MCIS Life takes 4.99% stake in Merchantrade as insurance firm accelerates digital transformation

• MCIS Life poised to unlock more innovative, personalised, digital solutions
• Merchantrade to strengthen its ecosystem of interconnected technologies

MCIS Insurance Bhd (MCIS Life) has taken up a 4.99% stake in Merchantrade Asia Sdn Bhd, the leading e-money player and the country’s largest Money Services Business operator, through the acquisition of new ordinary shares of an undisclosed amount.

The two companies kicked-off a marketing distribution arrangement in 2019 where MCIS Life provided a life insurance protection plan for Merchantrade’s customers which includes Malaysians as well as migrant workers.

In August 2021, they teamed up again to provide a product targeted at underserved communities such as Malaysians eligible for the Perlindungan Tenang Voucher (PTV) scheme.

The strategic collaboration has come at an opportune time as the value of life insurance and other relevant financial products have magnified amidst the pandemic. The combined strength and synergy between both companies are poised to unlock more innovative, personalised, digital insurance solutions to meet the protection needs of customers from all walks of life.

This strategic acquisition is set to accelerate MCIS Life’s digital transformation journey and leverage on Merchantrade’s digital capabilities, access to extensive network of over 1,000 physical touchpoints throughout the country and their three million customers.

MCIS Life CEO and Managing Director Prasheem Seebran said Merchantrade is a fast-growing fintech company constantly at the forefront of digitisation and driving innovation in financial services thereby allowing the former to pivot on their expertise in pursuing the company’s ambition to be a digitally focused life insurer.

Ramasamy Veeran, founder and Managing Director of Merchantrade said: “Having an established brand like MCIS Life with us resonates with our goals of expanding our insurance offerings as it allows us to better develop next-generation products and services that continue to add positive value to customers and communities around us as we make the future convenient, easier and more secure for generations to come.”

Ramasamy says he expects Merchantrade to continue to accelerate the rollout of innovative financial services and strengthen its comprehensive ecosystem of interconnected technologies, such as global remittance, payments, e-wallet solution, foreign currency exchange, micro-insurance, tele-health, micro-loans, telco services and more. “All with aspirations of giving customers a dependable digital first experience and elevate financial access across all walks of life,” he adds.

“Forging this partnership with Merchantrade provides MCIS Life with significant upside potential. It allows us to break away from the traditional bancassurance model which often incurs exorbitant fees and simultaneously strengthens our position as the sole life insurance partner within the Merchantrade ecosystem,” Prasheem elaborated.

Prasheem added that MCIS Life’s strategy is focused on enhancing customer experience through innovative product solutions and digitised service offerings. The synergies between the two companies will be further supported by Merchantrade’s technology solutions as well as its foray into the payment space.

“We aim to achieve our targets by rolling out more products to suit Merchantrade’s target market and this strategic alliance is expected to contribute over 25% of MCIS Life’s non-agency new business contributions by 2025.”

The acquisition forms a bold step forward, further strengthening the existing ties between both companies since 2019 and MCIS Life see tremendous value in Merchantrade’s mobile e-wallet application and nationwide on ground touchpoints allowing access to the underserved communities.

“Currently MCIS Life is the exclusive life insurance partner of Merchantrade. Considering the potential of the company and various opportunities to collaborate and create value for existing and prospective customers, this investment is expected to bring significant value to us,” Prasheem explained.

In line with its brand promise – “People Helping People” - MCIS Life also aims to roll out more inclusive, simple and affordable solutions to Merchantrade’s underserved customer base such as Malaysia’s B40 segment and migrant workers. It will also expand its offerings on employee benefits and bespoke products for corporate clients, high end products for the remittance market and online products for the technology savvy.