February 2013 Issue No. 198
New Member Company
Our warmest welcome to Peak Reinsurance Company Limited for joining us as General Insurance Member!
HKFI Annual Reception 2013 The HKFI Annual Reception will be held on Tuesday, 16 April 2013 at 6:00 pm at the Garden Lounge of the Hong Kong Club. The Honourable Mrs Laura Cha, Member of the Executive Council and Chairman of the Financial Services Development Council, will be our principal Guest-of-Honour. We look forward to seeing you at the event.
Independence of the Insurance Authority (IIA) On 5 February 2013 we submitted an industry position paper to the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (FSTB). In addition to presenting detailed comments on individual clauses of the legislative proposals, we have also provided an overview from both the industry and professional perspectives on the following six key areas: - Regulatory powers on insurance companies - Disciplinary sanctions on insurance intermediaries - Representation at the Governing Board and Industry Advisory Committees - Roles and Functions of the IIA - Risk Based Capital - Transitional Arrangement A full version of our submission is available at www.hkfi.org.hk/en_media_20130205.html. In essence, we support the proposed establishment of the IIA but have identified a number of areas where the policy objectives are not that clear and the related legislative wordings would require further clarity and refinement. On 26 February 2013, we met with senior officials of the FSTB and the Commissioner of Insurance to go over those areas and I am pleased to report that the discussion was positive and constructive. Going forward, we will step up dialogue with our stakeholders including the media and lawmakers to ensure that the final regulatory framework is sensible and practical. Of late, we have met with the media and two Legislative Councillors - the Honourable Starry Lee, Chairman of the Panel of Financial Affairs, and the Honourable Yiu See Wing, Legco Member representing the tourism sector, which currently has 3,500 travel agents registered as insurance agents - to present and explain our industry's position.
2013 - 14 Budget Though the Budget does not provide any tax incentive to help people take out medical insurance plans, we are pleased to learn that the Administration has reacted positively to our suggestion on building Hong Kong as a captive centre. We hope to see the reduction of profits tax help attract more enterprises to form captive insurance companies in Hong Kong.
Hot Air Balloon Accident in Egypt First of all, we want to express our industry's deepest sympathy and condolences to the victims and their families. On knowing the tragic accident, we liaised with the insurers concerned to see what we could help. Also we kept in touch with the FSTB, IA, Tourism Commission and Travel Industry Council to ensure the accurate flow of information regarding insurance coverage and the kind of follow up work being carried out by the insurers involved. The first priority at this point is to assist in the smooth and speedy repatriation of mortal remains of the victims back to Hong Kong.