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New Annuity Product Launched by Manulife in Japan

Manulife Life Insurance Company (Manulife Japan) has recently launched a new variable individual annuity insurance type V product which will be sold through the Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.

The name of the new product is Ashita-no-Nenkin and it is an investment-type annuity insurance product, tailored to meet the needs of customers wanting to start accumulate funds in preparation for retirement.

According to Manulife Japan the appealing characteristics of this new product include features that are easy to understand, and a death benefit guarantee that the beneficiary of the policy will receive no less than 100% of the basic benefit amount. As such, the new product being offered by Manulife is a Japan-specific variant of traditional whole-of-life insurance plans.

With this new insurance product, customers may choose to opt for either a 'step-down life annuity' or a 'fixed-term annuity' taking into consideration their plans for retirement, plus the provision of a minimum guarantee of the total amount that the customer is likely to receive.

Customers can opt to start receiving annuity payments as early one year after commencing the plan, or they may choose the length of the payment deferral period.

Manulife Japan is a subsidiary of Manulife Financial, the financial services group based in Canada. In addition to asset management services, Manulife Financial also provides reinsurance solutions specialising in life and property and casualty retro-cession, as well as financial protection and wealth management products and services.

Insurance Company mentioned:

Manulife

Manulife Life Insurance Company, Japan. Manulife Financial was one of the first foreign life insurance companies to establish operations in Japan, entering the market in 1901. Manulife re-entered Japan in 1999, laying the foundation for the establishment of Manulife Life Insurance Company (Manulife Japan). The vision of Manulife Japan is to be the most professional life insurance company in Japan, providing leading financial protection and wealth management products and services, and learning from and quickly adapting to its customers‟ changing needs.

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Standard Chartered Agrees to Sell Allianz Takaful Insurance Products in Qatar

Furthering their strategic alliance in the Middle East, Standard Chartered and Allianz Takaful have signed a five year agreement to sell Allianz Takaful’s insurance products through Standard Chartered Bank in Qatar.

In April this year, the two companies came to an agreement over selling Standard Chartered SME business insurance products through Allianz Takaful in Bahrain, and the new deal in Qatar serves to strengthen ties between the two regional allies. The five-year agreement will see Standard Chartered Bank promoting and selling Allianz Takaful life insurance products through their Bancassurance distributions channels.

The Allianz Takaful products which are now available throughout Standard Chartered’s branches in Qatar include protection plans, investment and savings plans, as well as child education insurance. The Chairman of Allianz Takaful, Abdulrahman Khalil Tolefat, said that “Customers can avail the services at Standard Chartered Bank’s relationship managers to tailor make Allianz Takaful products to suit their specific insurance requirements.”

Chief Executive Officer of Standard Chartered Bank Qatar, David Godwin said “Allianz is a major global financial services provider and we are pleased to associate with the group’s subsidiary in the Middle East. By working in collaboration with third party expertise, we are able to broaden our portfolio of products with a best-in-class offer to address the whole range of our customers’ financial well-being objectives. Additionally, the general insurance services fit well as one of the wealth protection tools that complement the bank’s overall wealth management solutions.”

Companies Mentioned:

Allianz Takaful

A fully owned subsidiary of the Allianz Group, Allianz Takaful was established in March 2009 and is headquartered in Bahrain. Allianz Takaful is the Allianz group’s first foray into the Gulf Cooperation Council or GCC, and offers Shariah-compliant products and services.

Standard Chartered Bank Qatar

Standard Chartered Bank first opened a branch office in Qatar in 1950, making it the oldest foreign bank in Qatar. It operates 3 branches and 6 ATM machines in the country, employing 167 employees from 30 different countries. Their two core divisions of Wholesale and Consumer Banking have given them a 27% market share in Qatar.

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Chinese Insurance Companies continue growth in 2010

Three of China’s largest insurance companies continue their strong growth in the first five months of 2010. China Life Insurance (CLI), Ping An Insurance Group of China (PAIGC), and China Pacific Insurance Corporation (CPIC) maintain year-on-year growth in gross written premiums.

China Life Insurance (CLI) reported total premiums of RMB 154.9 billion (US$ 22.7 billion), which is a 6.39% increase over the RMB 145.6 billion (US$ 21.3 billion) in premiums received during the same time period in 2009. China Pacific Insurance Corporation (CPIC) reported earning RMB 64.2 billion (US$ 9.4 billion) in premiums received between January and May in 2010.

Ping An Insurance Group of China (PAIGC) is reporting that it has brought in RMB 104.51 billion (US$ 15.3 billion) in unaudited insurance premiums during the first five months of the year, a 35.76% increase from the same time period last year. Ping An’s Chinese life insurance division, Ping An Life Insurance Co of China Ltd, earned RMB 77.72 billion (US$ 11.4 billion) in premiums, up 26.17% over the corresponding period from 2009.

Ping An also reported income in their casualty insurance unit of RMB 24.74 billion (US$ 3.6 billion) worth of premiums, as well as RMB 64.38 million in premiums from its China health insurance unit, and RMB 1.99 billion (US$ 290 million) in premiums from their annuities insurance subsidiary.

Insurance Companies Mentioned:

China Life Insurance

China Life Insurance Company Limited (China Life) is a People’s Republic of China-based life insurance company. The products and services include individual life insurance, group life insurance, accident and health insurance. The Company operates in four business segments: individual life insurance business, group life insurance business, short-term insurance business, and corporate and other business.

Ping An Insurance

Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An) is engaged in providing a range of financial products and services. The Company focuses on three businesses: insurance, banking and investment. The Company operates in five business segments: life insurance business, property and casualty insurance business, banking business, securities business, corporate and other businesses. The Company’s subsidiaries include Ping An Life Insurance Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An Life), Ping An Property & Casualty Insurance Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An Property & Casualty), China Ping An Trust & Investment Co., Ltd. (Ping An Trust), Ping An Securities Company, Ltd. (Ping An Securities), Ping An Bank Co., Ltd. (Ping An Bank), Ping An Annuity Insurance Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An Annuity) and Ping An Health Insurance Company of China, Ltd. (Ping An Health), among others.

China Pacific Insurance

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd. (CPIC) was established on the basis of China Pacific Insurance Co., Ltd., which was founded on May 13, 1991. Headquartered in Shanghai, its registered capital stands at RMB 7.7 billion. The company was listed in Shanghai Stock Exchange on Dec. 25, 2007, with the stock code of 601601 and the stock name of “ China Pacific”. The Company was listed in the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on Dec. 23, 2009, with the stock code “02601” and the stock name of “CPIC”.

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Zurich enters Indonesian Life Insurance market

Zurich Financial Services Group subsidiary, Zurich Insurance Co., has bought a majority stake in Indonesian life insurance company, PT Mayapada Life.

Zurich Insurance has agreed to buy an 80% stake in Mayapada Life from its parent company, Mayapada Group, for an undisclosed amount. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of 2010, subject to regulatory approval.

Mayapada Life had gross written premiums of USD 1.7 million in 2009; its purchase by Zurich gives the Swiss company a platform in the Indonesian life insurance market from which it can expand by offering savings and protection products to the growing population.

In order to ensure that they can immediately avail themselves of bancassurance distribution channels in Indonesia, Zurich has arranged a long term distribution agreement with PT Bank Mayapada International Tbk (Mayapada Bank).

Zurich’s CEO of Global Life, Mario Greco, said that “The acquisition of Mayapada Life is a first step in Zurich Life’s expansion plans in Indonesia. It underpins our commitment to developing the market in Indonesia and our strategy of providing protection and saving products to the rapidly growing number of the population with such needs. The Mayapada Group will be a strong local partner as we seek to build key relationships to grow our business in the Asia Pacific region.”

Insurance Company Mentioned:

Zurich

Zurich Financial Services Group is an insurance-based financial services provider with a workforce of approximately 60,000 people. The company was founded in 1872, and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. They currently serve their customers in more than 170 countries around the globe, with aims of becoming one of the top five global insurers.

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How much to Insure the World Cup? According to Lloyd’s, GBP 6.2 billion

Lloyd’s of London has estimated that more than GBP 6.2 billion (USD 9 billion) in insurance policies have been taken out to protect against various risks involved with the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

The GBP 6.2 billion (USD 9 billion) estimate was divided into three categories; property insurance, contingency insurance and liability insurance, although absent from the estimates were the value of insurance policies for individual football players (inclusive of health insurance, life insurance and income protection plans). Many organizations and companies involved with the World Cup have taken out insurance policies, ranging from FIFA, the worldwide governing body of football, participating businesses and sponsors as well as broadcasters and national teams.

The underwriters say that GBP 3.2 billion (USD 4.7 billion) worth of property insurance has been taken out on the various stadiums and training venues that will play home to the World Cup action, while contingency related insurance worth approximately GBP 3 billion (USD 4.4 billion) has also been purchased. A further GBP 200 million (USD 291.5 million) in liability insurance has also been purchased.

Both property and liability insurance for the world cup are fairly straight forward, involving insuring the risk of damage to property for the former and insuring against the risk someone hurts themselves on or with the property for the latter. Contingency insurance in this case is basically set up to cover groups with a financial investment in the World Cup against unforeseen circumstances. Contingency insurance may include covering risks for businesses running competitions or offering prizes if a certain team wins and broadcasters, in the event of any delays in programming causing conflict with their scheduled advertising.

Llyod’s points out that insurance policies covering players for injury or disability have been left out of their estimates, as illness and injury insurance for each member in a team would be different and may or may not include insurance on a famous football player’s brand recognition and insurance for lost earnings of player and the clubs they usually play for.

Insurance Company Mentioned:

Lloyd’s of London

Lloyd’s is the world’s leading specialist insurance market and occupies fifth place in terms of global reinsurance premium income, and is the second largest surplus lines insurer in the US. In 2009, 74 syndicates are underwriting insurance at Lloyd’s, covering all classes of business from more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. Lloyd’s is regulated by the Financial Service Authority.

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Lloyd’s gets direct insurance license in China

Lloyd’s China has received approval from the China Insurance Regulatory Commission to broaden its business activities, including a license with which to write direct insurance policies.

Prior to obtaining approval for engaging in direct insurance business, Lloyd’s was limited to reinsurance through Lloyd’s Reinsurance Company (China). The new license allows Lloyd’s to expand beyond their current business of providing product solutions and increasing business capacity through their reinsurance products into products which may become available for brokers to sell to consumers.

The news was announced by the Lord Peter Levene, the Chairman of Lloyd’s at the UK Pavilion in the World Expo in Shanghai, who said that “This is a very significant development for both Lloyd’s and the Chinese insurance market. We are most grateful to the CIRC for their help and to the Shanghai Municipal Government. This will be a further important building block in the development of Shanghai as a major international financial and maritime centre.”

Lloyd’s is not the only foreign reinsurer to see growth in China recently, as Scor SE received a composite insurance license in April from the CIRC which allows it to expand its reinsurance business to encompass life and health insurance in addition to their non-life business offerings.

Insurance Companies Mentioned:

Lloyd’s

Lloyd’s is the world’s leading specialist insurance market and occupies fifth place in terms of global reinsurance premium income, and is the second largest surplus lines insurer in the US. In 2009, 74 syndicates are underwriting insurance at Lloyd’s, covering all classes of business from more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. Lloyd’s is regulated by the Financial Service Authority.

Scor SE

SCOR is now a multinational Group, born from the merger between the SCOR Group, with its strong presence in France and the United States, Revios, which was based in Cologne, and Converium, whose headquarters were in Zurich. The new SCOR group had to take this polycentric situation into consideration in terms of its organisational structure, in order to align this with the diverse cultural practices attached to the three former companies. The Group also had to factor in the details of its 2007 statutory reorganisation around three Societas Europeae in paris, as well as the fact that SCOR Global Investments, the Group’s third operating company, was created at the beginning of 2009 and is also adopting Societas Europaea status. SCOR therefore decided to structure its entities around six life and non-life management platforms or Hubs, attached to which are the subsidiaries and branches of the geographic area in question.

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BNP Paribas Expands into Taiwanese Life Insurance market

Despite numerous foreign life insurance companies having left Taiwan in 2009, French financial services company, BNP Paribas, sees potential for growth in the mature Taiwanese life insurance markets with its bancassurance partnership with Taiwan Cooperative Bank.

BNP Paribas initiated a life insurance joint venture company in April 2010, with the nation’s largest provider of housing loans, Taiwan Cooperative Bank to sell a diverse selection of life insurance products. The joint venture, named BNP Paribas Assurance TCB Life Insurance Co. is structured on the bancassurance model and will use Taiwan Cooperative Bank’s distribution channels, including almost 300 bank branches, to better reach customers. BNP Paribas controls a 49% stake in BNP Paribas Assurance TCB Life Insurance Co., while Taiwan Cooperative Bank (TCB) owns the remaining 51% of the joint venture.

The bancassurance model has been Taiwan’s greatest distribution channel in terms of enrolling new life insurance customers because of its ability to combine the strengths of deposit banking with asset management, with over 68.36% of all new life insurance premiums coming through bancassurance channels. BNP hopes to piggy back off of Taiwan Cooperative Bank’s 6-million strong client base, making the joint venture an easy platform from which to offer a variety of life insurance products, including wealth management and credit insurance to bank customers.

Insurance Companies Mentioned:

BNP Paribas Assurance

BNP Paribas Assurance is the property & casualty and life insurance branch of BNP Paribas, its products are marketed inside France through retail branches under the BNP brand name and branded outside of French retail business and internationally as Cardif. BNP Paribas Assurance is the 4^th largest life insurance company in France and has operations in more than 40 other countries. The company had EU18 billion in written premiums in 2007 and has 7,000 employs working around the globe.

Taiwan Cooperative Bank

Established in October 1946, the Taiwan Cooperative Bank reorganized and then went public in 2001. In 2006 the Taiwan Cooperative Bank (TCB) merged with the Farmers Bank of China, which was then dissolved, leaving TCB as the largest commercial bank in Taiwan with over 295 retail branches. It has since evolved into the largest provider of housing loans in Taiwan. Taiwan’s Ministry of Finance remains the largest stakeholder in TCB, with 42.41% of the shares.

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ALGICO ceases underwriting new casualty and property policies

Member of the American International Group (AIG), American Life and General Insurance Company (ALGICO) will no longer underwrite new casualty and property insurance policies in Trinidad and Tobago as of May 1, 2010.

The decision to stop issuing new policies comes as a result of AIG subsidiary ALICO’s sale to MetLife, which is part of AIG’s global restructuring plan to pay back the American government for the US$ 182 billion bailout in 2008. Alico is the majority stakeholder in American General and Life Insurance Company and in light of the impending sale to MetLife, AIG, Alico and ALGICO deliberated over the fate of ALGICO’s property and casualty insurance business, finally coming to the decision to no longer underwrite policies.

ALGICO says that all policies already in force are perfectly safe and says that claims will continue to be processed in the usual manner. ALGICO has informed the Central Bank of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as the Banking, Insurance and General Workers Union (BIGWU) of the change, and is in the middle of notifying policyholders, brokers, agents and shareholders of the decision. As a result of the decision, an unknown number of employees are to be laid off from ALGICO, which is in contact with BIGWU in order to organize appropriate severance packages for their outgoing employees.

ALGICO will continue its other lines of business, including writing and renewing life, accident, annuities and health insurance for individuals as well as group health, life and pension plans. As part of the integration of Alico into MetLife, ALGICO is planning to increase the number of life insurance products it offers and broaden its distribution channels in an effort to concentrate on life and retirement products where MetLife is an industry leader.

Companies Mentioned:

AIG

American International Group, Inc. (AIG), a world leader in insurance and financial services, is the leading international insurance organization with operations in more than 130 countries and jurisdictions. AIG companies serve commercial, institutional and individual customers through the most extensive worldwide property-casualty and life insurance networks of any insurer. In addition, AIG companies are leading providers of retirement services, financial services and asset management around the world. AIG’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, as well as the stock exchanges in Paris and Tokyo.

Alico

Alico provides a broad and innovative range of insurance and savings products to individual customers, corporate clients and high net worth customers. With products to support every aspect of their customers’ lives, and provide comprehensive cover for the employees and commercial needs of their business clients.

ALGICO

American Life and General Insurance Company (Trinidad and Tobago) Limited was incorporated in Trinidad and Tobago in 1977 to assume combined control of Alico’s local life insurance portfolio as well as American International Underwriters’ general insurance business. The company is a member of the American International Group and has an asset base of US$ 1 billion.

MetLife Inc.

Possessing over 140 years of insurance expertise, MetLife aims to be an innovator in the field of international Life insurance. Globally, MetLife is able to offer its clients accident and health insurance, life insurance, disability income protection, and retirement and savings products.

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Standard Chartered Bahrain to offer insurance for SMEs through Allianz Takaful

Standard Chartered Bank Bahrain is expanding its offerings targeted at Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) by rolling out new insurance products and services through their strategic partner in the region, Allianz Takaful.

The business centric products include office insurance, key person insurance (also known as key man insurance or keyman insurance), group health insurance, as well as corporate savings and pension schemes. Products such as office insurance and key person insurance are designed to protect a business’ assets, financial, human or otherwise, while group health insurance and pension schemes both act as a way to ensure the long term health and wellbeing of staff as well as a perk to help recruit and retain quality staff.

By specifically aiming their new products and services at companies and corporations, business owners, and professionals in Bahrain, Standard Chartered and strategic partner Allianz Takaful are not only trying to open new business avenues, but also providing tools that will help SMEs expand their businesses while managing business risks.

Standard Chartered’s Regional Head of Consumer Banking for the Northern Gulf, Levant and Oman, B. Chandrasekhar said that the “SME sector is one of the key contributors to country’s economic growth and has significant future growth potential therefore we are pleased to be partnering Allianz Takaful, a major global financial services provider with best in class product offerings. As the first Bank in Bahrain, celebrating 90 years this year, the launch reinforces the Bank’s continuous commitment especially to the SME segment in the Kingdom while focusing on the encouragement to SME players for further achievement. Our international network of presence in over 70 countries gives us a distinct advantage to assist the SMEs in Bahrain go global.  This, we believe, will go a long way in ensuring we have here for our customer’s successful business growth and expansion.”

Companies Mentioned:

Standard Chartered Bank Bahrain

Standard Chartered Bank Bahrain was the first bank in Bahrain, having been set up there in 1920. Over the years it has grown to the point where it now has the most extensive network among foreign international banks with 5 branch offices and 1 sales center in the country. Standard Chartered Bank Bahrain is the Bahraini branch of Standard Chartered Bank PLC which was established after a merging of the Standard Bank of British South Africa and the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China, which were both founded in the mid 1800s.

Allianz Takaful

A fully owned subsidiary of the Allianz Group, Allianz Takaful was established in March 2009 and is headquartered in Bahrain. Allianz Takaful is the Allianz group’s first foray into the Gulf Cooperation Council or GCC, and offers Shariah-compliant products and services.

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Leading Chinese Insurers may Turn to Central and Western Regions for Expansion

Residents in developed cities in Continental China are starting to show less interest in buying insurance products and it is expected that the leading insurance groups will set their sights this year to capitalise in the development of the central and western regions of the country.

The top three Chinese insurance companies in Mainland China, China Life Insurance Co., Ping An Insurance (Group) Co. of China Ltd. and China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co. based in Beijing, Shenzhen and Shanghai respectively, correspondingly reported back in January of this year premium revenues of US$6.13 billion (CNY 41.8 billion), US$3.2 billion (CNY 21.8 billion) and US$2.48 billion (CNY 16.9 billion), recently boosting the interest on their shares from investors at the stock market.

The latest report compiled by HSBC Insurance showed that Chinese consumers are more willing to put their savings into bank accounts, chiefly worried about inflation, regardless of the fact that the Chinese economy actually has made a turnaround since the financial crisis. By so doing, it becomes hard for insurers to see the revenue from premiums increase in cities like Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou and that is a good reason why the insurance companies may focus their market development strategies into second-tier cities in central and western China.

The pace of implementation of the medical reform in China may provide a window of opportunity for the commercial insurance companies to adopt the aforementioned strategy, making it a win-win situation for both urban and rural residents.

It remains to be seen whether the lower profits, heavier taxes, and less developed economy in some regions will diminish the enthusiasm of these commercial insurance service providers to offer managed medical insurance services.

Insurance Companies mentioned:

China Life Insurance Co.

China Life Insurance (Group) Company and its subsidiaries constitute the largest commercial insurance group in Mainland China. It is the only domestic insurance group with an asset exceeding 1 trillion RMB yuan. It is also one of the largest institutional investors in China’s capital market.

Ping An Insurance (Group) Co. of China Ltd.

Ping An Insurance (Group) Company of China, Ltd (“Ping An” or “the Group”) is the first integrated financial services conglomerate in China that blends its core insurance operations into securities brokerage, trust and investment, commercial banking, asset management and corporate pension business to create a highly efficient and diversified business profile. The Group was established in 1988 and headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China.

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co.

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., Ltd. (CPIC) was established on the basis of China Pacific Insurance Co., Ltd., which was founded on May 13, 1991. Headquartered in Shanghai, its registered capital stands at RMB 7.7 billion. The company was listed in Shanghai Stock Exchange on Dec. 25, 2007, with the stock code of 601601 and the stock name of “ China Pacific”. The Company was listed in the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited on Dec. 23, 2009, with the stock code “02601” and the stock name of “CPIC”.