Adds brokerage comment in paragraph 7; details on segment results in paragraphs 8 & 9

By Rajasik Mukherjee

March 19 (Reuters) - Hong Kong-based insurer AIA Group 1299.HK on Thursday announced a new share buyback programme of $1.7 billion and achieved record value of new business (VONB) in 2025, propelled by the resilient performance of all of its segments.

The firm reported a 15% rise in VONB, which gauges expected profits from new premiums and is a key barometer for future growth, to $5.52 billion on a constant currency basis for the year ended December 31, compared to $4.71 billion in the year-ago period.

Hong Kong, one of AIA's largest contributors in terms of profit, logged a 28% increase in VONB for the year on the back of strong demand from both domestic customers and mainland Chinese visitors.

The firm also bore fruit from commencing operations in additional provinces of mainland China as it recorded double-digit VONB growth in the majority of the markets.

Mainland China, AIA's second-largest market in terms of new sales, reported a 2% hike in VONB.

Besides those, AIA's 18 markets in Asia include Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and South Korea.

"Having long been of the view that AIA's Thai business was the highest quality and most under-appreciated franchise in AIA's group, AIA Thailand has today surprised positively on margins yet again, posting a new annual all-time high margin of 110.9% for FY 2025," Jefferies analysts said.

AIA Thailand logged a 13% rise in VONB to $993 million for 2025, riding on strong distribution and continued investment in digital tools.

The segment also reported an operating profit before tax of $1.21 billion, placing it as the third-most profitable region behind Hong Kong and mainland China.

It also declared a final dividend of 144.08 Hong Kong cents per share, higher than the 130.98 Hong Kong cents declared last year.

(Reporting by Rajasik Mukherjee in Bengaluru. Editing by Alan Barona)

((Rajasik.Mukherjee@thomsonreuters.com))