IslamicFinance.de

Indonesia is on the course to become the major player in takaful industry. Growth rate as well as premiums for takaful operations has been increasingly growing in the last years and as result thereof, Indonesia could overtake several GCC countries. During the 2007-2010 period, the growth of Indonesian takaful industry was being supported from both domestic and international insurance companies. The Industry outlook for the period 2012-2016 remains in all aspects positive.

Prudential Assurance Malaysia Bhd (PAMB), part of UK-based Prudential Plc, has posted a 17 % growth in new business sales in first quarter 2009 compared to the same period last year. The company's new business annual premium equivalent (APE), which consists of retail life insurance sales and takaful contributions, rose to RM122 million from RM105 million previously.

The Guardian reported on 17th March about the takaful business of Prudential. Prudential is looking to expand into Egypt as the executive who runs the insurer's fast-growing Asian business seeks other markets with scope for rapid growth, like before Indonesia, where 25% of all sales in the fourth quarter of 2007 were sharia-compliant products.

Figures on Friday showed that profits of the Pru's Asian operations broke through £1bn for the first time in 2007 and now match the profits achieved by the insurer's traditional UK operations.

Stowe is already responsible for 13 countries. In India, he believes Pru can soon overtake the state-owned insurer that occupies the number-one slot in the country.

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2008/mar/17/islamicfinance.insurance?gus...