The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
Banco de Oro’s insurance arm BDO Life Assurance Co. Inc. (BDO Life) capped the third quarter of 2016 with P6.3 billion in total premium income, representing a 24 percent growth from a year ago.
Life insurance industry premiums posted a drop of eight percent versus the same period in 2015, in contrast.
Individual life new business premiums posted a hefty 28 percent hike in terms of Annual Premium Equivalents (APE), while renewal premiums rose by 30 percent over last year.
BDO Life’s continuous growth for the past six years mirrors parent BDO Unibank’s aspiration to be a major player and the leading local company in the life insurance space.
Sales force expansion and rising sales productivity combined to power individual sales growth. BDO Life ramped up its recruitment and selection efforts to beef up its presence in more BDO branches. Efforts to develop a professional Bancassurance sales force that consistently delivers sound insurance solutions to BDO clients’ needs have started to bear fruit.
The recent acquisition and integration of BDO Life as a wholly-owned subsidiary of BDO Unibank will accelerate the process of tapping the insurance needs of the bank’s growing client base. This move opens more doors towards building synergies between BDO Life and the bank’s various business units that will maximize cross-selling opportunities. Identification with the BDO brand has definitely boosted client confidence in BDO Life and recognizes the brand’s intimate understanding of the Filipino culture and local market.
“With the BDO Life name, brand recognition is a done deal and should help provide a significant boost to in-branch insurance sales. Leveraging the BDO brand to its fullest is a key activity that solidly positions us as a serious contender in the life insurance space,” BDO Life’s President & CEO Renato Vergel De Dios said. RIZA LOZADA