Sun Life plans to form trust company in PH

Insurance giant Sun Life of Canada plans to expand into the retirement planning industry in the Philippines with the prospective creation of a trust corporation.

Sun Life Financial Philippines president Riza Mantaring told a press briefing on Thursday that for the past two years, her company had been looking at putting up a stand-alone trust vehicle. With the new framework on trust operations recently drawn up by the central bank, which will henceforth allow nonbanks to obtain a trust license, she said SLFP was now reviewing its options.

“What the trust license will give us is the ability to enter into the retirement market,” Mantaring said, noting that based on SLFP’s studies, only 2 percent of Filipinos would usually be financially independent upon retirement.

Most of the retirement plans in the Philippines, she said, were being provided by employers.

“It’s a very valuable service that can be provided to help people prepare for the future,” Mantaring said.

Without a trust license, she said it had been very difficult for SLFP to enter this business as it was difficult to offer competitive returns without the same tax treatment enjoyed by entities with trust functions.—Doris C. Dumlao