Best Life Insurer 2025
Best Health Insurer 2025
Most Innovative Product 2025
Feature interview: Turning ageing into advantage
Feature interview
Turning ageing into advantage
Asia is ageing faster than any region in history – and Manulife Asia is racing to turn that challenge into an opportunity.
By Alfred Romann
Across Asia, insurers are being called upon to deliver far more than financial protection. Demographic shifts, rising healthcare costs, and evolving consumer expectations now demand that insurers serve as partners in their customers’ lifelong journeys toward health, wealth, and well-being.
Few companies have embraced this paradigm shift as comprehensively as Manulife Asia. The insurer’s triple recognition at the Asia Consumer Insurance Awards 2025 – winning Life Insurer of the Year, Health Insurer of the Year, and the Innovative Insurance Product award (for its Health Saver Enrich product in Malaysia) – shows that it has found a formula that works across Asia’s diverse markets.
“These awards are a powerful affirmation of our strategy and purpose in action,” says Steve Finch, President and CEO of Manulife Asia. “They reflect the trust our customers place in us and the impact our teams are delivering across Asia.”
Reframing longevity
Manulife Asia has reframed what longevity means for insurers and their customers – and placed that insight at the heart of its strategy. Rather than viewing extended lifespans purely as a risk management challenge, the company endeavours to help customers not just live longer, but live better.
This philosophy permeates the company’s approach to innovation. Partnerships involving gut microbiome screening, liquid biopsy technology, and histotripsy therapy are a deliberate pivot toward prevention, early detection, and recovery – moving upstream from the traditional claims-focused model.
“All these innovations reflect what our Asia Care Survey revealed: people increasingly value quality of life, financial independence, and graceful ageing over mere lifespan,” explains Finch.
The same customer-first thinking is driving Manulife Asia’s expansion of crossborder healthcare solutions. In China and Hong Kong, the company has extended its designated hospital network and forged alliances with providers, including HEAL Medical, CUHK Medical Centre, New Frontier Group, and Bupa.
“These collaborations highlight Manulife’s commitment to being a pioneering health insurance provider in Asia, supporting customers throughout their health
journeys and helping protect more lives,” he says.
Tying these initiatives together is ManulifeMOVE, a platform that combines digital engagement with human support to encourage sustainable, healthy behaviours.
Relaunched across Asia with tailored services and advisor support, the platform embodies the company’s commitment to “meeting customers where they are in their health journeys,” says Finch.
Inclusive, accessible innovation
Asia will remain the epicentre of rising healthcare costs, with the region forecast to see medical inflation of 12.5% in 2026, according to Mercer Marsh Benefits (see charts).
An ageing population, a higher incidence of chronic health conditions, and shifts in treatment mix are all driving costs upward. Malaysia faces particularly steep increases, with medical inflation expected to reach 15% in 2026.
It is against this backdrop that Manulife Asia won the Innovative Insurance Product award for Health Saver Enrich – a product that shows how the company translates its longevity philosophy into market-specific solutions.
In a country where out-of-pocket health spending remains substantial, Health Saver Enrich supports customers across the full health journey, from prevention through treatment to recovery. It exemplifies Manulife’s belief that longevity must be inclusive. It is not just about coverage; it is about enabling healthier living through accessible, affordable, and relevant solutions.
The product’s advice-led design draws on Manulife’s Asia Care Survey, which found that financial confidence and health preparedness are deeply linked – and that customers who engage advisors feel significantly more prepared for retirement and health challenges.
Technology meets human touch
On the technology front, Manulife Asia has been actively deploying artificial intelligence (AI) across operations – from underwriting tools such as Quick Quote to sentiment analysis dashboards in call centres.
The company’s launch of an Artificial Intelligence Centre of Excellence (AI CoE) in Singapore in December last year signals its commitment to developing and scaling these capabilities locally.
The centre will focus on making insurance simpler, faster, and more intuitive for customers – enhancing customer experience, personalising advice, and
equipping employees and advisors with tools that enrich human interactions.
“Our integrated approach – bringing together digital, customer experience and our trusted brand – ensures we stay ahead of trends, leverage insights and take a connected approach to deliver solutions that meet the evolving health needs of customers,” Finch notes.
Despite the emphasis on technology, Manulife Asia has not lost sight of the irreplaceable role human advisors play. The company’s Manulife Pro platform, now operational in five markets, equips elite agents with advanced tools, realtime product insights, underwriting support, and qualified leads.
The interplay between technology and human expertise is already delivering results. The company’s AI Assistant solution, deployed to support agents in Singapore and broker relationships in Japan, has improved conversion rates by 6.5% in pilot branches through personalised engagement strategies.
Tailored for market diversity
Asia’s heterogeneity demands nuanced approaches to product development. For its part, Manulife Asia has adopted a framework that differentiates between mature
and emerging markets. In developed economies, the priority is comprehensive support and addressing preparedness gaps; in developing markets, the focus
shifts to education and awareness around the value of insurance.
In Hong Kong, Income Guard and IncomeShield address long-term care needs with ongoing treatment benefits for heart attack and stroke. The company has also expanded legacy and protection solutions for high-net-worth clients, including through its entry into the Dubai International Financial Centre. Across emerging markets, Manulife Asia has developed flexible and inclusive products, such as Sharia-compliant plans in Indonesia and education-linked coverage in Cambodia.
The company is also expanding its geographic footprint. Last November, Manulife Asia announced a 50:50 joint venture with Indian conglomerate Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. to enter India. “This will further strengthen our diverse portfolio and position us for tremendous growth in a mega economy of the future,” said Phil Witherington, President and CEO of Manulife.
Underpinning these offerings and initiatives is a recognition that longevity is increasingly a family affair. “Our strategy reflects the belief that longevity is a team sport, empowering families to thrive together,” Finch observes.
Beyond products, Manulife Asia is building partnerships that enable healthy ageing and financial resilience across generations. The UpLink Challenge with the World Economic Forum supports startups tackling demographic challenges.
In Hong Kong, a collaboration with JUST FEEL promotes emotional wellness in schools, while in the Philippines, a partnership with PesoSmart builds financial literacy from a young age.
Manulife Asia is committed to designing inclusive solutions that empower people of all ages to live with purpose. The goal is to build a future-ready business that helps people live longer, healthier, and more meaningful lives.
The road ahead
As customer expectations in Asia shift from basic coverage to holistic wellbeing, Manulife Asia is leveraging its integrated insurance and wealth management capabilities to capture emerging opportunities. The company is addressing latelife financial blind spots by embedding advice into platforms to help customers navigate healthcare costs and cash flow challenges.
“Our ambition is to be a leading provider of longevity-focused insurance and wealth solutions across Asia,” Finch says. “That means going beyond traditional coverage to deliver integrated health and wealth journeys – tailored to local needs and powered by digital innovation.”
With generative AI being embedded across operations, continued investment in advisor capabilities, and an expanding ecosystem of health and wellness partnerships, it’s clear that Manulife Asia is executing a strategy that treats longevity not as a liability to be managed, but as an opportunity to create value for customers, distributors, and shareholders alike.
“Longevity is a shared challenge, and we’re building ecosystems that help people live longer, healthier, and more purposeful lives,” says Finch. “With a diversified footprint, deep local insights, and a bold strategy, we remain focused on delivering impact with purpose – connecting health and wealth, scaling innovation responsibly, and shaping the future of insurance in Asia.”
