Even though the region has a notoriety of being
“underinsured”, will the Asian region prove to be the new marketing frontier of
the world’s leading insurance providers?
By: Ringo Bones
The tragic November 8, 2013 super-typhoon Haiyan / Yolanda that
battered Tacloban, Leyte has highlighted the Asian region’s notoriety of being
underinsured, but if Prudential has its way, Asia might prove to be a veritable
growth industry for the world’s leading insurance providers. Given that a
majority of this region’s inhabitants can hardly afford the relatively
exorbitant premiums of top-tier insurance policies that cover climate change
related catastrophes, will the Asian region prove to be a new and lucrative
marketing frontier for the global insurance providers?
U.K. based international insurance provider Prudential plc,
which started in London back in May 1848 as The Prudential Mutual Assurance
Investment and Loan Association that provided loans to professionals and working
people has now provided their interim second quarter results for the year 2014
a few weeks ago showing that most of their profits and expected growth will be
in its Asian markets. At the moment, Prudential operates across 13 Asian
markets and is one of the Top 3 insurance providers in the Philippines,
Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, India and Cambodia.
Given the projected results showing that most of its
positive growth market will be in Asia, the insurance company is now focusing
its Asian market – as in its largest division in the name of Prudential
Corporation Asia. The insurance company’s 13-million clients are expected to
grow in the future, and most of the growth will probably be in Asia. Prudential
also owns Jackson National Life Insurance Company which is currently the
largest life insurance provider in the United States. Will Prudential now be
concentrating more on its Asian clients than its American and European ones?
