HSBC Insurance (Asia-Pacific) Holdings Limited has obtained approval from Bank Negara Malaysia to form a joint venture Takaful (Islamic insurance) company in Malaysia.

The new company will be capitalised with RM 100 million (approximately USD26 million) and is expected to offer a range of life and general Takaful products to both retail and corporate customers.

Growth opportunities offered by Malaysia's Takaful industry is huge, which has a lower penetration rate of 5 per cent amid a population that is 60 per cent Muslim.

(From left) Dato' Lim Chee Wah, Chairman, Jerneh Asia Berhad, C F Choy, Chief Executive, HSBC Insurance (Asia-Pacific) Holdings Limited and Datuk Azian Zainol, CEO, EPF, attended the joint venture agreement signing ceremony. The signing ceremony made the beginning of solid and successful partnership among these three parties with strengths in different areas.