Zurich Takaful Malaysia has signed a 10-year agreement with Malaysian halal hypermarket chain MYDIN to offer takaful plans via retail takaful booths at over 60 selected MYDIN hypermarkets nationwide.
The first booth started operating on 6 May at the MYDIN Mall in Subang Jaya and more booths are expected to be set up in phases. The booths will allow MYDIN customers to participate in and learn more about Zurich Takaful’s protection plans, said MYDIN managing director Datuk Wira Dr Ameer Ali Mydin in a statement.
The collaboration, which is said to be a first in the industry, will also be extended to MYDIN’s digital platforms such as its official website, mobile application and e-newsletter.
While MYDIN is said to be one of the largest halal retailers in Malaysia with 73 outlets all across the country, Zurich Takaful is a major family takaful operator with over a decade of takaful market expertise. Both MYDIN and Zurich Takaful share the same vision to close the protection gap in Malaysia by providing simple and affordable takaful protection.
Commenting on MYDIN’s partnership with Zurich, Dr Ameer said, “We have a responsibility to help people from all walks of life by providing quality ‘halal’ products and services to meet their daily needs.”
The Malaysian takaful industry saw an uptrend in its performance last year with new takaful protection value of $324.2bn. New business contribution for all certificates combined in 2018 totalled MYR4.91bn ($1bn). At the same time, the global takaful industry has seen a 1% penetration rate in 1990 to approximately 15% in 2018.
However, there is a clear disparity in the protection levels between the B40 (bottom 40% of household incomes) and non-B40 market segments with the gap being particularly prominent in states with large urban populations.
Economic affairs minister Datuk Seri Azmin Ali has previously pointed out that the Malaysian population remained under-served with only 15.2% of Malaysians having takaful coverage even though the Muslim population stood at over 60%.
Earlier this week, Malaysia Takaful Association chairman Muhammad Fikri Mohamad Rawi said that MTA along with its members have been working hard to achieve a target of 25% takaful penetration rate in the country by 2020 which was set by Bank Negara Malaysia.