Standard Chartered Bank and Prudential plc (United Kingdom) Extend Bancassurance Partnership to Taiwan

Standard Chartered Bank and Prudential plc (United Kingdom) Extend Bancassurance Partnership to Taiwan

September 12, 2007

    TAIPEI, Sept. 12 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Standard
Chartered and Prudential plc today announced plans to
extend their bancassurance partnership to Taiwan.  The
arrangement, which follows a successful nine-year
relationship between both organizations in Asia, will
enable Standard Chartered to promote and distribute
Prudential's protection and savings products through its
island wide branches in Taiwan.

    The agreement highlights the importance of Taiwan to
Standard Chartered's growth strategy following its
integration in July 2007, making Standard Chartered now the
largest foreign bank in Taiwan.  Prudential's life operation
in Taiwan is one of largest and most widely recognized
foreign life insurers, with an agency force of 10,000 and
brand recognition of 94%. The new bancassurance partnership
gives Prudential opportunity to leverage further its leading
position in this market.

    Standard Chartered and Prudential's bancassurance
platform will feature in-branch and direct marketing sales
channels.  The partners plan to hire, train and deploy a
dedicated sales force of 200 Financial Planning Advisors
(FPA's) throughout the bank's branch network to provide
strategic financial planning services and tailored product
solutions.  This is in addition to Standard Chartered's
customer relationship managers (CRM's) in Taiwan that
already sell select PCA Life products on a preferred
partner basis.

    Since 1998, Standard Chartered and Prudential have
partnered on similar bancassurance arrangements across the
region, including in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan,
Thailand, Korea and recently in Mainland China as well.

    Commenting on the partnership, Tony Wilkey, Chief
Operating Officer of Prudential Corporation Asia said,
"We have had a very successful partnership with
Standard Chartered for many years and are therefore happy
to be deepening our relationship with Standard Chartered,
partnering with them in their growth strategies and
providing the people of Taiwan more opportunities to
benefit from our products and services."

    Chris Werner, Regional Head of Consumer Banking for
North East Asia, Standard Chartered Bank said,
"Delivering excellent benefits to customers is our
priority:  Creating customized products, providing faster
service and taking better care of our customers' financial
needs are the focus of what we do.  Since 1998, we have
been cooperating with Prudential in various countries to
make superb life insurance products for our customers'
protection available. Now, we want to live up to the same
high standards in Taiwan and bring our customers here the
results of a great partnership - a long-standing
partnership between Prudential and Standard Chartered Bank,
which serves only one purpose and that is how can we protect
and benefit  our customers."

    Peter Grimes, Regional Director,  Partnerships
Distribution of Prudential Corporation Asia said "Over
the coming months, we will roll out a range of our products
to Standard Chartered's customers, with emphasis on quality
financial advice provided by a newly established team of
professional Financial Planning Advisors. This will enable
the bank's customers to receive tailored recommendations
and product solutions at a time and place convenient to
them." 

    James Tan, Global Head of Bancassurance for Standard
Chartered Bank, added, "Bancassurance is now an
integral part of our retail banking offering and it is
essential that we provide our customers in Taiwan with a
full range of quality protection and medium to long term
savings products.  Given the long and successful
association with Prudential in Asia, it was a natural
extension for us to work with them again in delivering
these services and solutions to our customers throughout
Taiwan."

    About Prudential plc (United Kingdom)

    Established in London in 1848, Prudential plc is a
leading international financial group providing  retail
financial services and fund management in its chosen
markets: the United Kingdom, the United States, Asia and
continental Europe. Prudential has been writing life
insurance in the United Kingdom for 160 years.  Today,
Prudential has over 20 million customers worldwide and over
US$510 (GBP 256) billion of funds under management.   

    Prudential plc's strong mix of businesses around the
world positions us well to benefit from the growth in
customer demand for asset accumulation and income in
retirement. Our international reach and diversity of
earnings by geographic region and product will continue to
give us significant advantage. 

    Prudential has brought to market an integrated range of
financial services products that now includes life
assurance, pensions, mutual funds, investment management
and general insurance.

    Under the Prudential Group are a number of
well-respected brands including in the UK where we are a
leading life and pensions provider and M&G is a leading
retail fund manager. In the US, Jackson National Life, is a
leading provider of long-term savings and retirement
products to retail and institutional customers. Prudential
Corporation Asia is the leading European-based life insurer
with life insurance and fund management operations in 13
markets.

    * Prudential plc is a company incorporated in England
with its head office in London, which, with its affiliated
companies constitutes one of the world's leading financial
services groups. It provides insurance and financial
services directly and through its subsidiaries and
affiliates throughout the world. It has been in existence
for 160 years and had GBP 256 billion in assets under
management as at 30 June 2007. Prudential plc is not
affiliated in any manner with Prudential Financial, Inc, a
company whose principal place of business is in the United
States of America

    Standard Chartered - Leading the way in Asia, Africa
and the Middle East

    Standard Chartered has a history of over 150 years in
banking and operates in many of the world's fastest-growing
markets with an extensive global network of over 1,400
branches in over 50 countries in the Asia Pacific Region,
South Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the United Kingdom and
the Americas.

    With strong organic growth supported by strategic
alliances and acquisitions and driven by its strengths in
the balance and diversity of its business, products,
geography and people, Standard Chartered is well positioned
in the emerging trade corridors of Asia, Africa and the
Middle East.

    The integration of Standard Chartered Bank (Taiwan)
marks an important step in Standard Chartered's Asia
strategy by significantly enhancing Standard Chartered's
presence in Taiwan, which is the fifth largest economy in
Asia and is Asia's fourth largest banking market, according
to Standard Chartered estimates.


    For media enquiries, please contact:

     Prudential Corporation Asia
     Chad Tendler, Brand, Communications and Marketing
     Tel:   [phone]
     Email: [e-mail]