Southeast Asia: Zhong An and Grab partner up for online insurance

Chinese online insurer Zhong An will be partnering up with Southeast Asian ride-hailing platform Grab to set up a joint venture in Southeast Asia to sell insurance products via the latter’s platform, reported the Financial Times.

The new online insurance platform is targeted to be first launched in Singapore during the first half of this year before moving to other markets in the region.

“The launch of our insurance platform is part of our commitment to becoming the leading everyday super-app in the region,” said Ming Maa, president of Grab, in the statement.

Reuben Lai, head of Grab Financial, added that as the only digital payments player to have licences across southeast Asia’s six largest countries, the partnership would help offer insurance to users, merchants, and driver-partners.

The announcement marks the latest effort by the Singapore-based company to build an all-encompassing app akin to Tencent’s WeChat. Grab will be adding insurance to offerings that include food delivery, logistics, and digital payments. It announced it would also expand into online healthcare and cross-border remittances this year.

Full Content: Financial Times

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