If your company falls outside the scope of the Solvency II Directive, you can apply for Basic authorisation. Basic authorisation is suitable for small insurers, i.e. those with limited risk exposure.
Funeral expenses and benefits in kind insurers can always apply for Basic authorisation, but life and non-life insurers can only do so if they meet specific requirements. This is because life and non-life insurers come under the scope of the Solvency II regime and therefore require Solvency II authorisation, except if they meet all of the following four requirements.
Non-life insurers meeting all of these four requirements, may apply for Basic authorisation, but only if they do not provide insurance services in any of the following segments.
Non-life insurance companies providing insurance services in any of these segments must apply for Solvency II authorisation, irrespective of their size.
Life insurers meeting all of the above requirements can apply for Basic authorisation.
Please note that if life or non-life insurers holding Basic authorisation cease to meet any of the four requirements in a given year, they do not need to apply for Solvency II authorisation immediately. Only if they exceed the limits of one of the four requirements in three consecutive years, the Solvency II regime will apply in the fourth year.
If we issue Basic authorisation to your company, it will not include an EU passport, meaning it will not be permitted to provide insurance services in other EU Member States. If you want to provide insurance services in another EU Member State, you must first contact the competent supervisory authority in that Member State, which will tell you whether you can provide the envisaged services there and which requirements apply. Insurers must inform DNB of their activities in other Member States as they may impact sound and ethical business operations.
Life or non-life insurers meeting the requirements for Basic authorisation may opt to apply for Solvency II authorisation on a voluntary basis. If you expect your company to grow and need Solvency II authorisation at some point or if you intend to provide insurance services abroad under an EU passport,, this is a sensible option.
On Tuesday 5th November from 3:00-4:45 PM CET DNB will organize a physical information session about fit and proper assessments.
Read more Information session about fit and proper assessments DNB
Embedded finance offers customers the convenience of in-app payment options and on-the-spot insurance. This seamless integration of financial services, available exactly when and where they are needed, makes life simpler. But this innovation also entails new risks.
Read more Embedded finance: striking a balance between convenience and risk in the digital economy
Liability-Driven Investment funds (LDI funds) mainly invest in long-term government bonds and long-term interest rate derivatives. The use of these interest rate derivatives exposes LDI funds to liquidity risks in case of large interest rate fluctuations.
Read more Limited liquidity risks in Euro LDI funds
This week, the European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA and ESMA – ESAs) have published their final reports on greenwashing in the financial sector.
Read more European Supervisory Authorities publish reports on greenwashing in the financial sector
