The Insurance Board of Sri Lanka (IBSL) will be hosting the 10th annual conference of the Asian Forum of Insurance Regulators (AFIR), on 27th & 28th July at the Kingsbury Hotel, Colombo.  

The theme of the conference is “Changing Landscape in Insurance Regulation”. AFIR, founded in 2006, is a regional cooperation mechanism and an important platform for insurance regulatory exchange and cooperation in Asia. Insurance Regulators in Asia are working towards making AFIR an effective platform for the exchange and communication of regulatory information, technology, best practices for closer cooperation, better coordination, efficient cross-border risk prevention and more effective regulation. At present important financial and insurance regulatory reforms are taking place worldwide.

The profound changes in regulatory systems will have an extensive and far-reaching influence on the global insurance industry with Asia poised to  play an increasing role in the global insurance industry. As such AFIR, as the Asian regional regulatory cooperation mechanism, enters  a historic stage.

The selection of IBSL to host the 10th AFIR is a great opportunity for Sri Lanka to demonstrate its potential and capabilities to rise as an emerging financial services hub in Asia. Sri Lankan insurance industry at present is in a transitional period, moving from a Rule Based Capital Regime to a Risk Based Capital Regime.

The segregation of composite insurers into life and non-life segments is another major milestone in the Sri Lankan regulatory regime.  Approximately 30 insurance regulators from Asia, the International Association of Insurance Supervisors based in Basel, Switzerland Access to Insurance Initiative (A2ii), Asian Development Bank and    Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) are expected to participate at this meeting.