2012 Insurance Hall of Fame Candidates Announced

The first in a series of insurance company start-ups began in 1984 when Kramer acquired North American Company for Property and Casualty Insurance. The company was initially purchased for $ 26 million and following several years of growth and financial development it was sold for over $ 1.2 billion dollars.  

In 1993 he formed Tempest Reinsurance Company in Bermuda, which was merged into ACE. Today ACE Tempest Re is a major reinsurer and ACE itself is a leading global multi-line insurance group with an annual net income of $ 2.5 billion.

Mr. Kramer also served ACE internationally through its two Lloyd’s syndicate acquisitions, its China acquisition, the Huatai Insurance Company, and the opening of offices in Russia and Vietnam. 

Following his retirement from ACE in 2005, Mr. Kramer started Ariel Holdings (Ariel Re) with a total of $1 billion in funds raised privately. The company has grown by more than 60percent and recently returned forty percent of investors’ original investment through a yearend dividend.  Recently Mr. Kramer stepped down as CEO but remains Chairman of the Board.

Tsan-Ming Shih is a key figure in the Taiwanese insurance industry who has had a successful career spanning more than 40 years, culminating with his election to the Chairmanship of Fubon Insurance Co.  Concurrently, he serves as Honorary Chairman of the Non-Life Insurance Association of the R.O.C., the Chairman of Taiwan Residential Earthquake Insurance Fund, and the Senior consultant of the Non-Life Underwriters Society of R.O.C.

 Shih’s dedication to fosterage is widely recognized by the general public and the industry peers in Taiwan. In 2004, he was appointed as the Chairman of the Non-Life Insurance Stabilization Fund and was also named “Insurance Leader of the Year” by the RMI Magazine.

Under his remarkable leadership, Fubon Insurance won “The General Insurance Company of The Year Award” in 1999 and 2004, making it the only insurance company in Asia ever to win this award twice in 5 years.

Shih pledged to upgrade standards in the industry and also contributed to introducing better regulations and insurance governing rules. Shih has also contributed enormous efforts to the creation of business opportunities in the industry; he brought about the commencement of Health Insurance, the final stage of tariff rate deregulations and the application of IFRS4 Insurance Contracts for non-life insurance. 

Shih devoted himself to the development of insurance not only in the Taiwan market, but has also recently set foot in the Mainland China. In 2010, Mr. Shih’s Fubon Insurance successfully established the first branch office in Xiamen, Mainland China, which further endorsed a stronger business tie across the strait. 

Since being elected as Chairman of the Non-Life Insurance Association in August 2004, Shih has been increasingly devoting his time to the Association. As he once stated, “I have to give something back to the industry. I have been in this industry for 36 years and it is my social responsibility to do my part for the industry that nurtured me.”  

Ikuo Uno, who joined Nippon Life Insurance Company in 1959, has more than 50 years’ experience in the insurance industry. He is a A business manager who is committed to long-term, stable business management with the conviction and determination to fulfill responsibilities to provide security for policyholders.

Career highlights include being appointed President of the company in 1997 and serving as Chairman of the Life Insurance Association of Japan in 2000 and 2004, thereby leading not only Nippon Life Insurance, the biggest company in the industry but also the Japanese insurance industry, which ranks second in the world in terms of market size.

He also played an important role, as an expert member of the Financial System Council Finance Subcommittee for 2001 through 2002, on the government’s Financial System Council, which is a forum for discussions on the ideal state of the financial system and development of institutions. 

Uno’s philosophy on life insurance business management is to fulfill responsibilities to provide security for customers over the long term. Throughout the tumultuous 13-year period in which he served as President and Chairman of Nippon Life Insurance Company, and Chairman of the Life Insurance Association of Japan, Uno consistently pursued and implemented relevant policies, from a long-term perspective, in the course of his efforts on behalf of both an individual company and the industry in general. 

When he assumed the office of President, Uno expressed his goals as follows: “While the 20^th century was an era characterized by a focus on social security, in the 21^st century, society needs to change its principles on self-responsibility and self-reliant efforts. This augurs a bright outlook for the life insurance industry. However, competition is likely to become fiercer. Under those circumstances, we should first forge a solid footing in primary insurance business and then expand our activities into peripheral fields, including the areas of annuities and nursing care.”  

The Insurance Hall of Fame, administered by the IIS, was created in 1957 and today boasts well over 100 Laureates from around the globe.