RAKBANK Web Summit Explains How Rule Changes Will Boost Appetite For Life Insurance Products In UAE Among Expats And Citizens

National Bank of Ras Al Khaimah (RAKBANK)today held a virtual conference explaining how sweeping changes to UAE legislation governing the selling of Life Insurance and Family Takaful products would have a positive effect on the life insurance sector in the United Arab Emirates. The live conference, Life Insurance Comes of Age in the UAE, was hosted by Peter England, CEO, RAKBANK and Frederic De Melker, MD of Personal Banking, RAKBANK in partnership with Dimitris Mazarakis, MetLife Gulf General Manager.

During the event, RAKBANK and MetLife explored the impact of the evolving regulatory landscape within the UAE, and how it is helping increase consumer confidence in the new products on offer.

The new regulations, known as UAE Insurance Authorities’ Board of Directors Decision 49 (BOD 49) of 2019, will make the new life insurance policies more transparent and customer-focused, while making insurance companies as well as distributors’ more accountable and responsible to the customers.

The hosts also examined the potential costs of being uninsured as well as risk of being under-insured, particularly during a global pandemic. With a current penetration rate of less than 1%, the panelists agreed that COVID-19 may prove to be acatalyst for changing attitudes toward life insurance among expats and nationals in the UAE. Over half of those with insurance are underinsured, according to LIMRA.

Peter England, CEO, RAKBANKsaid: “Regulatory progress in the insurance industry as a whole is serving to boost customer appetite for insurance products, however the life insurance segment remains underpenetrated, however that is changing. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is causing increased interest in life insurance products in the UAE as expats and nationals are feeling a sense of urgency to ensure adequate financial planning to mitigate the impact of life’s unforeseen events. With customers focused on managing their portfolio and investing in the products they need to provide genuine security and peace of mind for themselves and their families, we chose to partner with MetLife to offer customers a new and simple value proposition that is transparent and accessible through a digital platform, M Power.”

Dimitris Mazarakis, General Manager, MetLife Gulf, said: “At MetLife, we are pleased to partner with a leading bank such as RAKBANK in order to provide increased accessibility to our products. Although people recognize the need to protect themselves and their families, life cover penetration remains low due to a disconnect between what they know they should be doing and taking steps to put cover in place. It is important for people to take suitable financial advice to ensure they have a sufficient level of cover in place, especially if they intend to stay in the country long term.”

Frederic de Melker, Managing Director of Personal Banking, RAKBANK said: “At RAKBANK, we are committed to transparency and to providing customers with products that truly meet their needs in order to not only build their wealth but protect it. This is why we have leveraged state of the art digital capabilities, in order to support the selection of products and services that meet RAKBANK customer’s individual insurance needs. ‘M Power’, MetLife’s digital platform, will benefit our customers through cost efficiency, convenience and accessibility. Partnering with MetLife was a natural choice given their extensive knowledge of the region as well as our aligned visions.”

The conference follows the news of the 10-year strategic preferred partnership between RAKBANK and MetLife to provide comprehensive life insurance solutions to the Bank’s customers across the UAE.