Outsourcing in insurance

In today's competitive and dynamic (re)insurance industry, outsourcing has become an integral strategy for organisations seeking efficiency, cost-effectiveness, and specialised expertise. This is especially prevalent in the context of any digitisation or transformation project, notably when cloud-based solutions are contemplated.

The circular letters 21/15 and 22/16 of the CAA establish the framework applicable to insurance and reinsurance companies when outsourcing activities and functions to third-party service providers or other entities within the same group. They introduce new requirements, particularly concerning the selection, documentation, and communication to the CAA of Cloud computing solutions (CAA 21/15), business processes and IT outsourcing arrangements (CAA 22/16).

To maintain compliance (including in respect to secrecy matters), insurance and reinsurance companies must review their internal governance processes, allocating sufficient resources to document and oversee their outsourcing relationships with such service providers.

This training session focuses on the requirements introduced by both circular letters, especially in terms of outsourcing assessment, due diligence, risk assessments, insurance secrecy, notifications, oversight of service providers, and exit strategies. Our experts will also share their experience of best-identified market practices and essential steps toward ensuring that outsourced activities comply with the regulatory requirements.

By the end of the training, participants will be able to:

• explain what outsourcing means, and outline the steps the organisation needs to take to comply with regulatory requirements;
• assess whether a service provided by a third party may qualify as outsourcing and identify which circular letter will govern the outsourcing relationship;
• grasp the overall impact of the key requirements on their organisation;
• understand the key documentation requirements and impacts of the outsourcing framework.

• Regulatory landscape
• Outsourcing categorisation and criticality assessment
• Outsourcing lifecycle
• Documenting outsourcing
• Notification to the CAA
• Three lines of defence model
• Main roles as defined in the circular letters

This training is coordinated by Anthony Dault, Marc Voncken, Patrice Witz, Partners, Xavier Lisoir, Managing Director, and Antonin Jakubse, Senior Manager at PwC Luxembourg.

It will be delivered by experts from PwC Luxembourg's insurance sector, who have acquired in their daily work a significant and detailed experience of the issues faced by insurance market players (depending on the needs expressed, PwC Luxembourg may mobilise experts within its network).

• Anthony Dault is a partner specialising in insurance and reinsurance with over 20 years of experience gained through PwC’s Luxembourg and Paris practices. He leads audit engagements for multinational subsidiaries under various reporting frameworks, overseeing the insurance audit line and managing operations and HR for audit staff. Anthony directs both technical and non-technical training curricula and external training in this field. Beyond audits, he leads insurance regulatory solutions focusing on ESG/SF, AML/KYC, cross-border distribution, and compliance support. He has successfully delivered regulatory licensing and restructuring projects from strategic planning to operational setup.
• Marc Voncken is a partner specialising in the financial services industry, with a focus on insurance and reinsurance. He has extensive experience auditing subsidiaries of international groups under Luxembourg GAAP and IFRS, including captive reinsurances, as well as auditing real estate structures. His audit work covers statutory audits, group reporting packages in IFRS and US GAAP, limited reviews, agreed-upon procedures, and Sarbanes-Oxley compliance audits for US registrants. Between 2017 and 2019, Marc advised insurance companies on Brexit relocation projects and currently supports international industrial groups with captive reinsurance feasibility and implementation. He has also provided operational and regulatory advice on financial due diligence, group structuring, and Solvency I and II analyses.
• Patrice Witz is a partner at PwC Luxembourg leading the Technology Consulting division with a specialisation in Financial Services. With over 23 years of IT Transformation experience primarily in the finance sector across Luxembourg and Belgium, he has managed major IT Transformation programs for Financial Institutions, including core system implementations, digital distribution channels, and IT function transformations. Patrice has overseen large-scale projects involving middleware integration and application package implementations. He established and manages a competence center for testing and quality assurance in generalist banks, covering strategy, preparation, and execution of all testing phases. His notable client engagements include digital transformation for Private Banking, core banking platform implementations, and quality assurance leadership for major banks in Luxembourg.
• Xavier Lisoir is a managing director with over 28 years of expertise in digital transformation encompassing strategy, organisation, people, processes, information, architecture, and systems for both public and private sectors. He has led all project life cycle phases, from strategy and business case definition to sourcing, implementation, and change management. Xavier coordinates PwC Luxembourg’s initiatives in document and content management, digital transformation, and process automation, contributing to over 20 assignments. He is an active member of ISO and FEDISA committees and advises the Luxembourg government on eArchiving law. Certified in PMI-PMP and Hermes HSPTP, he has a strong track record in program and project management, particularly in public sector, healthcare, insurance, and fund industries. His notable client projects include IT capability diagnostics, ecosystem analysis, and cloud-based pilot solutions for upskilling.
• Antonin Jakubse is a senior manager and seasoned project manager specialising in optimising operational effectiveness and efficiency, particularly within financial institutions and regulatory frameworks such as GDPR. He has a proven track record of successfully guiding complex projects to completion by focusing on clear communication with all stakeholders and balancing both strategic oversight and detailed project elements to foster team collaboration. As PwC’s subject matter expert on outsourcing activities, Antonin provides clients with comprehensive guidance on project management and regulatory compliance. His leadership includes managing project communication, organising workshops, proposing process improvements, and ensuring seamless collaboration across teams and jurisdictions.