Apollo Global Management is pursuing direct access to Japan’s life insurance market through acquisitions after encountering regulatory resistance over at least one proposed deal.
The US asset manager held discussions to acquire two subsidiaries of T&D Holdings – Taiyo Life and T&D Financial Life (TDFL) – as well as a life insurance unit belonging to Japanese investment firm Orix, with the latter talks described as being at an early stage, the Financial Times reported, citing sources.
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Apollo’s bid for TDFL failed. SoftBank-owned payments company PayPay announced last week that it would acquire the entity instead.
Japan’s Financial Services Agency had expressed reservations about a foreign private capital firm taking over the business, with one source quoted in the report saying there was “a very strong preference for [TDFL] to go to a Japanese player”.
The company’s broader objective is to obtain a licensed insurance entity capable of writing business directly in Japan, rather than operating through offshore reinsurance arrangements with onshore Japanese insurers.
Apollo insurance subsidiary Athene had already entered into such offshore reinsurance agreements, valued at approximately $19bn, with Japanese groups as of September last year.
Japan represents one of the world’s largest insurance markets, with total premium income reaching Y36.8tn ($230bn) at the end of 2024, according to the Life Insurance Association of Japan, as cited in the report.
Apollo’s interest in Japan comes against a backdrop of slowing demand for retirement products in the US and growing regulatory pushback in Europe.
In the UK, regulators have announced plans to tighten capital requirements for offshore reinsurance agreements following Apollo-backed insurer Athora’s acquisition of a pension risk transfer specialist.
Apollo is one of several private capital groups to have expanded into life insurance – whether through acquisitions or reinsurance transactions – shifting investment portfolios away from bonds and towards higher-yielding private credit.
These approaches have attracted increasing regulatory scrutiny, including in the wake of the collapse of private equity-owned Italian life insurer Eurovita.
