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MetLife Korea
MetLife Korea was established in 1989 as the South Korean subsidiary of MetLife, Inc., marking the parent’s entry into one of Asia’s largest life-insurance...
MetLife Korea
MetLife Korea was established in 1989 as the South Korean subsidiary of MetLife, Inc., marking the parent’s entry into one of Asia’s largest life-insurance markets. The firm offers individual and corporate clients a suite of life, accident, health, and retirement-saving products. Its Seoul headquarters anchors a national distribution network that includes branch offices and the MetLife Tower at 316 Teheran-ro in Gangnam-gu. The general-account investment portfolio is the primary deployment engine, with allocations spanning domestic and cross-border real estate, infrastructure, and private fund commitments. On the real-estate side, MetLife Korea has a strategic partnership with Samsung SRA Asset Management for overseas property investments. In infrastructure, the firm co-sponsors a $100 million fund with DB Insurance, a major South Korean non-life carrier — a co-investment structure that blends insurance general-account capital with a local financial partner. The firm also invests through its MetLife Tower commercial property in Gangnam, which serves as both a corporate landmark and a hard asset on the balance sheet. Song Young-rok serves as CEO, overseeing the insurance operations and the affiliated MetLife Korea Foundation. Headcount is not publicly disclosed. In 2025, the firm launched the ‘With U Baby’ program, providing childbirth celebration gifts to customers and employees who had a child that year, signaling a people-retention posture aligned with South Korea’s demographic challenges. MetLife Korea maintains active membership in the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea, participating in corporate-citizenship campaigns such as the annual ‘Walk to Help.’ The firm is ring-fenced as a locally capitalized and regulated Korean insurance entity, not a branch of the US parent — a structure that subjects it to Korean regulatory capital requirements and gives it a self-contained investment committee operating under the Financial Supervisory Service. This standalone governance, combined with the joint-infrastructure-vehicle model, creates a sourcing path distinct from both foreign-insurer branches and domestic conglomerate-owned insurers.
General information
Firm type
Insurance
Year founded
1989
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
Asia
Country
South Korea
City
Seoul
Corporate office
Seoul, South Korea
Principals
Song Young-rok
CEO
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
How is MetLife Korea's investment portfolio structured relative to its US parent?
MetLife Korea is a separately incorporated Korean insurance company, not a branch. Its general-account portfolio is managed locally under the oversight of Korean financial regulators, while the ultimate parent is MetLife, Inc. in New York. This structure means the Korean entity maintains its own investment committee and must comply with domestic capital-adequacy rules, which influences asset-allocation decisions independently of the US parent’s balance-sheet strategy.
What is the nature of the infrastructure co-investment with DB Insurance?
MetLife Korea and DB Insurance jointly sponsor a $100 million infrastructure investment fund. The vehicle pools general-account capital from both insurers to access Korean infrastructure deals, aligning two regulated balance sheets under a shared commitment. The partnership provides MetLife Korea with a dedicated local-infrastructure pipeline beyond what it could secure as a solo limited partner.
Does MetLife Korea commit to third-party private funds or invest only directly?
The firm uses a mixed approach. It invests directly via its commercial real estate holdings, exemplified by MetLife Tower in Gangnam, and co-invests through joint vehicles like the DB Insurance infrastructure fund. It also commits to third-party private funds, as indicated by its strategic partnership with Samsung SRA Asset Management for overseas real estate, which typically channels capital into blind-pool or separate-account structures.
How is the MetLife Korea Foundation related to the insurance company’s operations?
The MetLife Korea Foundation operates as a separate philanthropic entity funded through corporate and employee contributions. It runs environmental programs such as the 'Classroom Forest Challenge,' which has donated plants to 13 schools and provided environmental education to over 6,500 students since 2021. Governance and grant-making are distinct from the insurance investment portfolio, though the foundation shares the MetLife brand and employee-volunteer network.
What is MetLife Korea's posture on co-investing alongside external general partners?
The firm actively co-invests alongside strategic local partners rather than purely as a blind-pool limited partner. The DB Insurance infrastructure vehicle is a direct co-investment arrangement, and the Samsung SRA relationship facilitates co-deployment in overseas real estate. This suggests MetLife Korea favors bilateral or club-style structures for larger commitments, where it can negotiate terms and access alongside a trusted Korean co-investor.
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