Japan’s Big Non-Life Insurers Plan to Sell Cross Shareholdings

Japan’s three major casualty insurers plan to sell a total of about ¥1.37 trillion ($9.5 billion) of cross-held shares in the fiscal year started April in a push to reduce strategic holdings in line with government policy.

Tokio Marine Holdings Inc. plans to sell plans to sell ¥600 billion of shares, MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings Inc. aims to offload ¥573 billion and Sompo Holdings Inc. targets ¥200 billion, according company announcements on Tuesday.

Eliminating cross shareholdings is seen by many as a yardstick for measuring corporate governance reform at Japanese companies. Japan’s industry body for non-life insurers told its members in September to cut their cross-shareholdings in the aftermath of a price-fixing scandal in 2023. Cross-shareholdings are widely used in Japan to cement business ties.

Photograph: The Tokyo skyline; photo credit: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg

Related:

• Japan’s Non-Life Insurers Must Cut Cross-Shareholdings to Zero, Industry Group Says
• Japan Insurers Plan to Sell $3.1 Billion Worth of Honda Shares, Reuters Reports
• Japan’s Insurers Surge on Buybacks, Unwind of Cross-Holdings

Topics Carriers