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According to the figures of “2025 Reinsurance Reports” (1), gross written premiums for the industry as a whole have reached 378.543 billion USD in 2023, up 4% on 2022.
Over the last ten years, from 2014 to 2023, this market has grown at an average annual rate of 6.92%. Forecasts for the period 2024-2032 point to an average annual growth rate almost identical to that achieved over the last decade, that is, 6.5%.
Demand for coverage for emerging risks, cyber and natural catastrophes are likely to boost underwriting in future years.
(1) Source: studies published by Atlas Magazine relating to Europe, US-Bermuda, Asia, Africa-Middle East zones and compiling data from 143 reinsurers.
Global reinsurance market: premium evolution 2014-2023
Figures in millions USD
| Number of reinsurers (1) | 2014 | 2018 | 2022 | 2023 | CAGR (2) | 2023 shares | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | 26 | 104 205 | 123 721 | 155 194 | 164 287 | 5.20% | 43.40% |
| Lloyd's | 1 | 13 185 | 14 048 | 18 527 | 22 072 | 5.90% | 5.80% |
| America & Bermuda | 39 | 61 464 | 86 150 | 148 790 | 152 193 | 10.60% | 40.20% |
| Asia | 22 | 23 792 | 38 623 | 33 496 | 32 395 | 3.49% | 8.60% |
| Africa | 48 | 3 690 | 4 471 | 5 815 | 5 712 | 4.97% | 1.50% |
| Middle East | 7 | 958 | 1 047 | 1 655 | 1 884 | 7.80% | 0.50% |
| Total | 143 | 207 294 | 268 060 | 363 477 | 378 543 | 6.92% | 100% |
(1) The number of reinsurance companies covered is the same throughout the period.
(2) Compound Annual Growth Rate 2014-2023
Europe, including Lloyd's, prevails over the global reinsurance market in 2023, with 49.2% of total written premiums, followed by the United States and Bermuda.
In terms of growth rates, the Americas and Bermuda have reported the highest growth over the last ten years. The gap in premium volume that had existed between the Europe and America-Bermuda zones in 2014 was significantly reduced by 2023.
The growth in premiums in the Americas and Bermuda is accounted for by the growing need for natural catastrophe coverage in this region of the world, which has been hard hit by hurricanes.
Strained by the erosion of their national currencies against the dollar, reinsurers in Asia and Africa posted the lowest growth rates.
Despite the large number of reinsurers studied (48 out of a total of 51), Africa accounted for only 1.5% of total written premiums in 2023.
Global reinsurance market: evolution of key indicators 2019-2023
Figures in millions USD
| 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | Evolution 2022-2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross written premiums | 311 588 | 347 699 | 385 695 | 363 477 | 378 543 | 4,14% |
| Gross non-life written premiums | 216 188 | 235 399 | 264 295 | 256 752 | 279 069 | 8,69% |
| Gross life written premiums | 95 400 | 112 200 | 121 400 | 106 725 | 99 474 | -6,79% |
| Net result | 40 812 | 18 447 | 46 369 | 13 960 | 77 682 | 456,46% |
| Sharholder’s equity | 869 155 | 942 173 | 1 009 632 | 891 936 | 1 060 643 | 18,91% |
| Combined ratio in % | 100,10% | 104,50% | 96,40% | 96,20% | 91,50% | 5,13% |
| ROE (Return on Equity) in % | 9,40% | 2,40% | 9,00% | 2,50% | 21,40% | 856% |
Non-life reinsurance market in 2023
In 2023, the 136 non-life reinsurers surveyed have reported 279 billion USD in premiums, compared with 256.7 billion USD in 2022. Non-life business accounted for 73.7% of the total market (life and non-life) in 2023 against 70.6% a year earlier.
The major European groups head the non-life ranking, with Munich Re and Swiss Re in the top 2. American Berkshire Hathaway is in third place, followed by Lloyd's and Hannover Re.
The non-life market is actually highly concentrated, with ten companies accounting for 58.95% of the business’ underwriting in 2023, up 1.68% on 2022.
The top 10 non-life reinsurers in 2023 include six European reinsurers, three from Bermuda and one from the USA. Within this top 10, the highest growth rates are achieved by Berkshire Hathaway with +31.8% and Arch Capital Re with +31.2%. SCOR is the only reinsurer in this group to sustain a decline in non-life premiums in 2023 (-2.4%).
Read also | World's largest reinsurers
Technical ratios 2023 of the top 10 non-life reinsurers
| Rank | Company | Loss ratio * | Management expenses ratio * | Combined ratio |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Munich Re | 69.80% | 15.40% | 85.20% |
| 2 | Swiss Re | 65.90% | 28.90% | 94.80% |
| 3 | Berkshire Hathaway | 57.70% | 26.30% | 84% |
| 4 | Lloyd's | 49.60% | 34.40% | 84% |
| 5 | Hannover Re | - | - | 94% |
| 6 | Everest Re Group | 58.10% | 28.30% | 86.40% |
| 7 | SCOR | - | - | 85% |
| 8 | Arch Capital | 55.30% | 26.10% | 81.40% |
| 9 | Renaissance Re | 47.80% | 30.10% | 77.90% |
| 10 | Mapfre Re | 68.80% | 26.60% | 95.40% |
Source : 2025 Atlas Reinsurance Reports
* The 2023 loss ratio and management expenses ratio are not available for the financial statements under IFRS 17. This is the case for Hannover Re and SCOR.
Life reinsurance market
Life reinsurance is underwritten exclusively by both life reinsurers, whose number is rather small, and by composite life and non-life reinsurers.
In contrast to non-life reinsurance, which saw its premiums rise by 8.69% in 2023, life reinsurance has declined by 6.79%, from 106.725 billion USD in 2022 to 99.475 billion USD a year later.
The top two standings in the ranking go to Swiss Re and Reinsurance Group of America, with market shares of 17% and 15.84% respectively. The Canadian company Great West Lifeco, which occupied first place in the life rankings in 2021 and 2022, finds itself in 3rd place in 2023 with a market share of 15.47%.
While the top 10 non-life reinsurers accounted for 58.95% of global non-life premium in 2023, the top 10 players in the life market accounted for 91.84% of life premium for the same period. The other 62 companies underwriting life risks share the remaining 8.16%.
By its very nature, life reinsurance is sensitive to economic developments. Inflation, fluctuations in the financial markets and geopolitical uncertainties weigh heavily on the choices made by policyholders.
In an environment characterized by instability, the individuals are generally reluctant to underwrite new policies. What's more, post-pandemic recovery remains very slow. As a reminder, the life insurance sector was heavily impacted by the significant rise in mortality linked to Covid-19, particularly in the United States.
Another important factor was the low returns on long-term life and savings products, which worked against the business, making it less attractive.
Read also | The European reinsurance market
