Anna Sweeney: Ask not what the economy can do for insurers - ask what insurers can do for the economy

Speech by Ms Anna Sweeney, Executive Director for Insurance Supervision of the Bank of England, at the Bank of America 25th European Financials CEO Conference, 22 September 2020.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Central bank speech  | 
22 September 2020

Good morning and thank you to Bank of America for inviting me to speak here today.

In a normal year, I would use these remarks to run through our regulatory agenda.

But this year it is inevitable that my remarks will focus on the effects of Covid-19: a human tragedy for millions, the worst economic crisis in the UK for several centuries and an unparalleled global challenge. Our economy and the actors within it are continuing to face numerous challenges and a great deal of uncertainty. The aim of the Bank of England - along with colleagues from other public sector institutions - has been to build a bridge across the economic disruption caused by the pandemic. And insurers - as providers of protection, as guarantors of retirement income and as institutional investors - have an important role to play in the recovery from that crisis.

With that in mind I'd like to take the opportunity today to look ahead, at the challenges and opportunities of what is waiting for us on the other side of the bridge -different, perhaps very different from the world we used to live in.