Kuala Lumpur (14 October 2025): The Global Islamic Finance Forum (GIFF) 2025 session on “Charting ASEAN’s Takaful Transformation – From Strength to Global Benchmark” underscored the urgent need to accelerate growth in the Takaful insurance sector and celebrated the timely establishment of the ASEAN Takaful Alliance (ATA).
Moderated by Mohd Radzuan Mohamed, CEO of the Malaysian Takaful Association, the panel brought together key leaders from across the region, Wan Saifulrizal Wan Ismail, Chairman of the Malaysian Takaful Association & CEO of Prudential BSN Takaful Berhad (Malaysia); Haji Shahrildin bin Pehin Orang Kaya Lela Utama Dato Paduka Haji Jaya, CEO & Managing Director of Syarikat Takaful Brunei Darussalam Sdn Bhd (Brunei); Yurivanno Gani, Vice Chairman for Sharia Life Insurance Development, AASI & CEO, Ansuransi Takaful Keluarga (Indonesia); Neslihan Necipoglu, Board Member of the Takaful Association of Turkiye; and Maricel E. Estavillo, Vice President, Sustainability & Takaful Head, PruLife (Philippines).
Together, the panellists explored how collaborative efforts under ATA could help raise ASEAN’s insurance penetration rate – currently at 3.2% in 2023, less than half of the global rate of 6.7% – to better reflect the region’s growth potential.
The formation of the ATA marks a major milestone in fostering regional collaboration, knowledge sharing, and capacity building among Takaful operators. Conceived by industry leaders within ASEAN, ATA represents a unified vision to position Takaful as a force for inclusive and sustainable financial growth.
Strengthening this commitment, ATA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Takaful Association of Turkiye (TSP) to advance cross-border learning, best practices, and joint initiatives between ASEAN and Türkiye.
Beyond the insurance sector, ATA’s collaboration with ISRA Consulting seeks to expand the use of the Maqasid al-Shariah Scorecard – a framework aligning financial practices with Shariah objectives – beyond Takaful to include Islamic banking and capital markets.
A key theme of the session was capacity building, with ATA members emphasising the need to cultivate a robust talent pipeline across regulators, operators, and distributors. As highlighted by the Philippines’ experience, several ASEAN markets remain in the early stages of developing their Takaful ecosystems. ATA aims to bridge these gaps through cross-border training, leadership exchanges, and shared Shariah governance frameworks.
Innovation was also highlighted as essential to maintaining Takaful’s long-term relevance.
“Takaful represents a visionary commitment to protection and shared responsibility. To stay true to that purpose, we must continuously innovate—refining our products, services, and messaging to ensure Takaful remains inclusive for all generations,” said Haji Shahrildin (Brunei).
Panellists called for digital-first solutions, relevant product designs, and purposeful narratives that keep fairness and mutual upliftment at the heart of every offering.
However, as panellists agreed, awareness alone is not enough. Markets like Malaysia enjoy high awareness of Takaful, yet participation, especially among the bottom 40%, remains limited. Sustainable penetration will require affordable products, inclusive distribution models, and frictionless customer experiences.
Finally, true progress will depend on the growth of interconnected Islamic finance sectors. “It needs to extend beyond Takaful to strengthen Islamic banking and investments, which together form the pillars of a thriving Islamic financial system,” said Maricel E. Estavillo (Philippines).
Through collective action, knowledge-sharing, and solidarity, the ASEAN Takaful Alliance aspires to take Takaful from awareness to impact, and from protection to empowerment – driving growth that serves not just economies, but the people they exist to protect.