SEOUL, KOREA - Samsung Life Insurance is reviewing an idea to acquire an overseas asset management firm. Kyobo Life is also set to participate in a bidding to take over Woori Bank. Hyundai Life, a mid-sized life insurer, has begun to sell whole life insurance policies on Auction, an Internet shopping mall, from this month. Amid a situation in which most life insurance companies are suffering from low profitability, some of them are trying to find innovative ways to survive.

 

According to insurance industry sources on May 13, Samsung Life is looking for asset management companies to buy up after deciding that asset management business is the way to go as a future growth engine. Earlier Samsung Life announced that it would acquire the 100-percent stake in Samsung Asset Management. By combining the asset management capabilities with its own overseas sales network, it plans to upgrade its skills in asset management to a global level.

 

Meanwhile, Kyobo Life will take the path of moving into the commercial banking business by purchasing more than a 10-percent stake in Woori Bank. The reason behind Kyobo's decision is that the life insurance business has faced a saturation point in the domestic market and it is trying to find an outlet in commercial banking.

 

Hanwha Life has recently launched a process innovation task force. The company will undertake a major reform process to change its insurance offerings and sales channels. Beginning with life insurance policy sales at discount retail stores and vending machines last year, Hyundai Life has started selling policies on online store Auction.

 

Last year alone, life insurance companies took the aggregate loss of 3.6 trillion won. That's because they had sold a large number of fixed-rate whole life insurance policies offering an annual interest rate of 6.5 percent, which incurred a huge amount of loss from the situation of reverse margin.