Standard Chartered Bank of Botswana, the second largest bank in the country pulled the carpet under its competitors recently by introducing a bancassurance division with an array of insurance products that are targeted towards Batswana.
The move, which elevated the bank from dealing only with traditional banking transactions to looking further into long term saving products, was made possible by its collaboration with two main insurance houses, AON and Metropolitan Life BotswanaÔÇöled by the youthful, Oupa Mothibatsela.
Bancassurance is a new concept in Botswana and will mean that the Standard Chartered Bank’s financial statements will be looked at in a different way in its year end results because it will be embedded with a lot of long term liabilities on its balance sheet unlike some of the traditional banks.
The four initial products offered under Standard Chartered Bank’s bancassurance raft of products include an education plan, dubbed Bokamoso, funeral plan, known as Botshelo, and Kokelo Cash PlanÔÇöwhich is more like a medical insurance.
The advent of medical insurance on Botswana’s shores is expected to pose a lot of challenges to the existing medical aid scheme because of its benefits and its global reachÔÇölike a bank guaranteed cheque ÔÇô compared to medical aid schemes.
Kokelo Cash Plan is a hospital cash plan which provides one with a Daily Benefit Amount for each day spent in a hospital and Double Daily Benefit Amount for each day spent in ICU.
This plan is non-discriminatory and is expected to cover customers with or without medical aid, and extends to employed and self-employed customers.
Botshelo Funeral Plan is designed in such a away that it provides a lump sum payment once the principal passes away and the spouse and up to six children are covered under the plan. The policy also provides cover for one’s parents and parents-in-law.
“This Plan comes with a unique feature of premium waivers, this is, if gold or silver policy is selected then after the death of the principal member all others alive, including the parents and parents-in-law, remain covered without any further premium payments. “Platinum customers also benefit from an automatic premium waiver facility when they reach the age of 65, which means all the lives remain covered without any further premium payment once the member reaches age of 65,” the spokesperson for the bank, Thabi Letsunyane, said in a statement .
The Bokamoso Education Plan is a linked education insurance for one’s family. Under the plan, one can choose from periods of between 10 and 20 years, and receive a lump sum payment for the education of one’s children on maturity of the plan. It also allows for optional annual withdrawal after the sixth year of the plan and used for the management of the day to day educational expenditures, such as uniforms or textbooks.
