ALLIANZ PNB LIFE Insurance, Inc. is hoping to sustain its strong performance to end the year as it continues to invest in technology and upskilling their agents and financial advisors, an official said last month.
Allianz PNB Life Chief Marketing Officer and Head of Sustainability Gino Riola said the insurance company hopes to maintain its robust performance for the rest of the year.
“The results that recently came out were extremely humbling. Of course, we have our growth targets, but for it to have been achieved this early in our existence as an organization (is quite surprising),” Mr. Riola said.
“We just (have to) continue. And what we’re doing is very clearly working, both in terms of recruitment, getting the brand out there, and making sure that people can relate to Allianz,” he said.
Mr. Riola said part of the firm’s advocacies is to broaden insurance awareness and educate the public as industry concepts can be a bit “daunting” for consumers.
“The government back in 1998 targeted that by 2020, insurance penetration should be at 20%. But insurance penetration at the Philippines is still below 2%,” he said.
Still, he noted that a research report commissioned last year by Allianz PNB Life showed the global health crisis has led to an increase in insurance awareness among Filipinos.
To widen its reach in the insurance sector, Mr. Riola said the company has launched new solutions and enhanced its digital tools.
Allianz PNB Life has also invested in training programs to boost the expertise of their agents and financial advisors and help them better address the protection and health needs of the customers, he said.
Asked if high inflation has dampened demand for insurance products, Mr. Riola said it has not happened so far.
“Part of our message is that when it comes to financial wellness, you have to attend to your different needs. And we of course, believe that tending to your financial needs, is equally important,” he said.
“This is where financial advisors, our life changers, come in and make sure that the product that our customers and policyholders purchase is relevant to their needs,” Mr. Riola added.
Allianz PNB Life was the country’s fourth-largest life insurer in terms of New Business Annual Premium Equivalent in 2021 with P3.87 billion, Insurance Commission (IC) data showed.
The firm also registered a 47% increase in annualized net premiums, ending with P30 billion in gross written premiums last year.
Allianz PNB Life’s premium income stood at P115 million as of end-2021, data from the IC showed. This put the firm at 13th place in terms of premium income among life insurers last year.
Allianz acquired 51% of PNB Life Insurance, Inc., the life insurance arm of the Tan-led lender, in June 2016. — Keisha B. Ta-asan