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Cardif name change looks to strengthen group's Asia image

Cardif Assurance Vie, an insurance arm of BNP Paribas, yesterday restated its commitment to the local market by announcing a new Chinese name to strengthen the group's image in Asia.

Previously known as "佳迪福人壽" or "Chia Di Fu Life Insurance" in Mandarin, with the corporate title transliterated from "Cardif," the French life insurer has been renamed "法國巴黎人壽" by taking the word "Paris" to be consistent with the group's Chinese translation. Its English name remains unchanged.

"In Mandarin-speaking communities, our group's subsidiaries have different Chinese names, which causes confusion. As BNP Paribas will take a more robust approach to developing the Asian market, we believe it's essential to unify Chinese titles for the purposes of image building," said Elsa Lee (李崇言), general manager of Cardif Assurance Vie's Taiwan branch, on the sidelines of a press conference yesterday.

In 2005, Cardif relocated its Asian headquarters from Japan to Hong Kong. Eyeing the potential market in China, the insurer is set to announce its joint venture partners in Shanghai this year, Lee said.

As Cardif targets bancassurance worldwide, its partners across the Taiwan Strait will be major banks which own an extensive network of channels, she said.

In Taiwan, Cardif has worked with more than 30 banks, or 2,000 branches, to sell its insurance policies. Its total premiums last year reached NT$25 billion (US$757 million), ranking it eighth among the nation's life insurers, its data showed.

ING Antai (ING安泰人壽), which has built a fresh image by promoting annual marathon races, also expressed confidence in expanding its presence here.

It aims to recruit 2,000 agents to join its current team of 9,000, to tap into the underdeveloped pension market, said John Wylie, chief executive officer of the nation's fifth-largest life insurer.

ING Antai last year reported total premiums of NT$116.8 billion, up 7.5 percent from a year ago. Its first-year premiums last year reached NT$20 billion, a whopping 30 percent increase year-on-year, he said. The insurer expects to post a similar growth rate in revenues this year.

The average Taiwanese insurance payout is only NT$800,000, 6.6 percent of the Japanese average of NT$12 million, the firm's figures showed.
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