Sun Life Grepa posts robust gains in 2015

MANILA, Philippines – Sun Life Grepa Financial Inc. grew its premium income at a record pace last year, driven mainly by the launching of new products, the company has said.

In a statement, the insurer said it booked a premium income of P10.15 billion in 2015, up 44 percent year-on-year.

According to this metric, the company is now ranked the eight largest life insurer by the Insurance Commission based on a list released on its website last April.

“Sun Life Grepa is growing,” president Richard Lim was quoted as saying in the statement.

“The achievements we had in the previous year give us the momentum to further pursue our mission of empowering Filipinos and help them become financially secure,” he added.

According to Sun Life Grepa, its “healthy” premium income was fueled by new products catering to various clients of differing investment and risk-taking attitudes.

These include Power Builder Dollar 1, a US currency-denominated, investment-linked product that allows clients to participate in offshore investments. There was also the Dynamic Fund that caters to “opportunistic” trades during market highs.

Other Sun Life products launched last year were the targeted, date-specific MyFutureFunds and equity fund Growth Plus Fund that investes in dividend-paying listed companies.

For existing policyholders, they were offered last year Sun Grepa ProHealth, a critical illness insurance product without need of any medical exam.

“Apart from launching new products and funds, the Company also strengthened its financial literacy advocacy,” Sun Life said, pointing to its called “Brighter Life Praxis” board game.

The game was designed to teach people financial management lessons in a fun and entertaining way, the firm said.

For 2016, the company vowed to boost its presence outside Metro Manila.

Sun Life Grepa is a joint venture between Sun Life Financial Philippines and the Yuchengco Group of Companies.