Transforming insurance portfolios with modern asset allocation



Foreword by Georgette Anderson, Managing Director, Head of Aladdin Insurance Business Development, AMRS, and Vineet Gupta, Managing Director, Head of Credit Risk & Analytics - Aladdin

Report highlights

  • 01

    Insurance portfolios are entering a new era

    Insurance investors are moving beyond traditional asset allocation models to adapt to a more complex and uncertain market environment. Investors are now reshaping portfolio construction to improve resilience, flexibility, and long‑term durability across the full balance sheet.

  • 02

    Private markets are now core to insurer strategy

    What was once a niche allocation has become a central pillar of insurance portfolios. Insurers are increasingly allocating to private markets to enhance diversification, manage risk, and access differentiated sources of return—reflecting a durable shift in portfolio construction.

  • 03

    Technology is critical to scaling complexity

    As portfolios expand across public and private assets, operational and analytical complexity is rising. Insurers are rethinking operating models and investing in technology to strengthen decision‑making, risk oversight, and whole‑portfolio management in a rapidly evolving landscape.

Insurers are responding to rapid economic changes by increasing allocations to private assets.

Over the past several years, insurers have faced macroeconomic and policy headwinds and heightened market volatility. More recently, geopolitical uncertainty and isolated stresses within private markets have added to an already complex investment environment. While this uncertainty has not been without cost, it has created a more complex and selective opportunity set for insurers that are well positioned to navigate dislocations and adapt to structural shifts in markets.

One of the most significant structural changes is the increasing demand for private assets. Some 30% of insurers surveyed for BlackRock’s 2025 Global Insurance Report 2025 planned to increase allocations. BlackRock’s surveys since 2018 show this is a secular shift, independent of the rate cycle.

In our report, we explore how and why insurers plan to access private markets, historical returns, and the role technology will play in the future.

Bar chart showing insurers plan to increase allocations to private assets, with infrastructure debt and private placements leading. Source: BlackRock Global Insurance Report 2025