Banks’ big insurance grab

TWO deals worth a combined RM6.5bil in the space of just two days have sent a clear signal: Malaysian banks are tightening their grip on the country’s multibillion ringgit insurance and takaful industry.

The transactions come more than a year after Public Bank Bhd emerged as the single-largest shareholder of LPI Capital Bhd, reinforcing the view that bancassurance is no longer merely a supplementary business attached to traditional banking.