Asia Financial Services

Bolstered by improved political stability, positive growth and consumption outlooks, and rising investor confidence, market capitalisation in Thailand rose to pre-1997-98 Asian financial crisis levels for the first time in early 2018 as the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) Index hit an all-time high in January.

Since the emergence of financial technology ( fintech) in the early 2010s, various terms – such as Bitcoin, initial coin offering, blockchain and crowd-funding – have entered the vernacular. The trends and technologies these words represent have influenced nearly every aspect of the economy.

The Thailand Futures Exchange (TFEX) has been operating since 2006 with a range of products including futures for the Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) 50 Index, stock, gold, interest rates, currency and agriculture. The two most popular of these in terms of daily trading volume are SET50 Index and stock futures.

While advanced economies generate the vast majority of insurance and reinsurance business, emerging markets are posting higher rates of growth. Complementing this underlying trend is a strong and expanding interest in catastrophic risk, which by nature tends to pertain to emerging markets. This is coming alongside fast-paced, sector-...

A steady demand for life products has continued to fuel growth in Thailand’s insurance market, with shifting demographics and government efforts to boost personal and retirement coverage providing opportunities for insurers. In 2017 life insurance premium totalled BT602bn ($17.43bn), an increase of 5.9%, according to the Thai Life Assurance...

Steadily improving macroeconomic growth and shifting demographics are creating favourable conditions for the expansion of Thailand’s insurance industry, with reforms aimed at boosting foreign participation supporting a bright outlook for the remainder of 2018. The life insurance segment continues to dominate the country’s insurance landscape,...