The Taiwanese Cabinet has announced plans to encourage insurance companies to invest in public infrastructure projects and the long-term care sector in order to increase private investment in government-led projects.
At a news conference introducing new measures to attract private investment, Cheng Cheng-mount, financial supervisory commission vice said: “The Ministry of Finance is to standardise investment contracts, as insurance companies are unfamiliar with public infrastructure programmes. Matching insurance companies with third-party businesses can also help insurance companies invest in public infrastructure projects.”
The Finance Ministry said measures would be taken to securitise public infrastructure projects, allowing the insurance sector to participate in infrastructure construction with a new financial tool.
The insurance sector could invest as much as 10 percent of its disposable funds, approximately NT$22trn (USD$733.6bn), on public infrastructure projects but only 1 percent of that has been invested so far, suggesting a large untapped investment capacity, reported The Taipei Times.
Additionally, insurers have been requesting government approval to invest in the long-term care industry to facilitate the sale of related policies, deputy minister of finance Chuang Tsui-yun said, adding that the approval would be granted following the passage of a draft act regulating long-term care institutions.
The Cabinet would recognise long-term care institutions as social welfare facilities in 2018, which would allow operators to enjoy tax benefits, thereby encouraging investment in the long-term care sector, she added.
