Over-regulation is seen as a threat that impacts business growth in the industry, according to 94% of insurance CEOs surveyed.
The findings from PwC's 19th Annual Global CEO Survey showed that 65% of respondents also considered new market entrants as a threat to growth.
However, 84% were confident they would increase revenues in the next 12 months. The figure rises to 95% when asked about the next three years.
Based on responses from 101 insurance CEOs in 43 countries, PwC said individuals and businesses around the world were looking to insurance companies to help them manage risks and insurers were "uniquely placed" for this opportunity.
Stephen O'Hearn, global insurance leader at PwC, said: "Other industries will be looking to insurers to help manage increasingly complex and uncertain business and geopolitical risks.
"To capitalise on these opportunities, insurers need to embrace new ways of working, novel ways of interacting with customers, and alternatives to traditional products and services."
The report went on to highlight that 69% of respondents were worried about the speed of technological change in the industry, while 64% cited the shift in consumer spending and behaviour as a concern.
The survey also found technology was seen as the trend most likely to transform stakeholder expectations in the next five years. It added that nearly three-quarters of respondents were making "significant changes" to the way they use technology to assess and meet stakeholder changes.
In addition, 79% considered cyber risks as a barrier to growth, while almost as many saw limited availability of key skills as threatening.
Jonathan Howe, UK insurance leader at PwC, said: "In the face of so much change, insurers must ask themselves how they begin to respond and how they change threats into opportunities. With such rapid technological change, insurers have the choice to determine whether they are part of the disruption or one of the disrupted.
"At the heart of the challenges faced by insurers is finding the right people with the right skills to implement these changes. Insurers need to continue to bring together employees with diverse skill sets from a range of backgrounds. Only through doing this will they tap in to the talent and imagination needed to succeed."
