After a successful foray in the Philippines during the pandemic year, technology driven Singapore-based life insurer Singlife announced aggressive expansion in product offerings and partnerships to support its goal of 150,000 customers with P350 million in annual premium by end this year.
Rien Hermans, CEO of Singlife Philippines, said during a virtual media roundtable they expect to expand partnership with two more digital networks this year to boost the Singapore-based mobile-based insurance business.
Hermans said they are targetting the middle-income market with monthly income of P20,000 to P120,000 because this is the most underserved market segment but is the fastest growing fit for its digital-driven insurance platform.
As he said this, Hermans noted of the disconnect in the country’s current insurance products offerings resulting in lower insurance penetration. The reason, he said, is because of experiences in the past in which advisors/insurance agents offer complicated and expensive products, with commitments that are much longer than their confidence of the future.
Singlife Philippines recognizes this conflict and uses the smartest technologies to deliver financial tools and solutions that are understandable, flexible to changing situations, and totally fitting of customers’ budget. They can also be easily accessed and managed anytime, anywhere using only a smartphone.
For 2021, Hermans said the company will continue to innovate on all fronts to realize 3 key points in its strategic agenda.
First, Singlife Philippines will complete its full suite of protection products on GCash by launching Cash for Medical Costs, which provides coverage for high medical bills due to hospitalization and critical illnesses including COVID-19, cancer, and heart disease, among others, for around P500 per month. Also slated for release in the coming months is Cash for Later, which allows customers to kick off their investing journey to help build up funds for future needs like education for children and retirement.
The completion of this line up will offer customers a smart way of protecting themselves and their loved ones, giving them control over how they build or strengthen their financial armor without having to leave the GCash app.
Second, Singlife Philippines will look for 2 new digital network partners who would also benefit from the plug-and-play proposition of its microservices portal.
Hermans explained: “We are always on the lookout for partners that can offer our products in their digital platforms.”
The company is actively engaged in various stages of discussions with potential partners, so customers can look forward to availing protection products from other digital platforms they are already familiar with, very soon.
Singlife has already built a microservices portal that houses all its protection products and can be integrated with the frontend of any digital platform. This cohabitation setup allows a seamless user flow between two platforms without having to switch screens.
Moreover, it grants customers extended access to services such as policy management, claims filings, and claims payments which are not normally offered by incumbents within the same environment.
Third, Singlife Philippines will launch its direct-to-customer initiative based on the successful Singlife Account that was introduced to the Singapore market in 2019. Called the Singlife Plan & Protect app, it empowers customers to take charge of their finances by helping them have a better understanding of their financial needs and by providing them with solutions to achieve their desired financial goals. The more they take control of their finances, the more Singlife unlocks the potential of their money for them.
“We believe that finances are too important to be placed in the hands of someone else. It is only by giving control back to the customers can we truly unlock the potential of money for everyone,” said Hermans.
It could be recalled that for its initial entry in the Philippines, Singlife partnered in October 2020 with the country’s biggest e-wallet provider, GCash. Its entry product was Cash for Dengue Costs. But because of the pandemic, its strong digital foundation was able to quick pivot to provide the more relevant Cash for Dengue Costs with a free COVID-19 cover.
This was soon followed by the launch of its income protection suite with a choice between Cash for Income Loss and Cash for Income Loss (Accidents).