Insurance News
Brief insurance news and digest for the busy executives. A handy insurance news archive with main focus on Malaysia. Disclaimer: While all attempts are made to ensure the accuracy of the news herein, we will not be liable for any loss arising from the use of any information contained in this blog. You may reproduce materials published here provided the source (news.actuaries.com.my) is properly acknowledged.
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Sunday, 11 April 2010
News Posts 20100404-20100410
Insurance News Aviva is making a come back in general insurance market starting with Singapore. Aviva General was sold to MSIG in Malaysia in 2006.
April 10, 2010
Insurance News Proton has been a long-time sponsor of BAM since 1985. However, in February 2010, ING came in as a new sponsor and players started wearing T-shirts with ING's logo in front at the German open. Proton now wants its logo back in front rather than on the sleeve. They may have smelled the chance of the national team winning the Thomas Cup to be held soon.
April 10, 2010
Insurance News Allianz Life's existing CEO will leave the country to head for Turkey. His position will be taken over by the current CEO of Allianz in Indonesia.
April 10, 2010
Insurance News Lonpac's underwriting surplus before management expenses in Q1 improved by 52%, on the back of 11.5% increase in revenue, compared to the same period last year.
April 8, 2010
Insurance News Lai Leong Pin, the Chief Agency Officer of Prudential, has been appointed as Prudential's General Manager.
April 7, 2010
Insurance News The proposed TPBID compensates for injuries but does not cover other vagaries such as loss of current and future income.
April 6, 2010
Insurance News Allianz General launched a PA product that covers among others medical expenses related to dengue, malaria, JE; kidnap, snatch theft etc.
April 6, 2010
Insurance News FOMCA proposes that a fund be setup and managed by government to resolve the TPBID issue. Those who are injured in car accident can seek compensation from the fund. This approach is used in Australian and NZ. The fund can operate in a similar fashion as SOCSO and is to be funded by the public.
April 6, 2010
Insurance News Maybank will transfer its shares in Mayban Fortis Holdings Bhd to Etiqa International Holdings Sdn Bhd. After the transfer, Etiqa International will serve as the investment holding company for Maybank's insurance, takaful and asset management businesses.
April 5, 2010
Insurance News Watch out for this type of motor insurance scam that was exposed in UK. A car owner is paid a fee to admit liability for causing car damage and bodily injury in an accident that never happened. The car of the "victim" then gets smashed up in a yard and an insurance claim of around £20,000 is filed.
April 4, 2010
Insurance News HSBC Amanah Takaful will launch a regular contribution retirement product in May, which has features similar to a product sold in HK by HSBC. 7 new products are planned to be rolled out this year. The global financial crisis has affected the single contribution investment-linked plans while favouring non-ILP plans.
April 4, 2010
Insurance News PM instructed BNM to consult consumer groups before finalising TPBID scheme. The scheme apparently has a cap of RM100,000 compensation. PM also took note of the loss suffered by the industry in motor insurance.
April 4, 2010
Labels: Allianz, Aviva, Etiqa, Executive Movement, HSBC, ING, LPI, Motor Insurance, MSIG, Products, Prudential, TPBID
Sunday, 15 November 2009
News Digest 20091105-20091116
Click this link for the news digest.
Labels: ING, MAA, MNRB, MSIG, Prudential, Prudential BSN, Retirement, SAS, Takaful, Takaful Malaysia
Saturday, 14 November 2009
INGeasi for Retirement
Features of
INGeasi for Retirement:- 3 packages:
- Life as Usual
- No Worries
- Unleash
- Guaranteed yearly income (in multiples of RM120) from age 55 to 85
- Annual non-guaranteed cash dividends
- Non-guaranteed terminal dividend
- Death and TPD coverage
- Sum insured = 20 x annual retirement income
- Waiver of premium on critical illness
- Family income until age 65 (subject to maximum 20 years) if death/TPD before age 65
- Premium payment term: lower of 20 years or reaching age 60
- Cash-out option
Source: The Edge, ING
Labels: ING, Products, Retirement
Saturday, 19 September 2009
ING has 10pc invested in mortgage loans
ING has 10% of its RM3 bil assets invested in fixed rate mortgage loans. The fixed interest rate is currently 4.85%.Source: Business Times
Labels: ING
Sunday, 12 July 2009
PB-ING Asian Jewels
ING launched a new product distributed through Public Bank named PB-ING Asian Jewels.Product features:
- 5-year SP ILP
- Fixed annual coupon at end of years 1 to 4
- Maturity: refund of premium in AUD
- Invest in 5 Asian markets: China, Hong Kong, South Korea, India and Taiwan
- Sale period: 22 days ending on 3 August
- Entry age of life assured: 30 days to 70 years
- Minimum premium: RM30,000
Source: Business Times
Labels: Bancassurance, ING, Products
Sunday, 3 May 2009
ING's 3-Year Profitable Growth Plan
ING has set a "Three-Year Profitable Growth Plan" strategy in early 2008. Among some of the goals are become top player in specific segments such as :- Life insurance
- Employee benefits
- Bancassurance
Some of the results so far and targets for this year:
- NB premium grew 26% in 2008, same target in 2009
- Market share reached 11% in 2008, in 2007 it was 9%
- 40% market share in employee benefits
ING has 9,000 agents and Public Bank is its bancassurance partner.
Source: The Star
Labels: Business Targets, ING
Sunday, 12 April 2009
ING to sell as many as 15 businesses
ING plans to raise as much as 8 bil euros by selling assets to boost capital. The asset sale will be over time and as market conditions permit and as many as 15 businesses will be sold.Source: Bloomberg
Wednesday, 1 April 2009
Retrenched workers sign up as ING's agents
ING has increased its agency force by 15% this year, contributed by retrenched workers joining while waiting for their next permanent job. ING has 10,000 agents. (We have posed some questions in the Comment section and we welcome your views and comments)For policyholders who have been retrenched, they can enjoy 6-month premium payment break with ING.
Source: Business Times
Labels: ING
Tuesday, 31 March 2009
INGeasi for Family
ING has rolled out INGeasi for Family, the latest in the series, after launching INGeasi for Women in July last year. The latest product is expected to bring in RM50 - 60 mil.INGeasi for Family comprises of protection, health, education and investment.
ING targets RM830 mil new premiums in 2009, lower than RM870 mil achieved in 2008.
Source: Business Times
Labels: Business Targets, ING, Products
Thursday, 26 March 2009
ING to clawback 1200 employees' bonuses
ING is asking its top 1,200 employees to give back their bonus payments for 2008.Source: Business Times
Labels: ING
Friday, 9 January 2009
Anusha is now the CFO
Anusha Thavarajah has been appointed the CFO and CRO of ING Malaysia effective 1 January 2009.Previously Anusha was the appointed actuary of ING.
Source: Business Times
Labels: Actuary, Executive Movement, ING
Tuesday, 23 December 2008
PB-ING One Educate
ING has launched a new product named PB-ING One Educate to be distributed through Public Bank branches.Product Features:
- Investment-linked education plan
- Monthly premium starts from RM175
- A monthly income of up to RM1,000 is payable over 5 years on untimely death of payor
- Entry age of life assured: 30 days to 15 years
Source: Business Times, The Star
Saturday, 22 November 2008
ING registered strong growth
ING has registered 37% growth in new business weighted premium in 2008, contributed strongly by its single premium business, presumably as a result of bancassurance tie-up with Public Bank.ING's other business targets and performance:
- Pre-tax profit target for 2008: RM277 mil (2007: RM286 mil)
- 11.3% market share up to Q2 2008, 3rd largest
- 43.6% market share in group business and employee benefits
- Premium target for 2008: RM770 mil
- May partner an existing local takaful player
- Possibility of "right-sizing" support functions to save costs
Source: Business Times 1 & 2, The Star
Labels: Business Targets, ING, Merger
Monday, 10 November 2008
ING and Allianz do not need liquidity facility
Both ING and Allianz do not expect that they would need to draw down on the liquidity facility made available to insurers and takaful operators by BNM. Both have stated that their financial positions are strong and they do not face liquidity concerns.
Source: The Edge Daily
Thursday, 6 November 2008
ING Buys Menara Standard Chartered
ING is buying Menara Standard Chartered for RM328 mil. ING will continue to seek prime properties in Malaysia for investment.
Source: Business Times
Labels: ING
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
ING Interested in AIG's Asian Businesses
More companies have expressed interest in buying AIG's Asian businesses. We reported previously that Tata Sons and Prudential were interested. The latest is India's Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) and ING are eyeing AIG's Asian businesses as well.
Source: Insurance Daily
Monday, 20 October 2008
Fubon to acquire ING Taiwan
Fubon Life Insurance will acquire ING Taiwan to create Taiwan's 2nd largest insurance company with assets totalling US$30.5 bil.Source: The Star
ING Receives Capital Injection
ING Groep NV will receive capital injection of US$13.4 bil from the Dutch government which will see the latter becoming a major shareholder of the former. With the capital injection, ING's core Tier-1 capital ratio will improve from 6.5% to 8%.
Source: The Star
Labels: ING
Sunday, 19 October 2008
Insurance Shares Fell Sharply
Shares in ING, Prudential and Aviva slided recently as a result of market turbulence.
In UK, share prices of Prudential and Aviva fell sharply. There are indications that the Financial Services Authority (FSA) may ease the capital requirement of UK insurers with writedowns in their investment portfolios.
In Netherlands, ING reported Q3 losses of around US$670 mil, due to US$2.7 bil in various investment losses, write-downs and bad loan provisions. The ING shares fell significantly.
Source: Insurance Daily, The Star
Labels: Aviva, ING, Prudential
Thursday, 31 July 2008
INGeasi for Women
ING has launched a comprehensive all-in-one financial solution called INGeasi. Several products will be launched under the INGeasi series within a year. The 1st product under such series is INGeasi for Women.Product Features:
- 4 plans are available: Dream, Success, Harmony and Cherish
- Protection for accidental death, disability, critical illness and female-related diseases
- Dream: for women just entering the workforce
- Success: for professional women with higher earning power
- Harmony: for working mother with children
- Cherish: for homemakers
For men, I guess we have to wait for INGeasi for Men to be rolled out?
Source: Business Times
Sunday, 27 April 2008
Insurance for Unborn Babies
ING Australia has launched what is likely to be the world's first insurance product for unborn babies. The policy insures against birth complications, still birth and defects such as Down syndrome, spina bifida, blindness, deafness, cleft palate and heart disorders. The sum assured is A$50,000 and women between ages 16 and 40 are eligible to purchase. There is a 12-month waiting period and the cover ends on the child's 2nd birthday. Premium is A$439 for age 32 and double that for age 40.The insurance plan recognises the trend in Australia where the median age of 1st time mothers has increased from 27 in 1985 to 31 currently. The risk of pregnancy complications and birth defects increases with the age of the mother.
While the product may be innovative, the medical experts seem to be sceptical. NSW Midwives Association claimed that ING was adopting marketing fear strategy and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists warned that women could be frightened into paying for insurance they didn't need.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday, 3 April 2008
ING & JIHC in Stalemate
ING's proposal to Joint Inter-hospital Healthcare Committee (JIHC) on securing a volume discount has been turned down by the latter.JIHC's concern is it may compromise the quality of healthcare and breach the Private Healthcare Facilities and Services Act (PHFSA) 1998.
The JIHC committee represents >600 specialists in 8 hosipitals in the Klang Valley:
- Pantai Medical Centre
- Sunway Hospital
- Prince Court Medical Centre
- Gleneagles Intan Medical Centre
- Assunta Hospital
- Ampang Puteri Hospital
- Tawakal Hospital
- Damansara Specialist Hospital
With the stalemate, ING's policyholders apparently now have to pay upfront and claim later when they see JIHC's specialists.
http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/4/3/nation/20831586&sec=nation
Monday, 31 March 2008
First Lady CEO in Insurance
Dr Nirmala joined the industry in 1991, after serving as a physician in a government hospital for 9 years. She joined the insurance industry to strike a better balance between work and family. She started her insurance career with the then Aetna (now ING) in the underwriting department.
Other points covered in the special feature article are:
- Insurance industry needs more employees with medical background, especially with the increasing importance of critical illness products.
- Male and female managers have their strengths and weaknesses. Gender itself does not determine whether a person is a good or bad manager.
- A strong agency distribution is still key to an insurance company. With increased competition, alternative channels such as bancassurance would need to be developed.
- Agents must continue to enhance their skills and knowledge through CPD.
- ING is interested in takaful business and will use Malaysia as a base to move to other countries.
- ING is not interested in general insurance as the market is already very crowded.
- The insurance penetration rate in Malaysia is highest for Chinese, followed by Malay and then Indian. However, the importance and potential of the Chinese market cannot be ignored.
- EPF saving is not sufficient for retirement. With the increase in life expectancy and the number of middle income earners, the importance of wealth management for this sector cannot be understated.
