FWD Group, the insurance arm of Hong Kong-based investment group Pacific Century Group, is shuttering its employee benefits business in Singapore. The insurer currently covers about 80,000 employees across various companies and bills itself as the fifth largest group medical insurer in Singapore.

"FWD Singapore has made a business decision to focus on and allocate more investment and resources to other lines of business that support stronger future growth in the market, including our fully direct and online life and general insurance business," a company spokesperson told The Business Times.

According to the spokesman, FWD had informed its clients about the closure in November and will complete its pullout by December 2020, giving affected companies a full calendar year to find alternatives. It will continue to maintain its direct-to-consumer business.

FWD has been providing employee benefits insurance to corporate customers in Singapore since April 2016. It is the latest in a string of Hong Kong-based businesses to exit the Singapore market amid challenging home conditions and a subdued outlook in Singapore.