BNM sandbox start-up launches life services

Life insurance start-up DearTime, a member in the Bank Negara Malaysia Fintech Regulatory Sandbox, has launched its services.

In a statement, the start-up said it aimed at providing a regulatory environment that is conducive for the deployment of fintech and facilitate overall innovation in the country’s financial sector.

Citing Bank Negara Malaysia’s statistics, DearTime founder and chief executive officer Jon Ng noted that the life insurance and family takaful penetration rate lies at a worrying 36.5 percent.

Ng said Bank Negara noted that only four out of ten Malaysians are currently protected, a far cry from the government’s previous aim of reaching 75 percent by the year 2020.

As a result, Ng launched an app to close the insurance penetration gap in Malaysia by offering affordable, simple, and accessible insurance through fully digital means.

“For years, life insurance has been unaffordable, complicated, and inaccessible for many Malaysians, especially among the B40 community as well as those in less urban areas.

“We believe life insurance is a fundamental human right, not a privilege. Therefore, through DearTime’s unique business model, we have made insurance accessible so that even those who cannot afford it can get covered by DearTime,” he added.