What CRO Forum does

The CRO Forum is a non-profit professional association founded in 2004 and headquartered in Amstelveen, Netherlands, comprising the Chief Risk Officers of large multi-national insurance companies. Its membership roster spans the bulk of Europe's largest primary insurers and global reinsurers — including AXA, Allianz, Zurich Insurance Group, Swiss Re, SCOR, Hannover Re, Assicurazioni Generali, Ageas, and recent additions such as CNP Assurances (October 2025), Phoenix Group (March 2024), a.s.r., Helvetia, SAMPO, and Vienna Insurance Group. The Forum's core function is to identify and benchmark good practice in enterprise risk management, align industry positions with regulatory regimes, and provide horizon-scanning on emerging and long-term risks through the Emerging Risk Initiative.

The Forum does not sell software or commercial products; its core deliverable is a steady cadence of research publications distributed free of charge via thecroforum.org. Anchor outputs include the annual Major Trends and Emerging Risk Radar (tracking 1–10 year risk horizons), operational resilience papers, deep-dives on cybersecurity, sustainability, pandemic risk, space-related risks, social unrest, energy storage, and a December 2024 'Navigating Uncertainty' practitioner's toolkit that incorporates AI in risk tooling. Operational backbone is provided by a KPMG Netherlands–hosted secretariat, while governance rotates annually among member CROs, with Françoise Gilles (AXA) elected Chair for 2026, alongside Vice-Chairs Fabian Uffer (SCOR) and Christophe Vandeweghe (Ageas).

The business model is cooperative and member-funded, with no commercial pricing; income derives from membership dues of large institutional insurers rather than from product sales or transaction fees. With only six employees, the Forum is a lean convening and publishing body whose strategic value lies in aggregating practitioner authority from the world's largest risk-bearing institutions rather than in scaling a technology platform. The Forum is registered in the EU Transparency Register and operates under Dutch law, with the court of Amsterdam as the designated jurisdiction.

Name

CRO Forum

Legal name

The CRO Forum Association

Website

https://thecroforum.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The CRO Forum is a non-profit professional association founded in 2004 that convenes Chief Risk Officers from large multi-national insurance companies to develop risk management best practices and publish annual emerging-risk research for the global insurance industry.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The CRO Forum is a professional association of Chief Risk Officers from large multi-national insurance companies that produces research publications, risk management frameworks, and best practice guidelines for the insurance industry. Its core offering is the annual Emerging Risk Initiative risk radar report, supplemented by specialised topic papers covering operational resilience, cybersecurity, sustainability, pandemics, climate change, mental health, and other risk domains. These publications are freely distributed to the industry to promote alignment between regulatory regimes and industry risk management practice.

Product overview

The CRO Forum is a professional association of Chief Risk Officers from large multi-national insurance companies, not a software product company. It does not offer a platform or software product. Instead, it produces a portfolio of thought leadership publications and best practice papers focused on risk management for the insurance industry. The core offerings are its annual Emerging Risk Initiative publications (Major Trends and Emerging Risk Radar) that track emerging risks over 1-10 year horizons, along with specialized topic papers covering operational resilience, cybersecurity, sustainability, pandemic risk, climate change, and other risk domains. These publications are distributed as downloadable PDFs and serve as industry guidance documents for CRO Forum members and the broader insurance sector.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Emerging Risks Initiative - Major Trends and Emerging Risk Radar Annual comprehensive radar publication that scans the horizon to identify and communicate emerging risks facing the insurance industry, expected to have significant impact within 1 to 10 years. Produced for Chief Risk Officers of large multi-national insurance companies and the broader insurance sector.
• Operational Resilience Publications Papers providing insurance-sector perspectives on operational resilience, including regulatory expectations, risk management practices, and strategic capability development. Targeted at insurance Chief Risk Officers and risk management professionals.
• Social Unrests Risk Analysis Analysis of Strikes, Riots, and Civil Commotion (SRCC) as global phenomena, their implications for insurance, and evolving risk management practices. For insurance CROs and risk managers.
• Space-Related Risks Publications Papers examining severe space weather events and human-induced space risks, including impacts on electricity, communications, and telecommunications sectors. Audience is insurance CROs and risk managers.
• Cybersecurity Publications Papers on ransomware trends, regulatory developments, threat profiles for insurers, defense measures, and internal controls assessment tools. Intended for insurance industry risk and security leaders.
• Critical Infrastructures Publications Analysis of critical infrastructure disruption risks, interdependencies between infrastructure systems, insurance coverage options, and resilience improvement strategies. For insurance CROs and risk managers.
• GRC Digitalization Publications Papers on implications of digitalization on Governance, Risk Management and Compliance (GRC) activities, including GRC Digitalization Risk Radar as best-practice assessment tool. Audience is insurance risk and compliance leaders.
• ORSA Stress and Scenario Testing Best practice guidance for developing scenarios and stress tests within risk management frameworks aligned with Own Risk and Solvency Assessment (ORSA) processes. Audience is insurance risk managers and ORSA practitioners.
• Energy Storage Systems Publications Emerging risk analysis of energy storage technologies, related risks, and relevance to insurance industry for supporting energy transition. Audience is insurance CROs and underwriters.
• Pandemic Risk Publications Updated perspective on pandemics following Covid-19 outbreak, covering challenges for reinsurers, risk managers, and internal model users under Solvency II. For insurance and reinsurance risk professionals.
• IoT Risks Publications Analysis of Internet of Things (IoT) risks from insurance perspective, including cybersecurity, strategic, reputational, and accumulation risks. Audience is insurance risk and underwriting leaders.
• Mental Health Publications Analysis of mental health crisis implications for insurance industry, including impacts on life and non-life insurance underwriting, claims, and risk management. Audience is insurance underwriters and risk managers.
• Sustainability Integration Publications Best practice guidelines for integrating sustainability into insurers' risk management frameworks, addressing sustainability risks for CROs. For insurance Chief Risk Officers and risk managers.
• Three Lines Model Publications Analysis of Three Lines Model fitness for purpose in financial institutions, including AI, machine learning, and robotic process automation impacts. For insurance risk and audit leaders.
• Demographics and Social Change Publications Analysis of demographic trends including population growth slowdown, longevity, healthcare needs, and implications for insurance sectors. Audience is insurance industry leaders and risk managers.
• Carbon Footprinting Methodology Exploration of carbon footprinting methodologies for insurance companies' underwriting portfolios and barriers to application. Audience is insurance underwriters and sustainability leads.
• Data Quality Publications Stocktaking of data quality management practices in insurance sector post-Solvency II, with survey insights and recommendations. For insurance risk and data management leaders.
• Medical Advances Publications Analysis of upcoming medical advances and aspects insurers need to consider, including personalized medicine, prevention focus, and patient empowerment. Audience is insurance and reinsurance underwriters and risk managers.
• Navigating Uncertainty - Practitioner's Toolkit to Managing Emerging Risks Practitioner's toolkit covering risk strategy and governance, identification, evaluation, mitigation, monitoring and reporting steps of the risk management cycle, with attention to expert judgement, human bias, evaluation techniques, tooling and automation including AI application. For insurance risk management practitioners.
• Unmasking Inflation - Best Practices for (Re)insurance Risk Managers Analysis of primary drivers contributing to current inflation risk, outlining expected and potential impacts on the insurance industry, with insights into tools for measuring and forecasting inflation risk. For (re)insurance risk managers.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• KPMG NetherlandscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerThe secretariat for the CRO Forum Association is located at KPMG in the Netherlands, providing administrative and organizational support to the forum.
• EU Transparency RegisterminorOthersThe CRO Forum is registered in the EU Transparency Register with ID 439316532181-78, indicating compliance with EU transparency requirements for interest representatives.

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• PRMIA (Professional Risk Managers' International Association): Global non-profit association for risk management professionals offering certification and thought leadership. Comparable as a professional risk management membership body producing industry research and best-practice guidance.
• GARP (Global Association of Risk Professionals): Non-profit membership association for risk practitioners, known for the FRM designation. Comparable membership-driven risk professional body producing research, standards, and convening events for CROs and risk leaders.
• Global Federation of Insurance Associations (GFIA): Global umbrella federation of national insurance associations. Comparable as an industry-wide body representing insurers' interests and producing research/policy positions on risk topics.
• Insurance Europe: European insurance and reinsurance federation representing insurers across Europe. Directly comparable as a pan-European insurance industry association engaging with EU regulators, comparable in scope and member-driven model to the CRO Forum though broader in mandate.
• The Geneva Association: International insurance industry think tank focused on risk and insurance research. Highly comparable as a research-driven association producing thought leadership for senior insurance executives, with overlapping topics around emerging and systemic risks.
• FERMA (Federation of European Risk Management Associations): European federation of national risk management associations. Comparable as a European risk management professional body representing senior risk managers, with overlapping audience to CRO Forum members.

Emerging players

• Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA): Professional body for actuaries, producing research and standards central to insurer risk modeling. Comparable as a professional membership body publishing thought leadership relevant to insurance CROs and risk functions.
• ORX (Operational Risk Exchange): Industry association for operational risk in financial services, focused on data sharing and research. Comparable as a risk-management member association producing research and benchmarking for senior risk practitioners, including in insurance.

Broad incumbents

• European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority (EIOPA): EU regulatory authority for insurance and occupational pensions. Adjacent to CRO Forum's work, particularly on Solvency II, ORSA, and operational resilience; comparable as the regulatory counterpart the forum engages with.
• International Association of Insurance Supervisors (IAIS): International standard-setting body for insurance supervision. Comparable as an authoritative voice shaping insurance risk practices globally, though focused on regulation rather than industry CRO peer collaboration.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cro-forum
• Xx.com/share

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CRO Forum