Preferred Life eager to shake cut-throat insurance market

If successfully registered by the Non-Bank Financial Institutions Regulatory Authority (NBFIRA) , the new firm, to be known as Preferred Life, will be the ninth life insurer in a market dominated by established giants whose collective assets amounted to P17.2 billion by the end of 2019. One of Preferred Life’s developers, Edwin Puso Afitile told BusinessWeek the company was finalising its funding to approach NBFIRA within the next two months.

“It is a requirement by NBFIRA that we detail the equity position,” Afitile said. “I expected the regulator to take another three to six months reviewing the licence and if successful, we expect full operations sometime around February.” According to NBFIRA regulations, prospective life insurers are required to maintain a minimum capital of P10 million, amongst other requirements.