Insurancecompaniesdotwotypesofbusiness.Oneisgeneralinsuranceagainstvariousformsofrisk,andtheotherislong-terminsurancewhichismainlylifeinsurance.Generalinsurancewillagreetopayapersonoracompanyasumofmoneyintheeventofsomethinghappeningornothappening.It’sabigbusinesstoday.Iftheprojectsucceeds,shareholdersinyourcompanywillexpecttobepaidadividend.Ifyouaskaninsurertounderwriteyourproject,thenhewillrequireapaymentinadvance,apremium.Iftheprojectsucceeds,hekeepsthepremium,butyoudon’tpayhimanythingelse.Payingapremiumtoaninsurerorunderwriterisoftencheaperthanpayingadividenttoshareholders.Ifyourdividendsarepaidtoshareholders,thenmoremoneycanbekeptasretentiontofinancethecompany’snextproject.Anothertypeofinsurancebusinessisthelifeinsurance.Itdiffersbasicallyfromgeneralinsuranceinthatitisbasednotontheriskbutoncertainty.Thecertaintythateachofuswillonedaydie.Lifeinsuranceisthebasisofpensionfundswhichprovideforretirementandguardagainstothercontingencies,suchasill-health,butisbestseenbyafinancialeconomistasameansofcollectingmanysmallsavingstoputtogetherintolargeinvestments,inshort,asaformofintermediation.