A government official has said that foreign insurance providers will receive licences to begin operations in Myanmar by April 2019, according to a report in the Myanmar Times. The article quoted U Thant Sin, director of the Financial Regulatory Department under the Ministry of Planning and Finance, as saying that companies will soon be invited to submit Expressions of Interest (EOIs). Foreign companies have shown significant interest in Myanmar’s insurance market. So far,  31 foreign insurers from 14 countries did not have permission to operate anything more than representative offices. “If we allow foreign players in the market, we will be able to get the funds we need to develop the government bond market,” Thant Sin said, adding that they will be required to be capitalized with about $ US 14 million for a licence.