Remuneration for financial advisers will not change as a result of Partners Life being sold to Japanese insurer Dai-ichi Life.
Speaking during a webinar on Tuesday 16 August, Naomi Ballantyne, Partners Life’s MD, said the transfer of ownership to Dai-ichi – which is subject to regulatory sign-off – will not cause policy premiums or adviser commissions to change.
Ballantyne said among the advantages of the sale is that her staff will be looking at the technology Dai-ichi has to see what it can adopt for use in New Zealand “… why would you want to invent something that’s already in use?”
“That will be the very first advantage we get,” she said.
Members of Dai-ichi Life will be joining the team at Partners Life once the sale is completed.
“We need their expertise,” said Ballantyne. “As you know, Auckland is a hard place to recruit from…I think they are drawing straws right now to see which of them will get to live in New Zealand.”
See our report: Partners Life Sold
Ballantyne said the Partners Life brand will remain, the same as it did in Australia when Dai-ichi bought TAL (although the firm is now officially known as TAL Dai-ichi).
“All of our staff will remain, I am staying here, and I am excited about that,” she said. “We now have an owner who is determined to getting that number one position [in the market] and I am really happy to be part of that journey.”
Ballantyne suggested Partners Life will, like TAL in Australia, grow by innovation and acquisition – but that process will only start after the agreement with Dai-ichi is completed.
On the reinsurance side, Partners Life is in the process of negotiating for the next two years and Ballantyne says Dai-ichi is happy for the firm to continue doing that saying “…it is our business to run”.
“The whole executive team is excited about staying because we get to run the company,” said Ballantyne.