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Singapore’s cyber insurance market is expected to expand 50 percent this year, with finance and healthcare among the top sectors, according to AIG Asia-Pacific Insurance.

Singapore’s cyber insurance industry is expected to expand by 50 percent this year, with healthcare and finance among the top growing sectors.

Demand would be fuelled by businesses looking to mitigate potential damage from cybersecurity breaches on reputation and finances, said AIG Asia-Pacific Insurance, which based its findings on research conducted at the company’s corporate governance events in late-2014. Respondents included CFOs, risk managers, and general counsel from public-listed companies, said the financial services provider.

It added that Singapore’s goal to become a smart nationwould further increase interconnectivity and automation across the nation, hence, drive threats of cyberattacks and corporate sabotage.

AIG Singapore’s head of financial lines, Lai Yen Yen, said: “While cyberattacks grow in size, volume, and sophistication, defensive methods and technologies have not seen a corresponding evolution, potentially costing businesses millions in the event of a cyber breach.”

Market demand was forecast to come from the finance and technology sectors as well as healthcare, with security risks coming from the lack of data encryption, increased malware, and outsourcing to third-party vendors.

Research further revealed that while two-thirds of public-listed companies in Asia said cyber insurance was increasingly important, just 9 percent had such coverage, according to AIG.

by Eileen Yu

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