Global Insurers Pivot to Private Credit as Managed Assets Hit $4.5 Trillion, Deloitte Outlook Finds

The global insurance industry is undergoing a profound transformation in how it invests, with a significant and accelerating pivot toward private credit and alternative assets, according to Deloitte's 2026 global insurance outlook. The shift reflects insurers' search for higher yields in a changing interest rate environment and is reshaping the relationship between insurers and alternative asset managers — even as financial stability regulators sound increasingly urgent warnings about the risks.

The numbers illustrate the scale of the transformation. Insurers' managed assets expanded by 25% to reach $4.5 trillion in 2024, with private placements now accounting for 21.1% of total insurance assets under management, up from 20% at the end of 2023. The appetite for private credit specifically is strong: a Goldman Sachs survey in March 2025 found that 61% of chief financial officers and chief investment officers surveyed globally expect private credit to provide the highest total return over the coming year. Reflecting this conviction, 64% of respondents in the Americas and 69% in the Asia-Pacific region planned to increase their allocations to private credit over the following 12 months.

As carriers allocate a growing share of their portfolios to alternative asset classes, the Deloitte outlook notes they may increasingly converge with alternative asset managers to leverage private equity investment expertise — a trend already visible in the wave of acquisitions and partnerships between insurers and private capital firms. US investment yields are expected to rise modestly, from 3.9% in 2024 to around 4.2% in 2026, though further gains in investment income could slow as the differential between existing portfolio yields and new-money rates narrows.

The investment pivot comes with mounting regulatory scrutiny. The Deloitte outlook itself acknowledges concerns about a lack of liquidity and minimal regulatory oversight in private credit. These concerns have been amplified by the European Central Bank's recent warning that insurers would face heavier losses than banks in a private credit shock, and by the Financial Stability Board's May 2026 report flagging data gaps, valuation opacity, and the growing use of private credit ratings by insurers. US state insurance regulators, through the NAIC, have also been scrutinizing private equity investors in the insurance industry. The Deloitte outlook frames the broader picture as an industry being reshaped by customer expectations, broker consolidation, and modernization — with the investment shift toward private markets representing one of the most consequential strategic changes underway. P&C insurers, meanwhile, continue to face headwinds from escalating weather-related losses across the globe, from floods in Germany to wildfires in the US, Canada, and Australia.