Philippines: Pre-need firms allowed higher investment limits
Source: Asia Insurance Review | Jun 2017
Philippines Life & Health
The pre-need sector – nonlife firms that offer services such as pension, education and memorial plans – now enjoys a higher cap on the amount of funds that they can set aside for investments.
Insurance Commissioner Dennis Funa said that a recently issued circular allows a two percentage point increase in the investment threshold allocation under the Pre-Need Code, reported Business Inquirer.
This upward adjustment increases the allowable investment in long-term commercial paper from 15% to 17% of the total amount of the trust fund; in direct loans from 5% to 7%; in equities from 30% to 32%, and in real estate from 10% to 12%.
Data from the Insurance Commission showed the pre-need industry had total assets of PHP120 billion (US$2.4 billion) at the end of 2016, of which PHP101 billion was invested in investment instruments. A