Korean Reinsurance Company

Korean Reinsurance Company

Korean Reinsurance Company was established in 1963 by Won Hyuk-hee, built to support Korea's post-war industrialization by absorbing domestic insurance risk that international markets would not touch. The firm remains under the influence of the founding family: Won Jong-gyu serves as President and CEO, his brother Won Jong-ik is Chairman, and their mother Chang In-soon is the largest individual shareholder. The National Pension Service of Korea holds an approximately 8.45% stake, anchoring the company within Korea's institutional ecosystem. The general account portfolio is dominated by global fixed-income securities, structured to support long-duration reinsurance liabilities across property, casualty, and life lines. Korean Re has expanded its investment frontier into alternative assets, including direct real estate holdings — notably its two Seoul headquarters buildings, Signature Tower and the Korean Re Building — and a growing global alternative investment portfolio. The firm covers ceding insurers across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa, reflecting its membership in the Federation of Afro-Asian Insurers and Reinsurers (FAIR). As of 2023, Korean Re ranked among the top ten global reinsurers by gross written premiums, per S&P Global Ratings. The firm's investment team operates alongside its underwriting function, with asset allocation driven by asset-liability matching requirements rather than external investor mandates. The founding family's enduring control creates continuity in risk appetite across market cycles. Korean Re maintains a CSR Committee, channeling a portion of operating income into community initiatives without a separate philanthropic foundation structure. Korean Re's structural differentiator is its hybrid identity: a publicly listed, commercially aggressive reinsurer with founding-family governance that retains significant influence over capital allocation decisions. This configuration yields a balance of underwriting discipline and long-duration asset management uncommon in purely shareholder-driven reinsurance peers.