Singapore life insurers post 21.4% growth in H1 premiums as disbursements rise

[SINGAPORE] The local life insurance industry saw double-digit growth in the first half of 2026, driven by a surge in demand for wealth accumulation policies amid a robust domestic economic backdrop.

It recorded a 21.4 per cent year-on-year expansion in total weighted new business premiums, accelerating to S$3.63 billion from S$2.99 billion in the same period last year, said the Life Insurance Association Singapore (LIA Singapore) on Wednesday (Aug 12).

A buoyant macroeconomic environment, highlighted by Singapore’s gross domestic product growing 6.3 per cent in the first quarter and 5.7 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, has spurred residents to take a longer-term view of their financial resilience, noted LIA.

Consumers predominantly allocated capital towards policies designed for long-term savings and market-linked returns.

Investment-linked policies captured the dominant share of new business, accounting for 44 per cent of total weighted new business premiums, as premiums in this segment surged 24.2 per cent year on year to S$1.59 billion.

Participating policies maintained a stable 25 per cent market share, with premiums jumping 25.4 per cent year on year to S$903 million, while non-participating policies accounted for the remaining 31 per cent of the total uptake in H1 of this year.

“This stronger economic environment in the first half of 2026 may give many Singaporeans greater confidence to take a longer-term view of their financial resilience by investing for their future,” said Wong Sze Keed, LIA president.

New IP framework

Healthcare protection remained a consistent priority, with about seven in 10 Singapore residents – or three million lives – covered by Integrated Shield Plans (IPs) by the end of June.

Despite the roll-out of a revised IP rider framework on Apr 1, coverage levels remained stable.

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In Q2 alone, residents took up about 77,000 IP rider policies, and overall new business premiums for IPs and IP riders soared 66.5 per cent year on year, reaching S$100.3 million in H1 2026.

Wong highlighted that the first full quarter under the new framework indicated that residents continue to value comprehensive coverage to avoid unnecessary financial stress during medical emergencies.

Financial adviser (FA) representatives and tied representatives collectively facilitated 79.4 per cent of all new policies, totalling 504,951 policies, in H1 2026.

FA representatives were the primary driver of premium value, logging a 35.9 per cent year-on-year growth in total weighted new business premiums to hit S$1.35 billion.

Increase in payouts

Local life insurers also disbursed more than S$10.6 billion in health and life insurance claims, as well as maturity benefits, to individuals and families from January to June this year.

This compared to about S$6.4 billion in life and maturity payouts in H1 2025.

The largest portion of these disbursements amounted to S$8.02 billion for matured policies, marking a 50.6 per cent jump from H1 2025.

Additionally, insurers paid out S$1.45 billion under individual health policies, with the vast majority directed towards IPs and their associated riders.

Claims for critical illness, death and total permanent disability reached S$1.14 billion, reflecting an 11.1 per cent year-on-year increase from S$1.03 billion.