Existing bank clients generated 85% of Hong Kong premium volumes in H1 2026.
HSBC’s strong insurance sales in the first half of 2026 (H1 2026) have provided a positive signal for Hong Kong’s life insurance market, with results showing continued demand for savings products and little sign so far of disruption from recent regulatory changes, a Jefferies Equity Research report said.
The bank reported that annualised new business premium (ANP) from its life insurance business rose 26% year-on-year to $3.9b in the first six months of 2026.
New business contract service margin (CSM), a measure of future profits from new policies, increased 78% in the second quarter to $1.6b from $0.9b a year earlier.
Part of the increase came from external reinsurance transactions, which contributed $0.5b to second-quarter CSM, compared with $0.1b in the same period last year.
Excluding these transactions, underlying growth in new business CSM was 37.5%.
HSBC’s total contract service margin rose 17% to $15.7b from $13.5b, despite the impact of the sale of its Singapore insurance business to Allianz for $1.4b.
Adjusted for the disposal, CSM growth would have been 26.7%.
Insurance fee and other income increased 21% in the second quarter, mainly due to the release of previously accumulated CSM.
In Hong Kong, HSBC’s insurance ANP grew 15% in the first half of the year. Non-resident customers accounted for 45% of sales, with most expected to be visitors from mainland China.
The bank said 85% of Hong Kong insurance ANP came from existing customers, suggesting that much of the business was generated from bank clients shifting deposits into longer-term life insurance savings products rather than from new customer acquisition.
HSBC’s growth also outpaced some insurance peers. Industry data showed that whilst Prudential plc reported double-digit growth in new business profit in the first quarter, its annualised premium equivalent fell 3%.
Meanwhile, FWD Group recorded a 1% rise in annualised premium equivalent during the period.
The results also suggest that recent regulatory changes in Hong Kong, including Decree 837, which took effect on 1 July, have so far had limited impact on insurance sales.
Market observers said the lack of new developments since the rules came into force indicates that the changes may be less significant than some investors had expected.