MetLife foreshadows Australian growth
Major insurer MetLife has signalled it intends further growing its presence in Australia by leveraging some of its existing relationships with top global companies which have subsidiaries in Australia.
In an exclusive interview with Money Management in New York today, MetLife's executive vice president, Global Employee Benefits Integration, Maria Morris pointed out that MetLife was the largest employee benefits company in the world.
"We have 60 per cent of the global 1,000 (companies) and the headquarters teams of those companies know our capabilities," she said.
Morris said it made sense to leverage MetLife's existing relationships with those companies to link with their subsidiaries in Australia.
She said MetLife had recently examined where areas of growth would occur over the next 18 months and Australia was one of those countries, via the expansion of MetLife's employee benefits business.
"We'll be continuing to build our product, become more competitive on superannuation funds and become a bigger player in the space," Morris said.
Recommended for you
Policy and advocacy specialist Benjamin Marshan has left the Council of Australian Life Insurers after less than a year, having joined in March from the Financial Planning Association of Australia.
The declining volume of risk advisers meant KPMG has found a rising lapse rate for insurance policies arranged by independent financial advisers, particularly in the TPD and death cover space.
The Life Insurance Code of Practice has transferred from the Financial Services Council to the Council of Australian Life Insurers.
The firm has announced it will no longer be writing new life insurance policies in the retail advised and corporate group insurance channels, citing a declining market and risk adviser numbers.