Charter Ping An gross premiums up 32%

MANILA, Philippines - Charter Ping An Insurance Corp. has reported a 32-percent increase in gross premiums written (GPW) to P754 million the first quarter of 2013, from P572 million in the same period last year.

Net premium written (NL) rose to P428 million up 23 percent from the P348 million in the same period in 2012. 

In terms of premium income, it grew to P398 million or 18 percent from P336 million recorded in the first quarter of 2012. 

Thus, net income went up 29 percent, from P49.8 million in the first three months of 2012 to P64.4 million this year. 

Charter Ping An is a non-life insurance company wholly controlled by the Metrobank Group. It ranked fifth overall among the country’s non-life insurers in 2011, and reportedly fourth in (net) premiums income last year. 

The key to the strong growth for the first quarter of 2013 and the past years, have been maximizing synergies with the Metrobank Group and the high standards of service to its expanding client base. 

Charter Ping An president Melecio C. Mallillin said that since 2009, the non-life insurer has been expanding by leaps and bounds. 

“We have doubled our GPW from P1.5 billion in 2009 to P3 billion in 2012; our investment fund in 2009 was P920 million which doubled to P1.8 billion in 2012; and our networth likewise doubled from P620 million in 2009 to P1.2 billion last year,” Mallillin said. 

Net investment income grew by 14 percent, from P18 million in the first three months of 2012 to P20.6 million this year. Retention rate stood at a healthy 57 percent. 

The property sector was the leading market for Charter Ping An accounting for 50 percent of its premiums, and roughly 20-percent comes from the Metrobank Group, which includes Federal Land Inc.

Another 30 percent of its premiums are in motor sector, of which roughly 50 percent comes from the Group, including Toyota Motors Philippines, Orix Metro Leasing and Finance Corp., and Sumisho Motor Finance Corp. 

The remaining 20 percent of its business is in marine, casualty, surety, and others. 

But Mallillin said the challenge going forward is to reduce the share of businesses coming from the Metrobank Group, which accounts for almost 40 percent of total. 

“My vision is to lower the percent share (of the Metrobank Group) to a lower level, meaning our agents must work more to gain greater market share outside of the group,” he added.