AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat, one of Turkey's leading individual pension and life insurance companies, has left its first year behind. Celebrating its first year following a successful integration process, AvivaSA aims at increasing its speed participating in the system through the new products it will present to the market.
AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat, one of Turkey's leading individual pension and life insurance companies, has left its first year behind. Celebrating its first year following a successful integration process, AvivaSA aims at increasing its speed participating in the system through the new products it will present to the market.
A press conference with president of the board of directors Akin Kozanoglu, vice-president of the board of directors Anupam Sahay and general director Meral Egemen was held at the Swissotel to evaluate the first year of the founding of AvivaSA Emeklilik and Hayat, one of Turkey's leading individual pension and life insurance companies, and the fifth year of the system.
Giving the opening talk at the meeting, AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat general director Meral Egemen said that they had created a significant accumulation of knowledge by directing the first merger operation in the individual pension system (IPS) and that this merger would contribute greatly to AvivaSA's future success and profitability. Noting that what individual pension and life insurance does from now on for people to take charge of their future was a broad aggregation area, Meral Egemen emphasised that the integration process carried out over approximately one year was a first-class study demonstrating that superior results could be obtained by teamwork based on cooperation. Egemen expressed that AvivaSA had created an important accumulation of knowledge in IPS by completing 20 sub-programmes and more than 200 projects in such a short period as 10 months in the framework of the integration process.
Giving information on year-end goals, Meral Egemen said AvivaSA planned on reaching 300 thousand subscribers and a fund size of 1.5 million new Turkish lira by year's end. Egemen continued as follows: We will present an innovative new product to the sector that will contribute to IPS, support long-term logic in the system and will encourage people to stay in the system at various stages. Along with this, we will give priority to easy-to-understand, customer-friendly products in the field of life insurance. Taking into consideration the broad communication network of our multiple distribution channels - which are our competitive strength - we will give priority to different products in different channels.
Giving an example from the results of an Aviva plc study done on 100 thousand subscribers in a total of 28 countries, among which was Turkey, Meral Egemen added that only 12% of people 55 and older thought that the retirement system provided by the government would protect them and that, therefore, it was necessary for workers to guarantee their futures by getting into the system now.
Akin Kozanoglu: "We will reach a sustainable growth rate"
Also speaking at the conference, AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat president of the board of directors Akin Kozanoglu said that the highest-level administrative support and participation had been provided by both Aviva and AK Emeklilik so that AvivaSA could achieve integration in a sound manner. Noting that the two companies had adapted to AvivaSA's operations choosing the best practices and systems, Kozanoglu said: "In the end, it was a very well-managed integration within a limited space of time."
Noting that Aviva plc was an ideal partner, Akin Kozanoglu emphasised that finance was one of Sabanci Holding's main business branches, and said that the holding had put its signature to lasting, long-term investment that avoided the populist approach, and that they believed that AvivaSA too would achieve a sustainable growth rate in a short period of time. Touching on the importance of IPS to the national economy, Akin Kozanoglu said that systems such as individual pensions which guarantee the future of individuals and institutions make a great contribution to the economies of developing countries in particular.
Also touching on the effect of the global economic crisis, Kozanoglu added that the insurance sector could be negatively affected by this situation, but that they had learned important lessons from the Turkish finance sector's crisis of 2001.
Anupam Sahay: "We are proud of AvivaSA"
As for vice-president of the AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat board of directors Anupam Sahay, he noted that the system in Turkey was giving positive signals despite the global crisis, and that they believe in the market's potential. Sahay said that they, as Aviva plc, were very pleased with the partnership formed in the Turkish market with Sabanci Holding, and continued: "We are proud of the advances achieved by AvivaSA in a timespan of one year, an indication of Aviva's faith in Turkey. It is very important to us to have a place in the Turkish economy together with Sabanci Holding."
AvivaSA's first year, IPS's fifth...
While AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat finishes its first year in the individual pension system (IPS), the system has now left its fifth year behind in Turkey. While so far more than 1.7 million subscribers have entered the system, still in the development stage, the accumulated fund amount has exceeded 5.7 billion new Turkish lira. The goal is for the number of subscribers to reach 2 million by the end of 2008, and for the fund size to reach 7 billion new Turkish lira. As for the 10-year period, it is expected that the number of subscribers will reach 4 million and the fund size 20 billion new Turkish lira.
According to Pension Monitoring Centre data of October 31, 2008, AvivaSA has the lead in IPS with a fund size of 1,318,256,127 new Turkish lira, a share of 1,216,949,101 new Turkish lira, and an investment-oriented amount of 1,172,606,989 new Turkish lira. It is in third place with its 270,333 subscribers and 313,693 contracts. AvivaSA has attained third place in the sector and 8.75% of the life insurance sector with its 107,640,126 new Turkish lira premium production.
In addition to AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat's individual contracts, it has a fund size of more than 220 million new Turkish lira and contracts with more than 450 institutions in the area of institutional subscribers. By preferring AvivaSA in individual pensions, a number of international companies and Turkey's leading civilian institutions are securing significant advantages for their employees or members. AvivaSA Emeklilik ve Hayat fund size consists of 30% institutional contributory contracts and 70% individual contracts.
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