Singaporean insurance company
Income Insurance Limited, commonly known as Income, is a composite insurer based in Singapore, offering life, health and general insurance.
Formerly known as NTUC Income Insurance Co-operative Limited ("NTUC Income"), the company now operates as Income Insurance Limited, a public non-listed company limited by shares. This follows the successful transfer of the insurance business of the co-operative, NTUC Income Insurance Co-operative Limited ("NTUC Income") to Income Insurance Limited, as part of its corporatisation exercise from 1 September 2022.
Currently, it has seven branches and lite branches respectively across Singapore, as well as operations in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
History
The idea of co-operatives, also known as social enterprises, was first conceived at the Modernisation Seminar in 1969, where delegates from NTUC affiliated unions gathered to discuss the challenges Singaporean workers were facing. Then, Singapore was a developing nation with a population comprising mostly blue-collar and low income workers.[2]
One of the founding leaders of NTUC, Devan Nair, articulated the need for the Labour Movement to turn into a social institution to serve Singaporean workers in various ways. Then Finance Minister Goh Keng Swee supported this call and urged NTUC to set up social enterprises in areas such as life insurance and essential consumer goods to meet the needs of the working population.[3]
This led to the establishment of NTUC co-operatives or Social Enterprises.[citation needed]
Income was established in 1970 with the objective of providing insurance protection to the masses. At that time, life insurance was something only the higher income group could afford.[citation needed]
In April 2010, Income launched the Income Family Micro-Insurance and Savings Scheme (IFMISS), a free insurance scheme for low-income households with young children.[4]
Today,[when?] Income serves over two million customers. It is the top composite insurer in Singapore and one of the largest general insurers and health insurance providers. Income is also the largest motor insurer in Singapore, covering about one in four vehicles in Singapore.[5] In addition, it has expanded to Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam in 2021 with partnerships in those countries, operating by an insurance-as-a-service model.[6]
In August 2013, Income became the first insurer in Singapore to provide insurance coverage specially designed for children with autism. The plan provides coverage for medical expenses from accidents and infectious diseases.[7] Income expanded its insurance coverage for the special-needs community in December 2014, when it unveiled SpecialCare (Down Syndrome).[8]
On 6 January 2022, plans were announced for Income to transit from a cooperative to a company called Income Insurance Ltd amid stiff competition in the insurance industry, with no changes to staff and existing policyholders' coverage. The corporatisation exercise was completed on 1 September 2022.[9][10][11][12]
