Sun Life is intensifying its emphasis on strategic alliances, particularly in Asian markets, with the firm revealing a new appointment to push this strategy.
The firm announced the establishment of a new position, vice-chair of strategic partnerships, appointing Ingrid Johnson, the current president of Sun Life Asia, to this role. In this role, Johnson will report directly to chief executive Kevin Strain.
This new role is part of Sun Life's strategy to capitalise on global partnership opportunities. Strain highlighted the significance of this move during an analyst call.
“Having a senior person who thinks globally about that, we think is going to be a benefit to our strategy,” he said, according to a report from the Financial Post. “If you think about how quickly the world is changing in different areas, having these partnerships and understanding how to leverage them, we see being important to the strategy.”
Sun Life, which has been expanding into healthcare services in the region, already boasts an array of global partnerships. These include collaboration with Bowtie, Hong Kong's first virtual insurer, a distribution agreement with Scotiabank in Canada for alternative investment options, and various partnerships in the US healthcare sector.
Earlier this year, Sun Life in Asia initiated a 15-year partnership with Dah Sing Bank in Hong Kong, making it the exclusive insurance provider for the bank's retail client base of 570,000. This partnership, which increases the insurer’s bank partners in the region to 28, significantly contributed to a 57% increase in insurance sales for its Asian division in the third quarter.
Sun Life Asia operates across eight markets in the region, including India, the Philippines, and Vietnam. The Asian division reported significant growth in the third quarter, with net wealth sales and asset management net flows reaching $101 million, compared to a decline of $468 million in the previous year. Individual protection sales also saw an increase, reaching $521 million, up from $325 million last year.
What are your thoughts on this story? Please feel free to share your comments below.
