FORTY under 40: Yuta Yanachi

Yuta Yanachi, Senior account manager, AIG Insurance Management Services 

Yuta Yanachi joined AIG in 2018 and has over six years of captive insurance experience. Yanachi was promoted to senior account manager this year and served on the board of directors at the Hawaii Captive Insurance Council since being elected in January.

Prior to joining AIG in the US, Yanachi was an underwriting analyst at AIG Japan where he gained captive fronting experience while supporting Japanese clients. He graduated from Fox School of Business at Temple University with a Bachelor’s degree in business administration. While at Temple, he studied at its Tokyo, Japan, campus as well as its Philadelphia, PA,s campus in the US.

In his current role, he manages a portfolio of captive clients and oversees a team of colleagues who service captive clients in Hawaii. Having both captive management and fronting experiences, while knowing Japanese and US business cultures, Yanachi has been involved in the industry development and operation of Japanese captives and become a bridge between captive colleagues in Japan and the US.

How did you become involved in captive insurance?

I started my career at AIG General Insurance Company in Japan as an underwriting analyst after graduating from college. During my time with AIG in Japan, I had the chance to work on a few captive fronting opportunities. This is when I decided to shift my career from a traditional underwriter to a captive manager.

I saw an opportunity to bring my attention to detail and relationship-building focus to clients in this space. Today, one of the fronting clients I supported as an underwriter in Japan is now one of the largest clients that our captive management team serves in Hawaii.

"Captives can be attractive options as appetite and capacity shift in the traditional insurance market."

What are the biggest challenges of working in this industry, and what do you find most rewarding?

There are not many captive insurance professionals in the Japan market so it can be challenging to build relationships. But this also means there is opportunity for Hawaii-based service providers to lead, educate, network and secure trusted relationships with captive clients in the region, something which I find most rewarding.

Would you recommend the captive insurance industry to young people as a future career path?

The captive insurance industry is always looking for new talent. Opportunities in the sector have been increasing over the past years and I think captives is where a young professional can really shine.

What developments do you see ahead for captives?

Captive formation and management will become more complicated due to emerging risks and regulatory compliance laws/rules. However, captives can be attractive options as appetite and capacity shift in the traditional insurance market. Captive solutions are becoming a real option for the Japan market and with the Hawaii Captive Insurance Council’s investments over the past 10 to 20 years, we may see a rise of Japanese-owned captives.

Do you think your long-term future remains in the captives market?

I see myself with the captives sector for the long-term. My goal is to maintain the trust from and relationships with the clients and service providers I currently work with and expand my presence further.

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