2010 News Releases

Jakarta– Effective from July 2010, Alan Merten has been appointed CEO and President Director of PT Asuransi Jiwa Manulife Indonesia (Manulife Indonesia). 

Mr. Merten is responsible for the overall development of Manulife Indonesia’s business operations offering individual insurance and wealth management solutions, pensions and group insurance through Manulife’s large agency sales force and through strong partnerships with banks and other distributors.

An industry veteran who brings more than two decades of experience in life insurance, pensions, wealth management and health insurance, Mr. Merten originally trained as an actuary and has worked in a variety of management and consulting roles.  He has experience in Australia, Europe and Asia and will be responsible for further strengthening Manulife’s leading edge in Indonesia. 

“Alan has a strong track record in significant leadership positions since joining Manulife. His expertise and depth of life insurance industry knowledge are great assets to Manulife,” says Robert A. Cook, Senior Executive Vice President & General Manager, Asia. “His appointment as CEO and President Director will ensure that Manulife Indonesia will remain the leading choice for Indonesian customers for strong, reliable, trustworthy and forward-thinking solutions for their most significant financial decisions,” Cook adds. 

Mr. Merten joins from Hong Kong where he ran Manulife’s successful Provident Fund and Group Insurance business and was CEO of Manulife Provident Funds Trust Company.  Over his three years in the role, he grew market share and size of the business substantially. The business now has approximately 1 million customers and funds under management of about US$8 billion.

Mr. Merten holds an MBA from the Macquarie Graduate School of Management and is a Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries of Australia.

About Manulife Financial in Indonesia

Manulife Financial in Indonesia offers the most comprehensive products and services in the Indonesian financial services industry through life insurance, employee benefits, and mutual fund products. Headquartered in Jakarta, Manulife operates through a network of over 120 sales operations in more than 20 cities throughout the country, supported by almost 6,000 employees and professional agents who serve more than 2,000,000 customers.

In 2010, several prestigious awards have been earned, including:

• 1st Runner Up Best Life Insurance Company 2010 from Investor magazine (for the fourth consecutive year)
• Call Center Award for Service Excellence 2010 from Marketing magazine and Carre-CCSL (Center for Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty) for the fourth time, having previously won the same award in 2006, 2008, and 2009.
• Service Quality Award 2010 from Marketing magazine and Carre-CCSL (Center for Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty)
• Net Promoter Customer Loyalty Award 2010 from Octovate Consulting Group and SWA magazine.

About Manulife Financial

Manulife Financial is a leading Canadian-based financial services group operating in 22 countries and territories worldwide. For more than 120 years, clients worldwide have looked to Manulife for strong, reliable, trustworthy and forward-thinking solutions for their most significant financial decisions.   Our international network of employees, agents and distribution partners offers financial protection and wealth management products and services to millions of clients around the world. We provide asset management services to institutional customers worldwide as well as reinsurance solutions, specializing in life and property and casualty retrocession. Funds under management by Manulife Financial and its subsidiaries were Cdn$446 billion (US$440 billion) as at March 31, 2010. The Company operates as Manulife Financial in Canada and Asia and primarily as John Hancock in the United States. Manulife Financial Corporation trades as ‘MFC’ on the TSX, NYSE and PSE, and under ‘945’ on the SEHK. Manulife Financial can be found on the Internet at www.manulife.com.