Total assets of Vietnamese insurance companies in the first eight months of the year surged sharply by 35.16 per cent year-on-year to nearly VND365.52 trillion (US$15.55 billion), a report from the Ministry of Finance (MoF) showed.

During the period, the companies re-invested more than VND289 trillion into the economy, marking a rise of 27.63 per cent year-on-year.

Total insurance premiums in the period reached nearly VND80.84 trillion, up 38.81 per cent.

The MoF said that it would finalise a project on restructuring the insurance and securities market in the 2017-20 period in the remaining months of the year.

MoF will also co-operate with international institutions to research and revise the Law on Insurance besides finalising a draft decree on micro-insurance to submit to the Government for approval.

The insurance sector targets to gain total revenue of VND129.24 trillion this year, up 22.38 per cent from 2017. It also plans to re-invest VND305.49 trillion into the economy and increase its total assets to VND370.81 trillion.

According to experts, Viet Nam’s insurance market has high potential as the number of participants remains low while incomes and awareness among local people are rising.

The insurance industry is also expected to benefit from the country’s projected GDP growth of more than 6 per cent annually over the next three years. – VNS