Pru Life UK pushes insurance-retirement integration at Manila Tech Summit

PRU Life UK President and CEO Sanjay Chakrabarty urged the Philippines to rethink how it prepares for retirement, saying savings alone would not be enough to protect Filipinos in their later years.

Speaking at the Manila Tech Summit 2025, Chakrabarty welcomed the Personal Equity and Retirement Account (PERA) as a “bold and necessary initiative” to help Filipinos save and invest, but warned that financial protection can easily collapse without insurance cover.

“Financial protection is fragile if not ring-fenced against the uncertainties of life and health,” he said.

He pointed out that as Filipino families shift from extended to nuclear households, the traditional safety net of family support is weakening.

“This makes it imperative that we build new forms of protection — ones that are institutional, scalable and sustainable,” he added.

Chakrabarty called on the insurance industry to design products that are simple, affordable and accessible. Beyond addressing mortality, he said the focus must also shift to morbidity risks such as long-term illness, disability and the need for care.

“PERA offers a powerful bridge where insurance can become an embedded feature of the retirement journey,” he noted.

His remarks came during the panel “Open Finance x Insurance: The Future of Financial Empowerment and of Seamless Protection,” part of Day 1 of the two-day summit.

Source: THE MANILA TIMES