Banks outsize insurers

The Geneva association has processed the world’s 28 biggest banks and insurance companies. The survey found that banks were institutions whose seize is more important than that of insurers. Banks’ average capital is 3.9 times as high as that of insurance companies. In terms of ranking, the first insurers is comparable to the 22nd bank. The assets of an insurance company, being systematically offset by a liability element, the insurer’s balance sheet is less vulnerable to systemic risks. Moreover, insurers are less inter-connected to third party financial institutions. Globally, a bank exhibits 219 times as much exposure to by-products as an average insurer.