Hiscox sells Hong Kong business to Well Link

Insurer Hiscox has agreed to sell the Hong Kong division of its Asian business for an undisclosed fee.

The deal with Well Link Group will see the FTSE 250 group focus its DirectAsia business on Singapore and Thailand.

Established in 2012 and serving 29,000 customers via a direct-to-consumer model, the Hong Kong unit generated US$8m of gross written premium last year mostly from writing motor insurance, with ancillary lines in travel.

As a insurance provider supported by call centres, it is a differentiated model in a market where agent-based channels predominate.

Bob Thaker, DirectAsia's managing director, said: "The focus for DirectAsia is on our core Singapore and Thailand markets where we see significant growth opportunities, and this transaction allows us to focus our energy and investment on those markets.