Good morning. My name is Byun, Dong Shik, President of the Financial News.

I sincerely welcome you to “the 15th Global Insurance Symposium,” 

co-hosted by the Financial News and Korea Insurance Research Institute.

As you all know, the history of insurance has grown with data. The more 

diverse and massive data was used, the more the insurance industry 

developed, and the social welfare and safety nets were strengthened.

The history of insurance proves this. Modern death insurance was introduced 

in the early 18th century. This is because, with accumulated data and advances 

in mathematics, it was only then that mortality prediction became possible.

Before that, no one knew what human life expectancy was. At the time, we had 

no choice but to decide the insurance premium and pay the insurance premium. 

As a result, death insurance is a kind of gamble for both the insurance 

companies and the insured.

We are now living in the era of the “data economy.”

Data is the most important key resource that determines the competitiveness of

each country. Korea also opened the era of the “data economy” with the enforcement 

of the Data 3 Act in 2020.

The data economy has provided an opportunity for the insurance industry to take 

another leap forward. I believe that the fate of the industry will depend on how 

the data economy is integrated into the insurance industry. Currently, the domestic

insurance industry is in a stagnant period. The growth potential of life insurance 

is lower than that of the national economy, and non-life insurance maintains this 

level. This low-growth trend is expected to continue in the future.

Accordingly, the theme of this year's symposium is “Data Economy and Sustainable 

Insurance.” This year’s symposium will be an opportunity to face our reality with 

examples of global insurance companies pioneering new markets using data. 

In particular, it is expected that the issue related to the use of public health data 

by insurance companies, which has been controversial in recent years, will be 

discussed in depth.

Lastly, I would like to express my special thanks to Lee, Bok Hyeon, Chairman 

of the Financial Supervisory Service, Chung, Hee, Chairman of Korea Life 

Insurance, and Jung, Ji Won, Chairman & CEO of the General Insurance 

Association of Korea for attending this year’s event out of their busy schedule.

Also, I always appreciate Ahn, Chul Kyung, President of the Korea Insurance 

Research Institute for costing the “Global Insurance Symposium,” which is the 

only international insurance symposium in Korea. And I would like to express 

my deepest gratitude to Ms. Brona Magee, Deputy CEO of Scor Life & Health, 

and Dr. Peter Maas, Professor of the School of Management, University of 

St. Gallen in Switzerland. 

I wish all of you to stay healthy and happy. Thank you!

Byun, Dong Shik

President

The Financial News