Reinsurance giant Swiss Re still positions sustainable infrastructure as being “super attractive” as an asset class, despite it still not being deemed as being an official asset class, according to Jérôme Jean Haegeli, Swiss Re’s Group Chief Economist.
Speaking at Swiss Re’s global economic and insurance market outlook event for 2025/26 in London, Haegeli addressed how the reinsurer sees sustainable infrastructure as an aerial opportunity for insurers.
“It’s still super attractive as an asset class. The problem is however it’s not yet really an asset class. We need to make it an asset class. An asset class means it needs to be tradeable, it needs to be accessible and you need to be able to invest at scale, and that it also needs to be bankable.
“That’s why we have been outspoken… because it’s a good fit for long-term investors. It’s a good fit for the insurance industry as an ALM (asset-liability management) investor. We have long term liabilities, we need long-term assets and on top of that, you have low default characteristics and also attractive spread pickup.”
He continued: “And, very importantly on a more broader policy perspective, you have a growth multiplier, 3-10, one dollar invested in sustainable infrastructure gives you a growth impact of three to ten dollars. That’s why they continue to be big advocates of Swiss Re, especially in terms of sustainable infrastructure.
“Obviously we look at it via our own book, that’s one thing. But also from a marketplace view, ourselves, we want to help our clients to access it but also help overall the risk pool and the asset class to develop.”
Furthermore, in regards to the industry playing a key role towards transitioning to a net zero economy, Haegeli stated that sustainable infrastructure will play a big role towards this.
Staying on the topic of sustainable infrastructure, Paul Murray, Swiss Re’s CEO Life & Health Reinsurance, added some context in regards to how it can be a key area for life insurance.
“If you look at the sustainable development goals of the U.N: welfare, health care, equality, are all top topics that life insurance plays a role in. So, we actually want to help there as well as part of our broader sustainability objective.”
He continued: “So, my team make public commitments to reach people that we don’t typically reach through the normal life, insurance distribution mechanisms around the world, to reach a certain number of additional people each year that don’t otherwise get access to insurance. I think that’s very important.
“If we can do a good job of that and find new mechanisms, maybe we can address some of these broader social problems as well.”
Meanwhile, Swiss Re Institute’s latest report has revealed that total global insurance premiums are set to grow at 2.6% annually in 2025 and 2026, primarily driven by life insurance, which is expected to expand by 3% per year, more than double the rate of the past ten years.
