Taiwan: Discretionary investment policies gaining popularity
Source: Asia Insurance Review | May 2015
Discretionary investment policies, a type of investment-linked product where the buying and selling decisions for a client’s account is made by a portfolio manager or investment counsellor commissioned by the life insurer issuing the policy, is gaining popularity in Taiwan.
Conservative investors are targeting discretionary investment policies, given the volatility in the global economy over the past few years.
Insurers introduced 39 discretionary investment policy products in Taiwan last year, compared with six in 2007, reported the Taipei Times citing the latest data from life insurance companies.
Allianz Taiwan began offering six discretionary investment policies in the second half of last year, with total premiums already breaking the NT$20 billion (US$637.71 million) mark, said Allianz Taiwan Life Insurance CEO Danny Lam.
The insurer has plans to issue 10 to 15 more policies, with total premiums worth NT$50 billion, by the end of this year, it said.
Allianz Global Investors Taiwan’s intermediary sales Vice President Timmy Chu told the press that many investors look at discretionary investment policies as a tool to pursue moderate and conservative investment strategies. This is because these kinds of products return a certain percentage of gains back into the holder’s account, he explained.