Samsung Life Insurance, Pioneering the 2 Million Foreigner Market with Foreign Consultants

Over 4,000 Foreign Customer Contracts in June
Yeongdeungpo Star Branch, Composed of 45 Foreigners, Achieves Best Branch for 6 Consecutive Months

Among the 50 branch consultants, 45, accounting for 90%, are foreigners. The lead consultants of Samsung Life Yeongdeungpo Star Branch are taking a commemorative photo in the first-floor lobby.

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki Ha-young] Yeongdeungpo Star Branch, Samsung Life Insurance's first branch specialized for foreigners, is drawing industry attention with remarkable achievements.

Samsung Life Insurance announced on the 20th that Yeongdeungpo Star Branch has been recognized as the best branch for six consecutive months from January to June this year. Among the 50 branch consultants, 45 (90%) are foreign consultants. In the past three months, they signed 1,280 contracts, and last month alone, there were 522 contracts, averaging more than 10 contracts per person.

As the number of foreigners settling in Korea increases, the importance of the foreign customer market is also growing. According to immigration statistics from the Ministry of Justice, the number of foreign residents increased by 46%, from 1.39 million in 2011 to 2.03 million last year. Samsung Life Insurance's foreign customer contracts have also been increasing annually. The number of foreign contracts rose 86%, from 17,725 in 2018 to 32,992 during the one-year period from July 2020 to June 2021. Last month alone, 4,136 contracts were signed.

In this context, Samsung Life Insurance's Yeongdeungpo Star Branch is leading the development of the foreign customer market by leveraging foreign consultants. Until a few years ago, the industry was not welcoming toward contracts with foreign customers, but as the number of long-term foreign residents increased, the need for tailored financial consulting and insurance products grew. In particular, foreign consultants have strengths in product explanations and contract management that help foreign customers understand better. Along with the branch's performance, the number of foreign consultants has also increased. The branch staff, which started with 30 people, has grown to 88, and last month, it was split into two branches with 44 people each.

Kim Soon-nam, head of Yeongdeungpo Star Branch, said, "Crises in life can come regardless of nationality, so it is necessary to prepare by subscribing to insurance in advance," adding, "As the number of foreign branches and foreign customers increases, we expect the creation of foreign-language product brochures and the expansion of foreign-dedicated call centers."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.