# Korean Re Korean Re is an Insurance based in Seoul, South Korea. ## Overview - **Organization type:** Insurance - **Headquarters:** Seoul, South Korea - **Region:** Asia - **Address:** Seoul, South Korea - **Founded:** 1963 - **Assets under management:** Undisclosed - **Website:** koreanre.co.kr - **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/koreanre - **Wikidata:** Q12620571 ## Regulatory record - **Reports private funds:** No ## About Korean Re was founded in 1963 as a state-backed vehicle to retain insurance risk within South Korea's then-developing economy. Over six decades it has evolved into a publicly traded company listed on the Korea Exchange, while retaining its structural role as the country's primary domestic retrocession partner. The firm's investment arm manages the substantial premium float generated from its domestic and international underwriting activities, operating under the conservative investment limits set by Korean insurance regulations. The asset management division deploys capital across a broad fixed-income book — predominantly Korean sovereign and corporate bonds — alongside a growing allocation to overseas alternative assets. Public filings and industry reports indicate that Korean Re's investment portfolio includes real estate debt, infrastructure loans, and private credit positions, with the firm participating in direct lending syndicates and fund commitments in North America and Europe. Its international reinsurance operations, conducted through offices in Beijing, Tokyo, Singapore, Dubai, and New York, generate a portion of its investable float in foreign currencies, which the firm matches with USD- and EUR-denominated assets to hedge liability streams. With total assets reported at approximately KRW 14 trillion as of year-end 2024, Korean Re ranks among the top 10 reinsurers in Asia by gross written premiums. The firm added a New York office in recent years to source North American casualty and specialty reinsurance deals, reflecting a strategic shift toward diversifying its underwriting book away from concentrated domestic property exposure. In November 2024, A.M. Best affirmed the firm's Financial Strength Rating of A (Excellent), citing its strong risk-adjusted capitalization and established position in the Korean market. What structurally distinguishes Korean Re is its hybrid identity: a publicly traded reinsurer that also functions as Korea's de facto national reinsurance backstop. The firm maintains a compulsory cession arrangement with domestic primary insurers, a regulatory artifact that provides a base layer of premiums but also concentrates exposure. Its investment office navigates this dual mandate — optimizing risk-adjusted returns on the asset side while preserving sufficient liquidity and capital adequacy ratios to satisfy the Financial Supervisory Service's strict oversight, a constraint-set that produces a portfolio shape meaningfully different from that of a conventional institutional allocator. ## Sectors - Insurance - Reinsurance ## Offices - Beijing, China - Tokyo, Japan - Singapore - Dubai, United Arab Emirates - New York, United States ## Questions ### How does Korean Re's compulsory cession arrangement affect its underwriting and asset-liability management? Korean Re accepts mandatory cessions from domestic primary insurers as part of its statutory role, which guarantees premium inflow but also concentrates natural-catastrophe and property risk on its balance sheet. This regulatory arrangement compels the investment office to hold a higher proportion of liquid, high-quality fixed-income assets than a purely market-driven reinsurer might, as Korean solvency rules require sufficient buffer assets to meet spike-loss scenarios from domestic events. ### Which international markets does Korean Re underwrite in, and how does that shape its investable float? Korean Re underwrites treaty and facultative reinsurance in China, Japan, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and North America through its Beijing, Tokyo, Singapore, Dubai, and New York offices. Premiums generated in these markets are often denominated in local or reserve currencies, expanding the firm's multi-currency investable float. The investment team hedges or asset-matches these liabilities by allocating to USD- and EUR-denominated bonds and loans sourced through global platforms. ### Who leads Korean Re's investment operations? Korean Re's investment division operates under a Chief Investment Officer structure within the broader corporate hierarchy, though specific individual leadership is not prominently disclosed in English-language public documents. The CIO reports to the CEO and is responsible for executing the asset-allocation strategy approved by the board's investment committee, which operates within the risk-appetite framework set by Korea's Financial Supervisory Service. ### How is Korean Re regulated, and what impact does that have on its portfolio construction? Korean Re is supervised by South Korea's Financial Supervisory Service and subject to Korean Insurance Capital Standard risk-based capital requirements. These regulations impose specific risk charges by asset class, influencing the portfolio's tilt toward lower-risk-weighted domestic sovereign bonds and limiting equity and high-yield exposure. The regime also governs foreign-currency asset limits and liquidity ratios, which constrain how aggressively the firm can allocate to illiquid alternatives. ## Related profiles - [Korean Intellectual Property Office](https://altss.com/profile/korean-intellectual-property-office) - [KOSÉ Pension Fund](https://altss.com/profile/kos-pension-fund) --- Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/korean-re Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology