NAIC: U.S. Insurance Regulations Consistent with International Standards

The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has joined with other U.S. financial regulators in completing a self-assessment under the Financial Sector Assessment Program (FSAP). While the U.S. Treasury is the principal coordinating body for the FSAP, in the insurance sector, the NAIC has evaluated the extent to which U.S. insurance regulatory practices “observe” international principles established by the International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS).

“The FSAP self-assessment process has given us an opportunity to clearly demonstrate the many ways insurance regulation in the U.S. is absolutely consistent with international standards,” said Roger Sevigny, NAIC President and New Hampshire Insurance Commissioner, in a statement. “The FSAP process provides a welcome platform for collaboration with our federal regulatory counterparts in this timely exercise of self-analysis and reflection.”

Conducted worldwide, the FSAP is a joint project of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It is designed to address financial sector stability issues through an evaluation of the regulatory rules and practices measured against the internationally recognized standards and codes. For insurance, the Insurance Core Principles developed by the IAIS form the basis for the assessment of regulators’ observance of international standards. The FSAP will be supplemented by additional discussions with the IMF review team.

“The FSAP is an important exercise for U.S. regulators and, in our case, further highlights the importance of our extensive contributions to the development of international standards at the IAIS,” said Dr. Therese Vaughan, CEO of the NAIC. “While it is important for our regulatory system to function in a manner consistent with international standards, our primary focus as stewards of the world’s largest insurance market remains protecting U.S. consumers.”