SECP permits United Insurance to run Takaful operations

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has allowed United Insurance Company (UIC) to launch Takaful operations.The notification issued by SECP in this regard said that UIC has been granted permission to launch window Takaful operations in respect of general Takaful products.Takaful is a type of insurance system devised to comply with the sharia laws, in which money is pooled and invested.Commenting on the development, Mian Shahid, Chairman of United International Group of which UIC is a member company lauded SECP to permit conventional insurance companies to launch Takaful which is the Islamic alternative to mainstream insurance products.The decision of the government will help broaden the insurance base of as the public concern on the insurance being compatible with Shariah was barring growth of the this sector, he added. Mian Shahid informed that after official authorization UIC will venture into untapped areas and increase insurance penetration which is less than one percent of the GDP. Takaful has emerged as a Shariah-compliant tool for satisfying risk mitigation needs of the tens of millions of Muslims across the world. The western financial crises have developed interest of masses in the non-Muslim nations to study and subscribe to Islamic financial products. Earlier only dedicated Takaful companies were allowed to underwrite Takaful products but now the conventional companies could begin to underwrite Takaful products after obtaining authorization as “Window Takaful Operator” under the Takaful Rules 2012. The funds of Takaful in UIC would be segregated and separate accounts would be maintained under the window Takaful operations, he said.