"We have an excellent joint-venture partner in Sinochem, and our success over the last 20 years has been achieved through mutual trust and co-operation," said Mr Donald A Guloien, President and CEO, Manulife Financial Corporation. Manulife Financial Corporation and Sinochem officially opened Manulife-Sinochem, the first foreign insurance joint venture in China, on 26 November 1996. The then Canadian Prime Minister and the then Chinese Premier officiated at the ceremony in Shanghai.
“Almost a million customers and their families trust Manulife-Sinochem to help them achieve their dreams and aspirations. Our experience in China has exceeded our expectations and we look forward to achieving even greater results in the years to come,” added Mr Guloien.
Manulife-Sinochem President and CEO Kai Zhang, said: "Since its inception in 1996, Manulife-Sinochem has grown substantially and there is a significant opportunity for further growth in China. The growing trend of digitisation provides an opportunity for us to increase customer reach and improve customer experience. Manulife-Sinochem has been building a digital-first strategy to connect with customers anytime, anywhere.”
Manulife has deep roots in China having sold its first Asia policy in Shanghai in 1897. Manulife-Sinochem now operates in more than 51 cities and 14 provinces with more than 13,000 employees and agents. It has more than 2 million insurance policies and has paid CNY1.2 billion (US$174.2 million) insurance claims since 1996. Mainland China is Manulife’s number four business in the region in terms of a total Annualised Premium Equivalent (APE).
Manulife-Sinochem has introduced several industry leading advancements into the market. In 2014, electronic point-of-sale (“ePOS”) was launched and it is a comprehensive digital point-of-sales platform that reduces the amount of information needed and improves speed in underwriting claims. By Q3 2016, Agency uptake rate was 94%. Manulife-Sinochem is leveraging WeChat to develop a market-leading digital customer experience. Around 70% of WeChat claims receive results within one working day. Manulife also recently launched its ManulifeMOVE wellness program in Mainland China with the help of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Manulife sees continued robust growth in Mainland China as it is already one of the largest insurance markets in the world and has a current “protection gap” of an estimated US$18 trillion, and that may exceed US$46 trillion by 2020. Foreign insurers will have new opportunities with the reforms by the regulators to expand their business in China.