The life-insurance sector in Hong Kong and the Greater Bay Area has undergone rapid digitalisation, driven by post-pandemic shifts in consumer behaviour and regulatory alignment. According to Mark Kai, chief financial officer (CFO) of BOC Life, technology now drives regulatory transparency, operational efficiency and customer experience. He emphasised that frameworks such as IFRS 17 and Risk-Based Capital (RBC) provide “a solid foundation to support good-quality growth for the Hong Kong insurance industry”, indicating that technological and regulatory upgrades are mutually reinforcing. His comments reflect BOC Life’s broader strategy to align digitalisation with risk management and sustainable profitability. A multi-layered approach to transformation BOC Life’s strategy revolves around three connected layers: platforms, products and ecosystems. For platforms, BOC Life transitioned from developing its own digital sales tools to leveraging existing ecosystems, particularly BOC Hong Kong’s mobile-banking app. This collaboration gives access to millions of active users, reducing marketing costs and expanding reach. Its eService platform complements this by allowing customers to manage policies, claims and requests online. For products, BOC Life introduced fully digitalised products, notably iMortgage, to simplify complex financial processes. The insurer also expanded digital channels for protection plans, with automated underwriting and faster policy issuance. For ecosystem, the Live Young app exemplifies BOC Life’s ecosystem strategy, integrating health tracking with insurance. It rewards wellness behaviour and gathers anonymised data to refine personalised products —turning non-policyholders into active participants in the company’s health-and-insurance network. Operational efficiency through digital readiness BOC Life has started IFRS17 implementation project since 2019, spending a few years to modernise its finance and actuarial systems. Monthly financial closing now occurs within five working days—one of the fastest in the market. Kai credits these improvements to early investment in data integration and system automation, which enhance transparency and scalability. Back-end digitalisation also enables faster claims settlement and automated underwriting, allowing staff to focus on complex wealth-management products while routine cases move through digital channels. Measurable digital impact Roughly one-third of BOC Life’s new business policy count now originates from digital platforms, according to internal tracking. While digital channels dominate simple endowment and protection products, high-value wealth products continue to rely on advisory services. This dual model allows BOC Life to free traditional channels for complex cases while scaling simpler offerings online. Customer-experience indicators such as Net Promoter Score and policy-issuance times also have shown tangible progress, though the company continues to balance automation with personalised service. Outlook for growth and competition Kai recognises that demand from Mainland China and the Greater Bay Area remains a key growth engine. With the HKD-USD peg providing currency stability and cross-border investors seeking diversification, BOC Life expects sustained interest in Hong Kong-based insurance. Yet competition is tightening as peers invest in similar technologies. Kai views differentiation through AI-enabled engagement, ecosystem expansion and data-driven personalisation as vital next steps. BOC Life’s digitalisation strategy illustrates how Hong Kong insurers are integrating regulatory compliance, operational technology and customer platforms into a unified growth model. Kai’s emphasis on IFRS 17 and RBC frameworks underscores a pragmatic belief that robust digital infrastructure must serve both governance and customer-value goals. The company’s ongoing shift from transactional digital tools to ecosystem-based engagement positions it competitively—provided it continues to balance innovation with trust, compliance and cost discipline.
