Antigua & Barbuda

"We also continue to maintain a presence in Anguilla and Montserrat to service our existing portfolios there. We are always looking to grow our business. We will be aggressively rolling out new systems to help in making it even easier for our customers to do business with us," the CEO said. Citing insurance numbers in Saint Lucia, Austin underlined that some 25 percent of citizens in St. Lucia have life insurance, leaving a comfortable 75 percent for potential market growth. Added to this, he said Sagicor was already working on providing Mutual Funds to the region so that citizens in the Eastern Caribbean will have another avenue for investments. This is being offered through a subsidiary company - Sagicor Asset Management Inc, which allows Sagicor to offer customers a full financial package. That means that should Sagicor's existing or potential customers come into a lump sum of cash, the company can invest it for them across the region and even in the USA or emerging markets, to give them a better return. "We have a very experienced team that was formed in 1997, who are very willing and able to help potential customers across the region. Over the years they have delivered returns consistently above other market players or benchmarks for the industry," Austin said. Staying true to his calling, Donald Austin was sure to mention the advancement of technology in the Caribbean as being one of the most considerable pillars in the Sagicor empire today. He cited technology as moving at a "mind-boggling pace" in the region with the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on all industries being considerably dramatic. Some of these technological developments are being eyed for infusion into the insurance industry as a whole, with Sagicor of course being very much out of the starting blocks on this front. "We have our CariCARE Cards which allow instant claims settlement for our Group and Individual Health customers so that they do not need to have all the funds when they visit their health providers. Their claim is verified on the spot and they pay only their portion of the bill (usually about 20%) resulting in immediate satisfaction to our many customers. We are also upgrading our internal systems to deliver faster and better service levels to our customers. When these upgrades are completed clients can look forward to convenient online transactions over the internet and via their smartphones" he said. Sagicor serves many customers with diverse needs and requirements. But this diversity also manifests itself as a key strength, with the Company having to be constantly interfacing with its customers and the various markets to develop products and services that are relevant for the environments in which it operates. Recently Sagicor launched its Maximum Protector product in St. Lucia and St. Kitts and re-launched it across the rest of the Eastern Caribbean. This gives customers a Life Insurance product with medical and health benefits included, without the need for medical tests if they are between the ages of 18 and 55 - a truly great product for the region. Sagicor is also in the process of formulating another new product, which will be launched in the next few months. Questioned about what next to expect from Sagicor, Austin said this was greatly dependent on the needs of new and existing customers. Whatever the direction might be however, he is confident in his ability to lead the Sagicor Eastern Caribbean office to give of its best through a decisive people-oriented vision that would stimulate and convince. In the meantime, the Eastern Caribbean as a whole remains a major market for Sagicor with many opportunities for growth. "My vision is for us to create a self-sufficient entity that is uniquely relevant and sustainable. So I want you to visualise with me a functional, self-contained entity which will make and execute decisions locally, while leveraging our regional experiences and expertise. I envisage that this new entity will put the customers' needs FIRST at all times while upholding Sagicor's vision," Austin said.