Hanwha Life’s first-half 2026 (H1 2026) results offer a concrete measure of a broader strategic shift underway among South Korean life insurers: as domestic premium growth moderates, the country’s carriers are deploying capital into Southeast Asian insurance markets, Indonesian banking, and US securities – and the financial returns are beginning to register. The Seoul-based insurer reported on August 13 that its key overseas subsidiaries generated a combined net profit of KRW 103 billion (approximately US$72.7 million) in the first half of 2026, equivalent to roughly 87% of their total net profit for the entirety of 2025. Those subsidiaries – spanning Vietnam, Indonesia, and the US – accounted for approximately 11% of Hanwha Life's consolidated net profit of KRW 904.5 billion (approximately US$638.4 million) for the period.
Hanwha Life Vietnam posted a net profit of KRW 32 billion (approximately US$22.6 million) in H1 2026, up 23% year-on-year, driven by improved claims management, lower operating expenses, and higher investment income from deposits placed amid rising local interest rates. The subsidiary also entered new bancassurance partnerships and launched additional sales operations ahead of H2. That performance comes against a market that has been deeply disruptive for foreign-owned insurers. Vietnam’s life insurance sector entered a prolonged correction following a bancassurance mis-selling crisis that emerged in late 2022, after bancassurance had grown at a 53% compound annual growth rate between 2017 and 2022. The market decline was driven primarily by heightened regulatory and public scrutiny of bancassurance sales practices, particularly the bundling of insurance products with bank lending, while equity-market volatility and high-profile customer complaints on social media amplified reputational damage. The resulting trust shock saw new-business volumes fall sharply and first-year lapse rates exceed 70% for some insurers. By 2025, both agency and bancassurance volumes had fallen back to 2017 levels, according to Milliman.
GlobalData estimated 0.9% annual growth for Vietnam’s life insurance market in 2025 and projected acceleration to 3.8% in 2026, as distribution channels adapt and banks re-engage on improved terms. The recovery is unfolding on structurally altered terms, however. One of the most significant post-crisis shifts has been Vietnamese banks moving from distributors toward becoming insurance owners and competitors: Techcom Life, launched in 2025, was the first greenfield domestic life insurer established outside the traditional joint-venture model since 1996. Backed by Techcombank and Vingroup, the insurer has adopted a focused bancassurance model. The shift creates a potential competitive challenge for international insurers that have historically relied on exclusive bancassurance arrangements, as banks increasingly have the option of controlling their own insurance manufacturing and distribution.
Vietnam’s life insurance market remains highly competitive as new-business rankings shift. Vietnam Investment Review, citing data from the country’s insurance regulator, reported that Bao Viet Life held an 18.3% share of new-business premium revenue in the first two months of 2026, followed by Generali at 11.5%, while Dai-ichi Life and AIA each held around 11% to 12%. Techcom Life, launched in 2025, reached 8.3% by February, entering the top five and surpassing several established foreign insurers. By total life insurance premium revenue, however, Bao Viet Life remained the leader at 23.5%, followed by Manulife at 17.4%, Dai-ichi Life at 11.8%, AIA at 11.6%, and Prudential at 11.4%.
The more structurally significant element of Hanwha Life’s H1 results is the contribution from its non-insurance entities. US-based Velocity Clearing, LLC and Indonesia’s Nobu Bank together recorded a combined net profit of KRW 58 billion (approximately US$40.9 million) – exceeding the Vietnam insurance unit’s individual contribution. Velocity Clearing is a self-clearing broker-dealer registered with the SEC and FINRA, with registrations and memberships across major US exchanges and self-regulatory organisations, including the New York Stock Exchange, Cboe Exchange, Nasdaq BX, and Nasdaq PHLX. Its services include execution, clearing and custody, stock-locate services, securities lending, and financing. Hanwha Life acquired a 75% stake in the firm in a transaction completed July 30, 2025. As of the end of 2024, Velocity held approximately US$1.2 billion in total assets, while revenue had grown at a 25% CAGR from 2022 to 2024. The firm recorded KRW 29 billion in net profit in H1 2026.
On the banking side, Hanwha Life secured a 40% controlling stake in Indonesia’s Nobu Bank from Lippo Group in June 2025, becoming the first Korean insurer to enter the overseas banking sector. As of 2024, Nobu Bank held total assets of approximately US$2.2 billion, while net profit more than doubled from KRW 12 billion in 2023 to KRW 27.9 billion in 2024. Nobu Bank’s H1 2026 net profit reached KRW 29 billion, already exceeding its full-year 2024 result, with recent growth supported by mortgage lending and its position in Indonesia’s QR-payment market.
Hanwha Life’s model reflects a sector-wide response to domestic constraints. South Korea’s Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) reported that the overseas operations of 12 Korean insurers generated a combined net profit of US$197 million in 2025, up 23.8% year-on-year across 46 entities in 11 markets, according to Korea Herald. Profit from overseas insurance businesses, however, fell by US$22.1 million year-on-year to US$128.6 million – with the gap filled by Hanwha Life’s newly consolidated banking and securities businesses.
For brokers and independent distributors operating in Vietnam and Indonesia, the strategic shift is significant. Korean insurers are expanding beyond underwriting into banking, securities, and distribution, giving them greater control over customer access and bancassurance channels. The ASEAN bancassurance market was valued at US$35.82 billion in 2025 and is forecast to reach US$69.71 billion by 2031, representing an 11.08% compound annual growth rate, according to Mordor Intelligence. As insurers pursue that growth through exclusive or preferential bank partnerships, brokers could face greater competition for customers and distribution access, particularly where banks give partner insurers preferential access to their customer bases.
On a consolidated basis, Hanwha Life reported a 96% year-on-year increase in net profit to KRW 904.5 billion (approximately US$638.4 million) for H1 2026, with standalone net profit rising 183.9% to KRW 510.2 billion (approximately US$360.1 million). New business contractual service margin reached KRW 1.3001 trillion (approximately US$917.6 million), which the company said was its highest first-half figure since adopting IFRS 17, with new business profitability rising 11-fold. A company official said: “Our proactive global expansion and efforts to diversify our portfolio have translated into tangible earnings, putting our global business on a stable growth trajectory. In the second half of the year, we will further strengthen the earnings foundation of each overseas subsidiary and expand sustainable growth drivers across global markets.”
