Singapore Life Insurers Pay Out Over 8.3 Billion in First Half of 2026

Int’l Desk: Singapore’s life and health insurers paid out more than 8.3 billion dollars in claims and maturity benefits during the first half of 2026, according to figures released by the Life Insurance Association of Singapore.

That total, equivalent to about 10.6 billion Singapore dollars, covers critical illness, death, disability, health bills and money from policies that had reached maturity.

Life claims alone for critical illness, death and total permanent disability under individual policies came to 0.9 billion dollars, an 11.1% rise from the same stretch of 2025.

Health policies added another 1.1 billion dollars, most of it through Integrated Shield Plans and their riders. Those health payouts edged up by nearly 18 million dollars between the first and second quarters.

Maturity benefits formed the biggest slice, hitting 6.3 billion dollars and climbing more than 50% year on year. People drew on those funds for retirement, children’s schooling or buying a home.

The association linked the overall growth in payouts to a stronger economy and a matching increase in new policies sold.

Total weighted new business premiums rose 21.4% to 2.8 billion dollars. Investment-linked policies led the way with a 24.2% jump and now make up 44% of the new business total.

Participating policies, the ones that can pay bonuses from investment returns, grew 25.4% and accounted for a quarter of the new premiums. Non-participating covers took the rest.

LIA Singapore president Wong Sze Keed pointed to the economy’s 6.3% growth in the first quarter and 5.7% in the second as the reason more people felt ready to take a longer view of their money.

She said that confidence showed up clearly in the demand for products that mix protection with wealth building.