, formerly NKSJ Holdings and , is a Japanese
insurance
Insurance is a means of protection from financial loss in which, in exchange for a fee, a party agrees to compensate another party in the event of a certain loss, damage, or injury. It is a form of risk management, primarily used to hedge ...
company. It is the second-largest
property insurance
Property insurance provides protection against most risks to property, such as fire, theft and some weather damage. This includes specialized forms of insurance such as fire insurance, flood insurance, earthquake insurance, home insurance, or bo ...
company in Japan only behind
Tokio Marine
, is a multinational insurance holding company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is the largest property
Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. ...
, with market share of 19.3% in 2007.
The “Sompo” in the company's name means in Japanese, though Sompo Japan offers a range of
financial services
Financial services are the Service (economics), economic services provided by the finance industry, which encompasses a broad range of businesses that manage money, including credit unions, banks, credit-card companies, insurance companies, acco ...
including
life insurance
Life insurance (or life assurance, especially in the Commonwealth of Nations) is a contract between an insurance policy holder and an insurer or assurer, where the insurer promises to pay a designated beneficiary a sum of money upon the death ...
,
securities
A security is a tradable financial asset. The term commonly refers to any form of financial instrument, but its legal definition varies by jurisdiction. In some countries and languages people commonly use the term "security" to refer to any for ...
,
asset management
Asset management is a systematic approach to the governance and realization of value from the things that a group or entity is responsible for, over their whole life cycles. It may apply both to tangible assets (physical objects such as buildings ...
and
venture capital
Venture capital (often abbreviated as VC) is a form of private equity financing that is provided by venture capital firms or funds to startups, early-stage, and emerging companies that have been deemed to have high growth potential or which ha ...
businesses.
History
Tokyo Fire Insurance Company, Ltd. was established in 1887 as Japan's first
fire insurance company. The company worked to cultivate an awareness of fire insurance, and five branch offices were added within a year. The major
Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
fire of 1890, however, nearly toppled the fledgling company.
In 1893, Japanese entrepreneur
Zenjiro Yasuda absorbed the Tokyo Fire Insurance Company into the
Yasuda zaibatsu. Later, in 1944, Tokyo Fire Insurance, Imperial Marine Insurance, and First Engine & Boiler Insurance merged to become the Yasuda Fire & Marine Insurance Company (安田火災海上保険).
[
Yasuda Fire made a successful bid for ]Van Gogh
Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inclu ...
's "Sunflower
The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a large annual forb of the genus ''Helianthus'' grown as a crop for its edible oily seeds. Apart from cooking oil production, it is also used as livestock forage (as a meal or a silage plant), as ...
" paintings for about 5.3 billion yen in 1987.
On July 1, 2002, Yasuda Fire and Nissan Fire & Marine Insurance (日産火災海上保険) merged into a new company, Sompo Japan Insurance Inc.
In December 2002, Sompo Japan acquired Taisei Fire & Marine Insurance.
In September 2014, Sompo Japan acquired Nipponkoa Insurance.
In December 2022, the heirs to the Jewish banker and art collector Paul von Mendelsohn-Bartholdly filed suit in Chicago to reclaim the Van Gogh, alleging that the insurance company ignored the Holocaust-linked history of the painting during its acquisition in 1987.
International operations
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa has offices and subsidiaries in 28 countries, providing insurance services and risk management expertise.
Asia Pacific
In 1991, PGA Yasuda Insurance Company, Inc., was established in Partnership with Prudential Guarantee and Assurance Inc. In September 2014, upon acquisition of Nippon Koa, it is now named PGA Sompo Insurance Corporation.
In June 2005, Sompo Japan established Sompo Japan Insurance (China) Co., Ltd. in Dalian
Dalian () is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China. Located on the ...
, China.
Sompo Japan's Australian branch has more than 35 years of operating history.
In 2007, Sompo Japan developed its business in Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
by purchasing a 30% stake of Berjaya General Insurance Bhd, now Berjaya Sompo Insurance.
In 2008, Sompo Japan established a joint venture
A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...
with Karnataka Bank, Indian Overseas Bank and Allahabad Bank and Dabur Investment Corp. in India, Universal Sompo General Insurance (main office in Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
).
Europe
Sompo Japan has been serving clients in Europe for about 50 years with offices in the United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Turkey. Sompo Japan Insurance Company of Europe, a corporate member of Lloyd's of London
Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...
since 1993, conducts underwriting and provides claim settlement, risk management and insurance information mainly to Japanese companies.
In April 2014, Sompo concluded the purchase of specialist Lloyd's of London
Lloyd's of London, generally known simply as Lloyd's, is an insurance and reinsurance market located in London, England. Unlike most of its competitors in the industry, it is not an insurance company; rather, Lloyd's is a corporate body gov ...
market company Canopius Group for £594m.
Americas
Through its subsidiary Sompo Japan Insurance Company of America, headquartered in New York, Sompo Japan conducts property and casualty insurance operations in the United States and Canada. Sompo Japan Insurance De Mexico S.A. de C.V. started local operation in Mexico in 1998.
In South America, Sompo Japan's main base of operations is its subsidiary in Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
, Yasuda Seguros S.A., established in 1958. The majority of Yasuda Seguros clients are local businesses and individuals.
Update - October 2016
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa has completed its acquisition of Bermuda-based insurer Endurance and will integrate it into its newly launched, fully integrated re/insurance platform in Bermuda, named Sompo International.
The new organization will have a board of its own, led by John Charman as chairman and CEO. He will report to Sompo CEO Kengo Sakurada. Charman was chairman and CEO of Endurance prior to its acquisition.
In October 2016, Sompo announced the initiation of processes to buy 100% of Endurance for the sum of US$6.3 billion. Endurance was delisted from the New York Stock Exchange upon completion of the transaction.
List of Group Companies
Domestic P&C Insurance
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance Inc.
SAISON AUTOMOBILE AND FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY, LIMITED
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa DC Securities Inc.
Sompo Risk Management Inc.
Mysurance Inc.
Overseas Insurance
AYA SOMPO Insurance
SOMPO INTERNATIONAL
SOMPO SiGORTA
Sompo Holdings (Asia) Pte. Ltd.
Berjaya Sompo Insurance Berhad
PT. SOMPO INSURANCE INDONESIA
Sompo Insurance Singapore Pte. Ltd.
SOMPO HONG KONG
SOMPO CHINA
SOMPO SEGUROS
# SOMPO SAÜDE
Universal Sompo General Insurance Company Limited
PGA Sompo Insurance Corporation
Sompo Insurance (Thailand) Public Company Limited
United Insurance Company of Vietnam
# Sompo Consulting Korea Inc.
SOMPO Taiwan Brokers Co., Ltd.
# Eterna Insurance Company Limited
Domestic Life Insurance
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Himawari Life Insurance, Inc.
Nursing Care & Healthcare Business
Sompo Care Inc.
Strategic Businesses
SOMPO JAPAN NIPPONKOA ASSET MANAGEMENT CO., LTD.
Prime Assistance Inc.
FRESHHOUSE Co., Ltd.
Sompo Warranty Inc.
Sompo Health Support Inc.
Wellness Communications Corporation
References
*
Sompo Japan Annual Report 2008
'
External links
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa
Sompo Japan Insurance de Mexico
Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Museum of art
{{Authority control
Insurance companies based in Tokyo
Japanese brands
Financial services companies established in 1887
Japanese companies established in 1887
Fuyo Group
Furukawa Group
Midori-kai