SINGAPORE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Singapore Press Holdings (SPH), NTUC Income (Income) and LumenLab,
MetLife’s Asia innovation centre, are embarking on an industry-first
collaboration to simplify life insurance claims for bereaved families.
When a loved one passes on, placing an obituary is one of the first
tasks handled by family members, while more involved tasks like finding
out if the deceased has a life insurance policy and filing for a policy
claim are put on the backburner.
Given that both tasks require a lot of the same information about the
deceased person, SPH, Income and LumenLab saw an opportunity to apply
blockchain technology, ‘Lifechain’, to automate the life insurance claim
process for grieving families. Developed by LumenLab, ‘Lifechain’
enables SPH to securely encrypt and share verification data used for
obituary placement with Income to kick-start the claim process.
‘Lifechain’ will begin piloting this month targeting 1,000 randomly
selected Income life insurance policyholders.
During the pilot, family members of the deceased who place obituaries in
The Straits Times will be informed about ‘Lifechain’. Upon their
consent, the deceased’s National Registration Identity Card (NRIC)
number will be submitted into ‘Lifechain’ as hashed data1 to
trigger a search for a matching life insurance policy. When a match is
found, SPH will inform family members within one working day, while
‘Lifechain’ will send an automatic notification to Income via email to
initiate the claims process.
Family members will also be informed by SPH when a match is not found so
that they can proceed to make checks and file claims with their life
insurers accordingly.
Mr Julian Tan, Chief of Digital Business of SPH, said: “SPH hopes to
expand ‘Lifechain’ to include more insurers in time to come to bring
greater convenience to family members attending to the deceased’s
administrative matters securely. This initiative is also in line with
our push for the digital business, tapping on innovation and growing our
partnerships to serve our customers better. SPH aims to be the go-to
partner for insurers to reach policyholders’ beneficiaries, as soon as
advertisers place an obituary in the future.”
Mr Peter Tay, Chief Operating Officer, who heads Income’s Digital
Transformation Office (DTO), said: “At Income, we are constantly looking
to enhance customers’ experience with insurance. Through technology and
innovations, we aim to influence the way that customers fact-find,
enquire, purchase, claims and engage with us. Blockchain technology
offers greater transparency, enhanced security, improved traceability,
efficiency and speed of transactions. These value propositions resonate
with Income and we are excited to be the first insurer to come on-board
Lifechain. We believe it will empower us to offer optimal protection of
our policyholders’ personal information while enhancing their customer
experience with Income.”
Mr. Zia Zaman, Chief Innovation Officer, MetLife Asia and CEO of
LumenLab, said: “By making the customer experience simpler, this SPH –
NTUC Income – LumenLab pilot yet again demonstrates the potential of
blockchain to shape the future of insurance.”
1 Hashed data is generated by an algorithm and maps an
original string of characters to data of a fixed length. This ensures
the secure encryption of information submitted into Lifechain.
About Singapore Press Holdings Ltd
Incorporated in 1984, main board-listed Singapore Press Holdings Ltd
(SPH) is Asia’s leading media organisation, engaging minds and enriching
lives across multiple languages and platforms.
SPH’s core business is publishing of newspapers, magazines and books in
both print and digital editions. It also owns other digital products,
online classifieds, radio stations and outdoor media.
On the property front, SPH owns 70% in a real estate investment trust
called SPH REIT which comprises Paragon, a premier upscale retail mall
and medical suite/office property in Orchard Road, The Clementi Mall, a
mid-market suburban mall and The Rail Mall, a stretch of shopping and
dining outlets along Upper Bukit Timah Road. SPH REIT also holds 85%
equity stake in Figtree Grove, a freehold sub-regional shopping centre
in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia. SPH owns and operates The
Seletar Mall. It is developing a new commercial cum residential site at
Woodleigh. It also has a stake in Chinatown Point and acquired a
portfolio of Purpose-Built Student Accommodation (PBSA) in the United
Kingdom.
It is in the aged care sector and owns Orange Valley, Singapore’s
largest private nursing home operator.
SPH runs a regional events arm and a chain of Buzz retail outlets. It
also invested in the education business. For more information, please
visit www.sph.com.sg.
About Income
Income was established in 1970 to provide affordable insurance for
workers in Singapore. Today, two million people in Singapore look to
Income for trusted advice and solutions when making their most important
financial decisions. Our wide network of advisers and partners provide
life, health and general insurance products and services to serve the
protection, savings and investment needs of customers across all
segments of society.
Right from the start, Income was made different. Our social purpose of
maximising value for our policyholders defines us as a social enterprise
as we continue to make insurance accessible, affordable and sustainable
for all.
In 2017, Income had over $36.3 billion in assets under management. Our
financial strength and diversified investment portfolio is reflected by
our strong credit ratings which underpin the delivery of our commitment
to customers.
Income’s corporate social responsibility initiative, OrangeAid, is
committed to empower a better future for children and youth from
disadvantaged backgrounds.
About MetLife & Lumen Lab
MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates
(“MetLife”), is one of the world’s leading financial services companies,
providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management
to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their
changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40
countries and holds leading market positions in the United States,
Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more
information, visit www.metlife.com.
As MetLife’s pioneers for disruptive innovation, LumenLab is charging
ahead to create new businesses in health, wealth and retirement. Lumen,
a measure of light, symbolizes our commitment to illuminating a new path
for solving the problems that the people of Asia face today. Through our
focus on building new products and services grounded in technology and
data, we aim to help people achieve richer and more fulfilling lives.
For more information, visit http://www.lumenlab.sg
Contacts
For more information, please contact:
Neal Ang
Product Manager
Digital Media Products
Singapore
Press Holdings Limited
DID: +65 6319 5895
Email: [email protected]
Rebecca Chee
Senior Executive
Corporate Communications
& CSR
Singapore Press Holdings Limited
DID: +65 6319 1124
Email:
[email protected]
Elaine Chrysta Tan
Executive
Corporate Communications &
CSR
Singapore Press Holdings Limited
DID: +65 6319 1613
Email:
[email protected]
Yvette Marmur (LumenLab/MetLife)
Head of Business
Communications
MetLife, Asia
Ph: +852 5716 8533
Email: [email protected]
Tan May Chin
Executive, Strategic Communications
NTUC
Income
DID: +65 6202 6233
Email: [email protected]
