Japanese insurer Sony Life Insurance is looking to enter the Singapore market by opening dozens of locations throughout the city, where people can buy insurance policies from multiple carriers.
The firm plans to open around 50 branches over the next ten years, it said, starting in the summer next year. It plans to establish a joint venture in Singapore, in cooperation with Tokyo-based Starts Securities, which has substantial experience in insurance sales in Japan. Sony life will hold 74% of the joint venture, while Starts will have the remaining 26%.
Once the branches are operational, Sony Life will use the same consultation-based approach it uses in Japan, and it will sell other insurers’ products before offering its own products in the future, reports Nikkei.
Branches will be located at various high-traffic areas such as shopping malls. Sony Life plans to make the business profitable within five years and recoup accumulated losses by the ninth year.
In the 1990s, Sony Life entered the Philippine market, but it withdrew in 2012 after earnings did not meet its expectations. Because of that, the company instead focused its overseas expansions efforts on mature markets. Prior to turning its sights to Singapore, it made an investment in Australia last year.
Related stories:
Sony Life announces latest expansion
Singapore to revamp travel agency regulations
Many Singapore businesses only take out insurance after an incident - report
