The Canada headquartered company opened an office in Yangon late last week, marking a re-entry into the country after 70 years. It had previously operated in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, from 1903 until it was disrupted by the Second World War.
Indren Naidoo, regional executive said Manulife sees a “great business sense” in opening in Myanmar, which has a population of 56m and a projected 8% economic growth over the next two years, which is among the highest rates in Asia.
“No international insurer has yet received an operational license [in Myanmar],” said Naidoo. “As and when that happens, Manulife will be ready to deploy its global resources to hit the ground running.
“That’s what we did when we became the first international insurer to operate in Cambodia two years ago, and we are confident we can replicate that success here.”
In 2012, Manulife became the first international insurer to begin operations in Cambodia. As with there, Manulife will focus on simple life insurance products in Myanmar to begin with and widen the gamut of operations gradually that may include asset management products.
“The reason is that the market [in Myanmar] is in its infancy. We will need to build up people’s understanding,” added Naidoo.
“It’s not necessarily obvious to many families how insurance benefits them or how a company like Manulife can help. Over time, we will be ready to introduce a wider range of products.”
This was the same approach the company followed in Vietnam in the 1990s where it now offers products and services in wealth and asset management as well as insurance, he added.
The company is looking forward to providing “meaningful contributions” to the development of the life insurance industry in the country.
In May 2013, the Myanmar government liberalised the market and approved insurance licenses to 12 local firms. Prior to this, Myanmar Insurance established in 1952, was the sole provider of insurance services in the country.
The government has also signalled that foreign insurers and banks would be allowed to start operating in the country as early as 2015.
Manulife has in recent years increased its focus on Asia and already operates across 12 markets, targeting the region’s rapidly expanding middle class. The financial services company has operations in Asia, Canada and the United States. Manulife and its subsidiaries managed assets worth C$635bn ($574bn) as of 31 March 31, 2014.
