Sun Life remains leader in Philippine life insurance industry

MANILA, Philippines - Sun Life of Canada (Phils) has remained the leader in the country’s life insurance industry with P16.3 billion worth of premium income in the first half of the year.

In 2014, Sun Life’s premium income reached P30.7 billion.

Among the non-life insurers, Malayan Insurance Co. was top with premium income worth P1.497 billion.

Industry-wide, total premiums in the first semester grew 49.46 percent to P98.8 billion from P66.1 billion in the same period last year.

Insurance Commission head Emmanuel Dooc said the industry remains on track to post a banner year with premium income of between P240 and P250 billion.

Meanwhile, Philippine AXA Life kept at pace with Sun Life reporting total premiums of P11.8 billion in the first semester from P7.6 billion in the same period in 2014.

BPI Philam reported total premium income of P11.4 billion better than “mother unit” Philam Life and General Insurance, which managed P10.5 billion in the same period. BPI Philam is a bancassurance joint venture company between the Bank of the Philippine Islands (BPI) and Philam Life.

FWD Life Insurance Corp., after a little over a year in operation, reported total premium income of P932 million. The insurer entered into a bancassurance partnership with the Security Banking Corp.

Another bancassurance joint venture --Sunlife Grepa Financial reported premiums worth P7.1 billion in the first semester of 2015, outperforming its full year 2014 premium haul of P7 billion.

Pru Life Insurance Corp. of UK gained premiums worth P9.3 billion from P6.9 billion, while Insular Life Assurance expanded its premium base to P7.8 billion from just P4.1 billion.

Manufacturers Life Insurance Co. (Phils.) Inc. recorded a premium income of P6.9 billion from P5.8 billion, while PNB Life Insurance posted P3.1 billion.

Rounding up the top 10 players in the first six months of 2015, were Generali Pilipinas Life Assurance Corp. (P3 billion) and Manulife Chinabank Life Assurance Corp. (P2.5 billion).