In the fiscal year 2022, life insurance accounted for about 74 percent of gross insurance premiums in Japan, which totaled around 324.9 billion U.S. dollars. This corresponded to a market share of 8.6 percent in the OECD.
Japan’s life insurance market
Japan has one of the largest life insurance markets in the world. The majority of Japanese households is covered by some type of life insurance. Life insurance penetration, gross premiums written as a percentage of the GDP, stood at around six percent in fiscal year 2022, while the per capita spending on life insurance reached 1.9 thousand U.S. dollars. The total premium income generated by private life insurers reached 38 trillion yen in fiscal 2022.
Life insurance providers in Japan
Around 42 companies are operating in Japan’s life insurance market. Nippon Life Group, Dai-ichi Life Holdings, and Meiji Yasuda Life Group are three of the largest life insurance groups in terms of premium income. In addition to companies in the private sector, there is a large number of cooperatives which offer life and health insurance products. In recent years, the emergence of so-called small amount and short-term insurance companies that offer mini insurance products has created new business opportunities in Japan's life insurance industry.
Market share of life insurance business in terms of gross premium in Japan from fiscal year 2016 to 2022
fiscal year 2016 to 2022; the Japanese fiscal year starts on April 1 of the stated year and ends on March 31 of the following year
Supplementary notes
Figures show the ratio of gross life insurance premium to total gross premium, which measures the relative importance of life insurance as compared to non-life insurance.
The source does not provide an exact publication date. Date given here is the day of data access.
Excluding Postal Life Insurance, Environmental Sanitation Trade Association Mutual Aid, Shopping Centre Promotion Association Mutual Aid, Consumers’ Co-operation Association Mutual Aid, Forest Co-operative Association Mutual Aid for Forest Disaster, Fishery Co-operative Association Mutual Aid, Small and Medium Enterprise Co-operative Association Mutual Aid, Agricultural co-operative Association Mutual Aid, Employee mutual aid, P&I club, and Small Amount and Short Term Insurance Providers.
Premiums were converted into US dollars using end-of-period exchanges rates for figures valued at the end of the year, and period-average exchange rates for flows during the year.
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OECD. (January 8, 2024). Market share of life insurance business in terms of gross premium in Japan from fiscal year 2016 to 2022 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved October 30, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1284410/japan-life-insurance-market-share-gross-premium/
OECD. "Market share of life insurance business in terms of gross premium in Japan from fiscal year 2016 to 2022." Chart. January 8, 2024. Statista. Accessed October 30, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1284410/japan-life-insurance-market-share-gross-premium/
OECD. (2024). Market share of life insurance business in terms of gross premium in Japan from fiscal year 2016 to 2022. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: October 30, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1284410/japan-life-insurance-market-share-gross-premium/
OECD. "Market Share of Life Insurance Business in Terms of Gross Premium in Japan from Fiscal Year 2016 to 2022." Statista, Statista Inc., 8 Jan 2024, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1284410/japan-life-insurance-market-share-gross-premium/
OECD, Market share of life insurance business in terms of gross premium in Japan from fiscal year 2016 to 2022 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1284410/japan-life-insurance-market-share-gross-premium/ (last visited October 30, 2024)
Market share of life insurance business in terms of gross premium in Japan from fiscal year 2016 to 2022 [Graph], OECD, January 8, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1284410/japan-life-insurance-market-share-gross-premium/