Pan-Asian insurance giant FWD Group will enter the Malaysian life insurance market after it agreed to acquire a majority stake in Gibraltar BSN Life Berhad for an undisclosed sum.
The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2023.
FWD Group, and other investors, will together hold a 70% stake in Gibraltar BSN. The insurance group has acquired the stake from the wholly owned subsidiary of US-based Prudential Financial.
Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) will continue to hold the remaining 30% stake ownership in Gibraltar BSN. Post-completion, FWD Group will partner with BSN to further develop and grow Gibraltar BSN.
Existing customers and distribution channels of Gibraltar BSN will not be affected by the deal and all existing policies will continue to be honoured. Customers can also continue to access the company’s products and services using their preferred service channels.
Additionally, existing customers and distribution channels of FWD Takaful will not be affected. FWD Group plans to rebrand the Gibraltar BSN business at a later date.
Huynh Thanh Phong, group chief executive and executive director of FWD Group, said: “We’re creating a full-service offering in Malaysia and will be able to offer both family takaful and life insurance solutions in a rapidly growing market with huge long-term potential for growth. We’re excited to bring our digitally-enabled products and services to more people in Malaysia. With these strategic developments, we also substantially complete our footprint across key southeast Asia markets in the 10th anniversary year for FWD Group.”
This comes after FWD Group shelved plans to list on both the New York and Hong Kong Stock Exchanges.
