Transforming Korea Global Fin. Center

Samsung Life to provide life-time financial security and make itself global player

Samsung Life Insurance Co. has been around since the beginning of Korea’s life insurance industry. Its vision is to be respected as the world’s premier provider of financial freedom. The company wants to become Korea’s No.1 life insurance company, committed to faithfully fulfilling its fundamental role of providing customers with financial security as a life insurer that competes with first-class global players.
President Lee Soo-chang said Samsung Life will become a global financial service provider and transform Korea into global financial center in spelling out the company’s long-term vision. Samsung Life was founded 49 years ago and remained a frontrunner throughout the history of Korea’s life insurance industry.
“We have overcome difficult operating environments and survived numerous challenges and hurdles, and I would like o express our sincere gratitude to our customers and shareholders who have shown us unwavering loyalty,” the CEO said.
The company’s business areas include insurance and asset management investing in such areas as domestic securities, foreign securities, corporate finance, consumer finance, real estate finance, real estate investment, alternative investment, and special account, among others.
SLI has been promoting buy and hold strategies in order to achieve sustainable profitability. By maintaining a global ;portfolio, the company also diversifies investment risk and overcomes the difficulties of domestic investment by reaching out to global markets for high-grade bonds, which are often unavailable in the domestic market
Samsung Life Insurance Co. is participating in the sharing job campaign in a positive manner, which is aimed at overcoming the economic slump, the company said recently.
The company said it has provided support to the FC(financial counselor) Recruit Team to increase its members and help women family heads to set up and operate businesses, among its diversified moves in the campaign.
Samsung Life was the first in the industry to introduce the FC internship course in 2007, which is designed to give college senior students interested in the financial industry to gain experiences for five weeks with the life insurance firm.
The company said the program became so popular that some 1,000 applicants applied to its initial class. The company picked 100 of them to spend time with the Univ Branch, a special branch of Samsung Life. There currently are five Univ branches with 210 consultants whose average age is 25.7 years and make 2.75 million won per month in salary.
Choi Yong-woo, a graduate of Dankuk University in Seoul, in August last year, finished the internship and now works as a financial counselor. He secured 180 customers in seven months since he started working, making 4 million won a month in earnings, which is a lot larger than his contemporaries working at large business companies and he is very proud of what he is doing, Choi said.
Samsung Life plans to increase the number of the Univ Branch to 10 this year to hire from 400 to 450 interns, showing that a Univ Branch provides more than 200 jobs. The company plans to recruit women, too, for its FC intern program and come up with other types of FC Internship Recruiting Team.
The company also plans to help women family heads to set up their own businesses by providing them with 25 million seed money to start their own businesses jointly with banks free of interests. Those women include widows, handicapped, and divorcees who have to earn money to feed themselves and dependents.
The 25 million won breaks down to 20 million won to set up businesses and 5 million won in management consulting fees .The fund will be made up with money set aside by financial counselors when they conclude the sale of an insurance package, 200 won per case, and the company matches the money. As of now, the company dished out 2.6 billion won from its 170 Univ branches and this year, the company plans to support them with 500 million won in seed money funds. nw

President Lee Soo-chang of Samsung Life Insurance Co.