IslamicFinance.de

Companies selling takaful in Indonesia are boosting agent numbers and product ranges ahead of a new rule that will require them to be run independently. Indonesia is so far dominated by takaful "windows" which allow insurers to offer Islamic and conventional products side by side. However, a new law requiring takaful firms to be spun off into stand-alone businesses is expected this year. Operating costs are expected to triple when the takaful business is spun off. Takaful firms have also begun to explore new streams of revenue in market segments that remain relatively untapped, like savings products for pilgrimages to Mecca. Moreover, agents are branching out into Indonesia's rural areas, moving beyond markets already crowded with conventional players.