FWD Singapore shows the way forward for insurers

ONLINE shopping is an integral part of everyday life these days, with many individuals buying basic and luxury goods via Internet sites. Even in the financial sphere, online activity is rising - investors can easily buy and sell shares, derivatives, currencies and commodities globally from their home computers or smart tablets.

A logical extension of this shift in consumer behaviour is the buying of insurance products online instead of the traditional method of buying through agents or financial advisers.

This is precisely what FWD Singapore - the new life and general insurer in town, which is part of Hong Kong businessman Richard Li's Pacific Century Group - proposes to do. If it succeeds, it will disrupt the sector with its predominantly digital business model. While it's still early days yet to conclude that there will be a major disruption, it may be a matter of time based on consumers' online purchasing habits.