Bancassurance business in Indonesia continued to fall in the third quarter of this year, reflecting a trend that started around three years ago.
Several banks in Vietnam have reported a decline in bancassurance sales in the first nine months of this year, with the trend expected to continue into the new year, as a consequence of tighter regulatory scrutiny and consumer complaints about mis-selling or forced purchases of insurance policies.
The finalised guidelines for bancassurance operations currently await the approval of the Finance Ministry, according to Mr Mohammad Jainul Bari, chairman of the Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA). He added that bancassurance would be launched soon in the country.
In the first three quarters of this year, 10 bank-affiliated life insurance companies posted a combined business income of CNY316.4bn ($43.7bn), representing a year-on-year increase of 6%.
The IRDAI has formed a taskforce to review the existing bancassurance intermediation model and carry out modifications, if any, to the regulatory framework, with the focus on the protection of policyholders' interests.
The vast majority of banks that carry out bancassurance business have re-signed contracts with insurance companies in accordance with new rules that curb excessive bancassurance fees, according to a spokesman for the National Financial Regulatory Administration (NFRA).
Consumers in the region are buying more savings-type insurance products through bancassurance than protection products, indicating an area for remediation for bancassurers, indicates Swiss Re Institute in a report titled "Bancassurance in Southeast Asia: Is the model viable?"
The Capital Market Authority (CMA) on Sunday issued a decision endorsing a regulation for marketing insurance products through the bancassurance channel.
A working group will be established in Azerbaijan to expand bancassurance operations in the country, the president of the Azerbaijan Banks Association Zakir Nuriyev has said.
Motor insurance should be made mandatory immediately, said the president of Bangladesh Insurance Association (BIA), Sheikh Kabir Hossain.