What characterizes you in the Luxembourg life insurance market?
If today we are an unavoidable protagonist in the Luxembourg life insurance market, this is due to the fact that we are supported by a unique, solid and competitive model. We offer practically unprecedented geographic coverage, which responds to the specific needs of private bank customers. We offer our solutions to residents of 6 European countries and 10 countries outside the EEA. Everywhere we offer our services, we rely on specialized knowledge in the legal and tax fields.
We carry out extensive work to diversify our offer, as well as to be able to respond to our partners’ requests by developing tailor-made solutions. In fact, we propose a very vast investment universe and a particular contract structure in terms of choosing investment supports, which can be combined or not within the scope of the same contract (Dedicated Internal Fund, Specialized Insurance Fund, Collective Internal Fund, External Fund, General Fund). Finally, we place the notion of partnership at the center of our business model, with the leitmotiv being the joint creation of value, through a B-to-B-to-C model in open architecture.
How do you manage to respond to your partners’ new expectations?
For several years now, we have all been moving forward in a constantly evolving macroeconomic environment. Insurance companies have to constantly reinvent themselves and demonstrate great agility. Our motto is collective. We have known for a long time that, to be faster in “time to market”, we have to shorten response paths and optimize our organization. It is necessary to start with the partner’s request and organize all the services impacted by this challenge, to provide an effective response. This is, for example, what we do when we announce the identification of several Private Equity Funds or the integration of Structured Campaign Products into our FAS or FIC. We are responding to a demand for these categories of assets that now occupy a full place within insurance contracts.
What are the most recent developments in legal and tax terms in Portugal, and what are the major trends in Wealth Management?
After the first half of 2024, we can make a first assessment of the measures that affected investors, Portuguese tax residents in 2023. In addition to the fact that the Portuguese Finance Law, approved in 2022 and in force since January 1, 2023 (Law No. 24-D/2022 of December 30), having reviewed, among other aspects, the taxation of speculative capital gains on securities accounts, we cannot ignore the current situation, namely the scheduled end of the Regime of Non-Habitual Residents (RNH), which was approved by the Portuguese Parliament within the framework of the new budget law for 2024. This measure raises fears of a decline in the country’s economic attractiveness in relation to other European countries that maintain attractive financial policies for foreign investors. However, it is important to remember that, in this unstable political and economic context, the life insurance contract and its advantages continue to be subject to assessment by local authorities. No changes have impacted the legal and fiscal framework of this solution, which continues to constitute an essential asset tool for residents in Portugal who wish to organize the transmission, preservation and enhancement of their financial assets.
To what extent is being part of the BNP Paribas group an asset?
I would say that the strength of our model lies in the possibility of being supported by a large, solid group and a set of quality shareholders. This allows us to support our long-term development and within a controlled risk framework. It also allows us to take advantage of all the Group’s specialized knowledge, particularly in a responsible investor approach. All of our partners (brokers, private banks, depository banks and asset managers) with whom we work in open architecture also benefit from the peace of mind expected in these matters.