HSBC Life Singapore wins at Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Awards 2026

It successfully integrated two full-scale insurers into a single platform one year ahead of the original schedule.

HSBC Life Singapore won Infrastructure Technology - Life Insurance in the Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Awards 2026. This recognition follows the company’s ambitious enterprise reinvention after the integration of insurance businesses under HSBC Life Singapore.  The project involved the consolidation of two distinct insurers, each with separate systems and data rules, into a unified and scalable technology foundation.

The integration addressed significant fragmentation that previously resulted in high operational costs and manual workarounds. Rather than a standard transition, the team adopted a hybrid integration approach. This strategy preserved the strengths of legacy systems whilst introducing modern, cloud-native platforms. The company decommissioned 110 legacy applications and consolidated operations into approximately 50 systems to streamline its environment.

Key technical milestones included the migration of 25TB of data and the development of 130 new strategic APIs to ensure cohesive system operations. An Enterprise Distribution Management system that enables the seamless integration of upstream and downstream systems with other HSBC Life core systems. Additionally, a cloud-native policy administration system replaced older console-driven interfaces, which shortened training times and accelerated service delivery for staff.

The transformation delivered measurable improvements to the business and its customers. Operational run costs were projected to decrease by approximately 35%, whilst technology-related product development time and costs fell by 20%. The new infrastructure also enables near real-time policy issuance, a significant improvement from previous processes that took up to a day.
Efficiency gains extended to claims and payments, with a 14% reduction in Life claims turnaround time and a 50% reduction in payment processing times. These outcomes ensure a more reliable experience for distributors and clients amidst shifting marketplace dynamics. By hosting the entire stack on scalable infrastructure, the company maintains high availability and robust data protection standards.

“It was a massive, multi-year endeavour that fundamentally transformed our operating model. Today, we are equipped with a future-ready technology stack that enables faster innovation, seamless digital and data integration, and greater consistency across customer, distributor, and employee journeys. Our ambition remains to strengthen our position as the preferred insurer of choice for our customers in Singapore — and as an employer of choice for our people. This purpose continues to drive me and our leadership team every day," said Mr Harpreet Bindra, CEO of HSBC Life Singapore.

The Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Awards is the most prestigious awards programme for technological innovations, recognising exceptional companies in Singapore that are riding the digital disruption wave and leading the technological revolution and digital journeys of their respective industries.

The Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Awards is presented by Singapore Business Review Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2027 awards programme and be acclaimed for your company's outstanding contributions in pursuit of technological innovation, please contact Danica Avila at +(65) 3158 1386 ext 217 or [email protected].