Royal Skandia Life Assurance, part of the big Swedish Skandia financial services group, is a specialist in providing investment-linked products.
'Royal Skandia only provides investment-linked insurance products, and they form our core strategy,' says Francine Kwong, regional director for Royal Skandia Life Assurance. 'We provide tools that help advisers to conduct financial planning. We do not have other lines of product. This allows us to be very focused.'
Ms Kwong says Royal Skandia's product range could be broadly divided into two groups: regular savings and lump sum investment.
'Everyone has needs in terms of financial planning, but it is fair to say that, due to the complexity and contribution level of our products, we cater for the middle- to high-income segment.'
Investment-linked insurance products have gained in popularity over the past few years. New premiums for investment-linked products jumped by almost 50 per cent to HK$3.7 billion in 2001, according to figures from the Office of the Commissioner of Insurance.
Asked whether the rise in popularity was the result of marketing efforts of insurance companies or some basic feature, such as useful product design, Ms Kwong said: 'There is no doubt investment-linked products have enjoyed a healthy growth and become more important in the long-term insurance market. It is possibly a combination of factors. But it is hard to tell which one is the strongest force.'
