Prudential Zenith Life Insurance and Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria have formed a strategic partnership to broaden access to life insurance products and deepen financial inclusion across the country.

The partnership, described as bancassurance, was announced on Thursday in Lagos in a joint statement by both organisations.

Bancassurance is a business partnership where a bank sells insurance products to its own customers.

The companies said that the partnership would combine Prudential Zenith Life’s underwriting expertise with Standard Chartered Bank’s banking network to provide customers with easier access to life insurance products.

They said the collaboration was designed to bridge Nigeria’s insurance gap by integrating insurance offerings into customers’ everyday banking experience.

The companies added that under the arrangement, customers of Standard Chartered Bank would have access to a range of life insurance products tailored to meet different life-stage needs, including individual protection, family security and education planning.

They said the bancassurance partnership would leverage Standard Chartered Bank’s distribution network and Prudential Zenith Life’s underwriting capabilities to make insurance more accessible, affordable and easier to manage for Nigerians.

According to them, the collaboration also builds on the longstanding 27-year global relationship between Prudential and Standard Chartered across 11 markets in Africa and Asia.

Speaking on the partnership, the executive director and chief financial officer of Prudential Zenith Life Insurance, Afolabi Lawal, said the initiative would empower more Nigerians through affordable and accessible financial protection.

Mr Lawal said the collaboration would make life insurance more intuitive and relevant to customers’ financial journeys while helping families safeguard their future.

The acting chief executive officer of Standard Chartered Bank, Ayodeji Adelagun, said the partnership aligned with the bank’s commitment to delivering financial solutions that protected customers and their families.

Mr Adelagun said embedding insurance products into the bank’s services would strengthen its wealth management offerings while advancing financial inclusion in the country.

Prudential Zenith Life Insurance is a wholly owned subsidiary of Prudential Plc, following the acquisition of a 100 per cent shareholding in September 2024.

The company offers a range of individual and corporate life insurance products, including savings, investment-linked plans, group life, mortgage protection and education-focused insurance solutions.

Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria, a subsidiary of Standard Chartered, provides corporate and institutional banking, wealth management and transaction banking services across Nigeria.

(NAN)