State of the Austrian Insurance Industry
Since 2015, the Financial Market Authority has published the Bericht über die Lage der österreichischen Versicherungswirtschaft (Report on the State of the Austrian Insurance Industry – available in German only).
The first edition of the report focussed on the general effects of the new Solvency II regime, which fully entered into force on 1 January 2016. The following issues were in the foreground when preparing this report in light of the current economic environment:
- Will the new supervisory regime promote a certain business model?
- Will Solvency II affect the interest rate and bond markets?
- Will Solvency II’s risk-based approach lead as a whole to an increase in capital requirements in the industry?
- Will the range of products on offer change as a result of Solvency II?
- To what extent will the risk-based regime be able to contribute towards financial stability?