A top federal watchdog said Monday that U.S. regulators for insurance giants could do a better job coordinating their efforts with their international counterparts.
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that regulators are still in the early stages of setting capital requirements for insurance companies, but their communication efforts need improvement.
The International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS) is currently determining how much capital insurance companies should be required to hold to better protect the global economy from what happened in 2008.
But while IAIS — which includes U.S. regulatory members — is moving ahead, it’s unclear how the U.S. would implement those standards.
“At this time, it is unclear which U.S. regulator would implement and enforce the standards or how they would compare with current U.S. capital standards,” GAO found.
“The U.S. members of IAIS—including the Federal Insurance Office (FIO), the Federal Reserve, and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC)— have improved coordination among themselves as a group but could do more to incorporate leading practices for collaboration,” according to the report.