Prudential is planning to double earnings in Asia by upping investment in technology.
In an interview with Bloomberg, chief executive of the UK insurer’s Asia arm Nic Nicandrou says Prudential is looking to invest more than $400m (£281m) in areas like automation and online line sales, 20 per cent more than initially budgeted.
Nicandrou adds that Prudential, which made a £2bn profit in Asia last year, expects earnings to double in five to seven years.
He says: “Technology initiatives including automation are one of the key drivers to achieving Prudential’s growth ambitions in Asia…When everyone is used to almost instant responses, we have to make our offerings live up to that standard.”
Currently a third of Prudential’s earnings come from Asia, according to Bloomberg. Part of the new investment will be on artificial intelligence to speed up how quickly protection claims are paid.
Prudential embraces vertical integration with M&G merger
The extra spending commitment in Asia comes after the company announced plans to spin off its UK operations last month.
It sold £12bn of its annuity portfolio to back-book consolidator Rothesay Life, and demerged M&G Prudential, the company formed last year through combining its UK asset management arm with its European insurance business, from the rest of the company.
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