Sustainability risks in insurance companies. Regulatory developments, scenario analyses, and stress tests

Abstract

This paper looks at regulatory developments on sustainability risks in insurance companies. Sustainability risks are differentiated based on ESG criteria (environmental, social, governance). A further differentiation is made between physical and transitory risks. Regulatory developments at global, European, and national level are traced. The focus is on the work on EU regulation by the European Commission and the EU insurance supervisory authority EIOPA, especially on the EU supervisory system Solvency II and on insurance stress testing exercises. The focus is on scenario analyses and stress tests on sustainability risks. The latter are applicable for micro- and macroprudential purposes. Their design is discussed with regard to, inter alia, scenarios, time horizons and granularity. The article thus provides an overview and outlook on the regulatory treatment of sustainability risks in the insurance sector, whereby the EU requirements could serve as a model for international progress in this field.