Allianz Takaful begins operations with trusted financial solutions in Bahrain

Manama, 15th March 2009: The launch of Allianz Takaful on Sunday marked the entry of Allianz Group in the GCC. Based in Bahrain Allianz Takaful will offer Shariah-compliant products and services with hallmark Allianz values.

The launch event, held at Ritz Carlton Bahrain Hotel and Spa was attended by H.E. Rasheed M. Al-Maraj, The Governor, Central Bank of Bahrain, H.E.Dr. Hubert Lang, The German Ambassador in Bahrain, Mr. Heinz Dollberg, Chairman, Allianz Takaful, Dr. Abdul Rahman Khalil Tolefat, Chief Executive Officer, Allianz Takaful and other dignitaries from the financial sector.

The launch of Allianz Takaful amidst the current economic situation has much significance. "At a time when other financial institutions are shutting down their operations, Allianz is proud to expand into the Middle East. MENA is one of the identified growth markets for Allianz and we have come here to aggressively serve this market by taking into consideration the culture and leveraging on our global experience," said Dr. Abdul Rahman Khalil Tolefat, Chief Executive Officer, Allianz Takaful.

Bahrain remains a global hub for Islamic finance and the most stable financial centre in the MENA region. Due to the sophistication of the regulatory framework that take into consideration the unique characteristics of Takaful industry and facility provided by government to facilitate foreign investment, Allianz has chosen Bahrain as its global hub for Takaful. Thanks to the friendly economic policies and continuing reforms process, Bahrain commands a special place in the GCC bloc as the financial capital of the region. Over the last decade Bahrain's economy has been witnessing phenomenal growth and it has the strength to prevail over the current economic situation. These are some of the facts that encouraged us to choose the Kingdom as Allianz's global centre for Takaful Insurance.

"We will combine Allianz's global trust and expertise, and our local insights to create financial solutions of world-class standards. At the same time full-compliance with Shariah rules will ensure that our customers' religious beliefs and cultural values are never compromised. Allianz Takaful services are 100% compliant with Shariah rules and regulations, and monitored by a board of well-known Shariah scholars," continued Dr. Abdul Rahman. 

"We are committed to develop a comprehensive solution for our clients from A to Z branded by our name Allianz. A variety of products starting from motor insurance to sophisticated products such as retirement and saving schemes have been developed. For major products, we will introduce new services that are unpracticed in this market before. Also, we will introduce a new concept called "Allianz Takaful Mall" for our client whereby they will find all the financial solutions under one shop."

The customer is our main focus. Globally Allianz is reputed for innovation in financial products and our impressive product portfolio consists of a complete range of Takaful products for life and health protection, savings, retirement, child education and investments, which can be customized to meet the specific requirements of our clients.

"Several initiatives have been taken to measure and enhance customer stratification. Two projects; one called I2S or "Idea to Success" and another called CFI or "Customer Focus Initiative" were introduced. Also, we map our process internally and link performance of our employees with the committed date to our customers. We have targeted this year to not deviate 90% from our time committed to our customers."

"Technology will be deployed in order to enhance our customer services such as call center and interactive website. Also, we will deploy new technology which will be announced soon."

"We plan to promote Takaful concept in practice by managing Takaful funds in an efficient way which can enable us to distribute surplus to the client in few years from now."

"Customer awareness and education is part of our plan to enhance customer satisfaction and help them to plan for their future."

Commenting on the Allianz Takaful's future plans, Dr. Abdul Rahman said, "We are planning to expand our horizons to other markets in the region such as UAE, Kuwait and Qatar by introducing innovative Takaful products and services which the region has never experienced before. Gradually we plan to expand in other markets that have potential for Takaful Products"