Insular Life net income up 62% in 2019

MANILA, Philippines — Insular Life Assurance Co. Ltd. (InLife) recorded a 62-percent jump in net profit last year, driven by higher earnings from investments and various businesses, as well as lower operational costs. 

Citing the company’s latest audited data, InLife reported that its consolidated net income in 2019 reached P4.85 billion, 62 percent up from P3 billion in the previous year. 

Insular Life president and chief executive officer Mona Lisa de la Cruz said the growth was spurred by the company’s earnings in strategic equities, rental income and other investments, and further boosted by lower operational expenses.

“Our sustained investments in technology and in our people, enabled us to keep our operating expenses in check, driving our net income up” De la Cruz said in a statement.  

She said the company also continued to have a long-term view as part of its key investment strategy. 

“Our flagship Equity Fund and Balanced Fund both continued to outperform other VUL funds in terms of 10-year performance as of end-2019. The Equity Fund posted a 10-year average return of 10.8 percent, beating even the barometer Philippine Stock Exchange Index’s 9.9 percent. Our Balanced Fund, meanwhile, recorded a 10-year return of 7.4 percent,” De la Cruz said.

 According to InLife, its consolidated member’s equity or net worth rose by 8.4 percent in 2019 to P43.92 billion from P40.51 billion in 2018. 

The insurer’s consolidated assets also grew by six percent to P143.2 billion from P135.1 billion in the year prior. 

De la Cruz also reported that InLife released P11.1 billion in gross benefits and claims last year, 35 percent higher than the P8.2 billion paid in 2018. 

In 2019, InLife launched various products that cater to the needs of different markets. One of these is SheCares, a three-in-one solution that addresses the health, protection, and investment needs of women. 

The company also offered the Peso Global Technology Fund–the first themed fund in the Philippines anchored on the performance of companies around the world that benefit from technological advancements. 

Meanwhile, InLife said the company is utilizing its end-to-end digital platform to enable alternative work arrangements for its employees and ensure the continuity of its operations amid the enhanced community quarantine.

De la Cruz said the platform, called the InLife Virtual Business Enable (ViBE), enables the company’s financial advisors to complete the sales process without face-to-face interaction with a client. 

“Our investments in digital transformation a few years back has given us tremendous capabilities to continuously operate, and most importantly service our policyholders and our distribution channels, and accept new business while keeping our employees and agency force out of harm’s way,” De la Cruz said.  

“In this pandemic, we are assuring our policyholders that all claims and benefits due them will be released as fast as we can. Our processes are digital so even our work from home arrangements will not impede our fast service and timely release of benefits,” she said.