted rounds of quantitative studies and consultation. The Bill proposes amendments to capital requirements, valuation of assets and liabilities, requirements on submission and disclosure of information, etc, in relation to the RBC regime, as well as empowering the IA to prescribe the detailed requirements by way of subsidiary legislation.
The Bill will be introduced into the Legislative Council for first reading on April 19.
Ends/Thursday, April 6, 2023
Issued at HKT 12:00
Issued at HKT 12:00
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