GA Association Aims to Evolve into a "Financial Sales Company by 2035"

The General Agency (GA) Association has laid out a 10-year industry blueprint, unveiling its vision to elevate the legal status of GAs to “insurance sales companies” and eventually “financial sales companies.” This suggests the possibility that GAs may evolve from simple insurance sales organizations into comprehensive financial sales platforms that span the entire financial sector. Industry observers anticipate that this announcement will once again highlight the role of first-generation GA leaders.

In its strategic report distributed to member firms, the GA Association officially set the goals of transitioning into an insurance sales specialist company by 2030 and leaping into a financial sales company by 2035.

An insurance sales company is a system designed to apply capital requirements and internal control standards equivalent to those of financial institutions to GAs, significantly enhancing consumer protection. A financial sales company would go even further, granting GAs the authority to sell lending products, funds, securities, and other financial instruments.

The Association emphasized that “the key is to ensure GAs are recognized not merely as a distribution channel, but as independent entities within the financial industry.”

Market expectations for GAs are changing as well.

There are currently 74 large GAs, about 259,000 agents, and annual revenue reaching approximately 15 trillion KRW. As the industry has expanded, there is growing consensus that GAs need stronger legal status and greater responsibility.

In particular, financial authorities and industry players increasingly agree on the need for higher capital requirements, stronger internal control obligations, and stricter product sales standards to enhance consumer protection.

The Financial Services Commission (FSC) also formally announced last year that it was reviewing the introduction of an insurance sales specialist entity. Once the insurance commission reform bill currently under review in the National Assembly is finalized, discussions are expected to accelerate.

Along with the Association’s vision announcement, it is known that first-generation leaders such as Leaders Asset Advisor CEO Park Dong-gyun are actively participating in the movement to introduce the specialist sales company system.

CEO Park is a representative first-generation GA entrepreneur who transitioned from an instructor at an industry training institution to an insurance planner, later entering the GA sector based on his experience in FC (financial consultant) sales and organizational management. Under his leadership, Leaders Asset Advisor has grown to a scale of 1,500 FCs, establishing a stable operating structure in the industry.

One industry official noted, “If the GA system is upgraded to the level of a financial company, first-generation GAs like CEO Park—those that have already built strong internal controls, stable organizations, and comprehensive consulting capabilities—will benefit the most and the fastest.”

The GA Association estimates that once the insurance sales specialist company system is introduced, large GAs could expand to 300,000–400,000 agents, with annual sales potentially reaching 1,723 trillion KRW.

Such growth would be possible if GAs evolve from an insurance-centered model into a comprehensive asset management platform—enabling them to sell a wide range of financial products including loans, investments, pensions, and corporate finance solutions, in addition to existing life and health policies.

The Association considers this year a critical turning point for the introduction of the insurance sales specialist company system and plans to focus its efforts on related policy engagement.

A representative of the Association stated, “We have identified insurance sales specialist companies as a mid-term goal and financial sales specialist companies as a long-term goal,” adding that they will “strengthen administrative and policy initiatives to advance system implementation discussions.”

An industry expert commented, “The transition of the GA system could reshape not just sales channels but the entire structure of the insurance and financial industries,” predicting that “the role of first-generation GA leaders—particularly those who prioritize organizational stability and internal control—will become increasingly important.”

© Seoul Tribune

seoul_tribune@naver.com