The Latin American market presents significant opportunities for growth, an American International Group Inc. senior executive said at a breakfast Tuesday during the Risk & Insurance Management Society Inc.'s annual conference in Los Angeles.

Sanjay Godhwani, Miami-based president of AIG's property/casualty group, Latin America and the Caribbean, said the insurer has been in the region since opening an office in Cuba in the 1930s. And with a growing middle class, increasing consumer demand and little market penetration, “The race is on to grow market share,” he said.

“We're all working hard to get ahead of each other,” said Mr. Godhwani, the keynote speaker at the breakfast sponsored by Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group P.L.C. He compared Latin America to other regions, saying that Latin America's economy is growing at a faster pace than developed economies.

“We're feeling bullish” about the prospects for insurance in the region, he said. “The hard part” for insurance companies is antiquated systems and business processes. In addition, he said, “It takes a great deal to convert the nonbuyer to a buyer.”

“The loss ratio is good, but the expense ratio is burdensome,” Mr. Godhwani said, and insurers must invest “to make sure they can keep their expense ratio in line and not be burdened with that in the future.”

Mr. Godhwani said after his speech that one major area of growth for commercial insurance is in the small market enterprise segment. About 70% to 90% of Latin American businesses “would actually qualify as small business,” he said.

On the large commercial side, he said, “the space is going to get bigger and bigger” and more complex. As Latin American companies sell products around the globe, “they're going to have a need for more complex insurance products,” Mr. Godhwani said.

Also speaking at the breakfast was Elizabeth Stephens, London-based partner, credit, political & security risks and financial risks for JLT Specialty Ltd.

Ms. Stephens referred in her remarks to the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics both in Brazil. While the economic boost of sporting events on a nation's gross domestic product “is likely to be short-lived,” she said there's still opportunity for investments in Brazil.