The world’s largest insurer as measured by 2014 net premiums written is UnitedHealth Group Inc., according to a ranking by A.M. Best of the world’s largest insurance companies.
France’s AXA S.A. kept its top spot among global insurers ranked by assets, but fell to No. 2 by net premiums written (NPW).
Also climbing in rank among the top 10 by NPW were health insurers Anthem Inc., Kaiser Foundation Group of Health Plans and Aetna Inc., all of which saw rapid gains in the U.S. health insurance market. Also making gains were China-based companies in the ranking by NPW.
Meanwhile, Japan Post Insurance, which was ranked No. 1 by non-banking assets in 2012, continued its recent descent in the ranking, falling to No. 5 from No. 4 in the previous ranking.
Three companies among the top in assets are U.S.-based, while five among the top ranked by NPW are U.S-based.
The biggest changes in position by assets were those of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., which rose to No. 9 from No. 14, and American International Group Inc., which fell to No. 12 place from No. 9.
The two rankings are based on BestLink data and additional research.
According to A.M. Best, the top 10 global insurers ranked by non-banking assets are:
1. AXA S.A., France
2. Allianz SE, Germany
3. MetLife Inc., United States
4. Prudential Financial Inc., United States
5. Japan Post Insurance Co., Ltd., Japan
6. Legal & General Group plc, United Kingdom
7. Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A., Italy
8. Prudential plc, United Kingdom
9. Berkshire Hathaway Inc., United States
10. Nippon Life Insurance Co., Japan
According to A.M Best, the top 10 global insurers ranked by NPW are:
1. UnitedHealth Group Inc., United States
2. AXA S.A., France
3. Allianz SE, Germany
4. Assicurazioni Generali S.p.A., Italy
5. Anthem Inc., United States
6. China Life Insurance (Group) Co., China
7. State Farm Group, United States
8. Kaiser Foundation Group of Health Plans, United States
9. Munich Reinsurance Co., Germany
10. Aetna Inc., United States
Source: A.M. Best
