An affiliate of e-commerce platform Shopee has secured its license to sell life insurance products in the Philippines, the Insurance Commission announced.
In a statement Wednesday, Aug. 10, Insurance Commissioner Dennis B. Funa said that SeaInsure Life Insurance Co., Inc. (SeaLife) was granted a license to transact business as a life insurer in the country.
SeaLife, previously Reliance Surety and Insurance Co., Inc. (RSI), was acquired last February by SeaInsure PG Private Ltd. (SeaPG), a Singaporean insurance company under tech conglomerate Sea Limited, which is the holding firm for Shopee.
Since its acquisition, SeaPG converted RSI from a non-life insurance company to a life insurance entity.
Last March, the IC approved the transfer of the non-life insurance portfolio of RSI to SeaInsure General Insurance Co., Inc. (SeaGen), which undertook that all policies insured by RSI.
To recall, SeaGen was also rebranded by SeaPG from its previous corporate name AA Guaranty Assurance Co., Inc. (AAGA) when it acquired the latter in February.
“The entry of Sea Limited, through SeaPG, to the local life and non-life insurance industries is a testament to foreign entities’ confidence in the Philippine insurance regulation,” Funa said.
The IC previously found RSI’s acquisition by SeaPG to be compliant with the regulatory frameworks under Circular Letter No. 2014-37 dated Sept. 5, 2014.
Meanwhile, Sea Limited guaranteed provision of sufficient capital to SeaLife relative to its compliance with statutory net worth and solvency requirements.
SeaPG’s parent company, Sea Limited, is a Singaporean global consumer Internet company listed on the New York Stock Exchange with three core businesses across digital entertainment, e-commerce, and digital financial services.
Its digital entertainment business, Garena, is a global game developer and publisher. Its e-commerce business, Shopee is the largest pan-regional e-commerce platform in Southeast Asia and Taiwan.
Meanwhile, Sea Limited’s digital financial services business, SeaMoney, is a leading digital payments and financial services provider in Southeast Asia.