FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 8, 2008

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Manulife Opens New Regional Support Centre in Ipoh
An integral component of Company’s key strategy to spur growth through business innovation and agency professionalism

Ipoh, Perek – Manulife Insurance (Malaysia) Berhad (Manulife Malaysia) today officially opened its new Ipoh Regional Support Centre. Strategically located in the commercial centre of Ipoh, the Regional Support Centre will serve as the Manulife activity hub for the Perak region. The official opening was officiated by Y. Bhg Tan Sri Dato’ Mohd Sheriff bin Mohd Kassim, Chairman, Manulife Insurance (Malaysia) Berhad and Mr. Peter Robertson, President and CEO of Manulife Malaysia.

The opening of the Ipoh Regional Support Centre is an integral component of the Company’s multi-distribution channel strategy. The Regional Support Centre will support agency, bancassurance and financial advisers with facilities for training, marketing, and customer service.

“Manulife Malaysia is the first insurer to embark on the Regional Support Centre model. It demonstrates Manulife’s willingness to adopt innovative business development models for growth. The advent of cutting edge technology in the area of Customer Relationship Management means that we can centralize business support while continuing to provide our customers with the best possible service, wherever and whenever they transact with us,” said Mr. Robertson.

With the opening of the Ipoh Regional Support Centre, Manulife is well positioned to spur growth in the Perak region.

“Our distributors are the real face of Manulife Malaysia. With nine Agency Managers and a growing team of advisors as well as the many bank branches that sell Manulife products under the jurisdiction of the Ipoh Regional Support Centre, the Perak region will continue to be one of our top performing regions,” added Mr. Peter Robertson.

“With our move to the commercial centre in Ipoh and coupled with our agency offices throughout Perak, we are increasing Manulife's presence in this region and creating greater visibility of our Agency offices,” continued Mr. Robertson.

The Ipoh Regional Support Centre is the first of four the Company will open over the next two months. The other Regional Support Centres will be in Bukit Mertajam, Johor Baru and Sibu. These four Regional Support Centres join those already operational at the Head Office in Kuala Lumpur and in Centre Point, Petaling Jaya.

Growth
The move to Regional Support Centres is in line with Manulife Malaysia’s philosophy of growth through business innovation and workforce professionalism.

As a direct result of this shift, Manulife Malaysia’s distributors are set to play a more important role as the ‘face’ for Manulife. The company is investing considerable resources in improving the professionalism of its insurance agents through special training programs and incentives to assist them in delivering a better overall customer experience to spur growth.

“Manulife Malaysia’s business model has the flexibility to adapt to best meet the demands of increasingly sophisticated customers and evolving business and insurance environments. We are investing in our agents to improve their professionalism because we know they have such an important role to play as advisers. In line with Malaysia’s own focus on developing human capital, we are pleased to note that according to recent industry statistics, we have the highest percentage of full-time insurance agents in the industry at 53 per cent of our total agency force of 1,600 – significantly higher than the industry average of 36 per cent. The fact that such a large proportion of our agents are full time is further evidence of the importance we place on the professionalism and commitment amongst our agents,” said Mr. Robertson.

Manulife Insurance (Malaysia) Berhad recorded RM71.2 million in new business annualized premium for the year ended 31 December 2007, an increase of 42 per cent over the previous year of RM50.2 million. Profit before taxation was RM114.3 million for year 2007, 61 per cent or RM43.2 million higher compared to the previous year.

About Manulife Malaysia
Manulife Insurance (Malaysia) Berhad, established in 1963, is a member of Canada-based Manulife Financial Corporation. Manulife Malaysia offers an innovative range of financial protection and wealth management products and services to meet different customer needs. The company currently serves the needs of more than 270,000 policyholders and is one of the most financially sound life insurance companies in the country. Manulife Malaysia has been listed on the Main Board of Bursa Malaysia since 1984. As at December 31, 2007, Manulife Malaysia’s assets under management were RM3.0 billion.

About Manulife Financial
Manulife Financial is a leading Canadian-based financial services group serving millions of customers in 19 countries and territories worldwide. Operating as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia, and primarily through John Hancock in the United States, the Company offers clients a diverse range of financial protection products and wealth management services through its extensive network of employees, agents and distribution partners. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$396 billion (US$401 billion) as at December 31, 2007.

Manulife Financial is one of two publicly traded life insurance companies in the world whose rated life insurance subsidiaries hold Standard & Poor’s Rating Services’ highest “AAA” rating.

Manulife Financial Corporation trades as ‘MFC’ on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under ‘0945’ on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com.