TAIPEI, Taiwan, Sept. 12 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Standard Chartered and Prudential plc today announced plans to extend their bancassurance partnership to Taiwan. The arrangement, which follows a successful nine-year relationship between both organizations in Asia, will enable Standard Chartered to promote and distribute Prudential’s protection and savings products through its island wide branches in Taiwan.
The agreement highlights the importance of Taiwan to Standard Chartered’s growth strategy following its integration in July 2007, making Standard Chartered now the largest foreign bank in Taiwan. Prudential’s life operation in Taiwan is one of largest and most widely recognized foreign life insurers, with an agency force of 10,000 and brand recognition of 94%. The new bancassurance partnership gives Prudential opportunity to leverage further its leading position in this market.
Standard Chartered and Prudential’s bancassurance platform will feature in-branch and direct marketing sales channels. The partners plan to hire, train and deploy a dedicated sales force of 200 Financial Planning Advisors (FPA’s) throughout the bank’s branch network to provide strategic financial planning services and tailored product solutions. This is in addition to Standard Chartered’s customer relationship managers (CRM’s) in Taiwan that already sell select PCA Life products on a preferred partner basis.
Since 1998, Standard Chartered and Prudential have partnered on similar bancassurance arrangements across the region, including in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Thailand, Korea and recently in Mainland China as well.
Commenting on the partnership, Tony Wilkey, Chief Operating Officer of Prudential Corporation Asia said, "We have had a very successful partnership with Standard Chartered for many years and are therefore happy to be deepening our relationship with Standard Chartered, partnering with them in their growth strategies and providing the people of Taiwan more opportunities to benefit from our products and services."
Chris Werner, Regional Head of Consumer Banking for North East Asia, Standard Chartered Bank said, "Delivering excellent benefits to customers is our priority: Creating customized products, providing faster service and taking better care of our customers’ financial needs are the focus of what we do. Since 1998, we have been cooperating with Prudential in various countries to make superb life insurance products for our customers’ protection available. Now, we want to live up to the same high standards in Taiwan and bring our customers here the results of a great partnership -- a long-standing partnership between Prudential and Standard Chartered Bank, which serves only one purpose and that is how can we protect and benefit our customers."
Peter Grimes, Regional Director, Partnerships Distribution of Prudential Corporation Asia said "Over the coming months, we will roll out a range of our products to Standard Chartered’s customers, with emphasis on quality financial advice provided by a newly established team of professional Financial Planning Advisors. This will enable the bank’s customers to receive tailored recommendations and product solutions at a time and place convenient to them."
James Tan, Global Head of Bancassurance for Standard Chartered Bank, added, "Bancassurance is now an integral part of our retail banking offering and it is essential that we provide our customers in Taiwan with a full range of quality protection and medium to long term savings products. Given the long and successful association with Prudential in Asia, it was a natural extension for us to work with them again in delivering these services and solutions to our customers throughout Taiwan."
About Prudential plc (United Kingdom)
Established in London in 1848, Prudential plc is a leading international financial group providing retail financial services and fund management in its chosen markets: the United Kingdom, the United States, Asia and continental Europe. Prudential has been writing life insurance in the United Kingdom for 160 years. Today, Prudential has over 20 million customers worldwide and over US$510 (GBP 256) billion of funds under management.
Prudential plc’s strong mix of businesses around the world positions us well to benefit from the growth in customer demand for asset accumulation and income in retirement. Our international reach and diversity of earnings by geographic region and product will continue to give us significant advantage.
Prudential has brought to market an integrated range of financial services products that now includes life assurance, pensions, mutual funds, investment management and general insurance.
Under the Prudential Group are a number of well-respected brands including in the UK where we are a leading life and pensions provider and M&G is a leading retail fund manager. In the US, Jackson National Life, is a leading provider of long-term savings and retirement products to retail and institutional customers. Prudential Corporation Asia is the leading European-based life insurer with life insurance and fund management operations in 13 markets.
* Prudential plc is a company incorporated in England with its head office in London, which, with its affiliated companies constitutes one of the world’s leading financial services groups. It provides insurance and financial services directly and through its subsidiaries and affiliates throughout the world. It has been in existence for 160 years and had
GBP 256 billion in assets under management as at 30 June 2007. Prudential plc is not affiliated in any manner with Prudential Financial, Inc, a company whose principal place of business is in the United States of America
Standard Chartered -- Leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
Standard Chartered has a history of over 150 years in banking and operates in many of the world’s fastest-growing markets with an extensive global network of over 1,400 branches in over 50 countries in the Asia Pacific Region, South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the United Kingdom and the Americas.
With strong organic growth supported by strategic alliances and acquisitions and driven by its strengths in the balance and diversity of its business, products, geography and people, Standard Chartered is well positioned in the emerging trade corridors of Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
The integration of Standard Chartered Bank (Taiwan) marks an important step in Standard Chartered’s Asia strategy by significantly enhancing Standard Chartered’s presence in Taiwan, which is the fifth largest economy in Asia and is Asia’s fourth largest banking market, according to Standard Chartered estimates.
For media enquiries, please contact:
Prudential Corporation Asia
Chad Tendler, Brand, Communications and Marketing
Tel: +852-9188-2055
Email: chad.tendler@prudential.com.hk
