Hong Kong insurers' H1 2026 gross premiums up 35.5%; new business premiums up 58.4%

HK$573.6 billion. That was the Hong Kong insurance industry's total gross premium in the first half of 2026, up 35.5% year on year.

According to the English-language newspaper The Standard and the trade outlet Reinsurance News, the figures come from provisional statistics published by the Insurance Authority (IA) on 23 October 2026. New office premiums for long-term business (excluding retirement schemes) reached HK$275.2 billion, up 58.4% year on year, a faster rise than that of overall gross premiums.

New policies: participating products account for the largest share

Within new office premiums, individual non-linked business accounted for HK$262.9 billion, up 57.8% year on year.

Of the HK$275.2 billion in new office premiums, participating policies alone accounted for HK$245.4 billion, up 63.7% year on year. Other non-linked policies in the same category stood at HK$17.5 billion, up 4.9%, a clear divergence between the two.

New office premiums for individual linked business were HK$12 billion, up 73.7% year on year; the rise is steep, but the amount is far below that of non-linked business. About 33,000 qualifying deferred annuity policies brought in HK$2.1 billion in premiums, or 0.8% of individual business premiums.

In-force policies and general business also rise

It was not only new business. Revenue premiums from in-force long-term business were HK$509.9 billion, up 39.7% year on year. Revenue premiums from retirement schemes, by contrast, were HK$22.2 billion, down 16.7% year on year.

In general business, gross premiums were HK$63.7 billion, up 9.1% year on year; net premiums were HK$42.1 billion, up 5.7%, a smaller rise than that of long-term business.

HSBC Life ranks first for new business premiums

By company, The Standard reported that HSBC Life ranked first in both new office premiums and annualised new premiums: a 24.3% market share of new office premiums, or HK$66.8 billion, and a 23.3% share of annualised new premiums, or HK$25.3 billion.

Use 35.5% as the growth figure

These are provisional figures. The Reinsurance News report published on 27 October 2026 gives the rise in total gross premiums as 36% in its headline, but 35.5% in the body text, in line with The Standard. This article uses 35.5%.

Analysis: what it means for recruiting teams

The following is editorial analysis, not additional fact.

• New business is highly concentrated. The growth in new office premiums is mainly in participating policies, so recruiting teams planning new-joiner training may need to check whether their courses adequately cover product knowledge and sales compliance requirements for this type of product.
• Premium growth is not headcount growth. The available data contains no figures on agent numbers, recruitment or demand for staff, so teams should not take the 58.4% rise as direct evidence that the industry is hiring heavily.
• Business lines are not moving in step. Retirement scheme revenue premiums fell and general business grew by only a single-digit percentage, so when describing market prospects to candidates in interviews, it is better to be clear about which business line is growing.
• Market share is concentrated. One company holds about a quarter of new office premiums; there is currently no information to judge whether other companies' recruitment strategies will change as a result.

The figures show where the money went. What is worth watching next is whether the industry publishes corresponding figures on agents and recruitment, to test whether this round of growth has translated into demand for staff.

Compiled by the F50 Editorial Team from public sources, for general reference only and not professional advice. Details are correct as of the publication date and may change.