Cyber insurance premium growth will outpace all other sectors within three years, according to a division of Aon plc.

Aon Inpoint, Aon’s data, analytics, engagement and consulting team, found that cyber premiums grew by 23 percent annually over the previous five years. As a result, Aon said worldwide cyber insurance premiums should be worth $4 billion by 2021, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of 14.1 percent.

“As we look ahead, we are seeing a broad shift of companies putting a greater value on intangible assets, such as cyber and intellectual property,” Michael Moran, CEO of Aon Inpoint, said in prepared remarks. “There are multiple reasons for the increased focus and increased premiums ranging from financial statement protection due to a business interruption to the constantly evolving global regulatory environment including the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.”

In assessing cyber insurance, Aon Inpoint also looked at premium growth in other sectors. The team found:

• P/C insurance focused on manufacturing generated the highest premiums globally in 2017, at $111 billion.

• Agriculture, fishing and forestry came next at $72 billion, thanks to the huge value of the segment in China and the United States.

• Global commercial P/C premiums were worth $730 billion in 2017 and should rise to nearly $900 billion in 2021.

• U.S. commercial P/C insurance premiums came in at $274.5 billion in 2017 and should reach $331.5 billion in 2021.

• Global workers compensation premiums were $83 billion in 2017 versus $71 billion in 2013.

Source: Aon plc