iA Financial Group has seen 17 per cent growth in the number of advisors it deals with in Canada over the past two years.
Financial analyst Tom Mackinnon of BMO mentioned this information at the insurer's most recent investor day.
There are three reasons for this increase, explained Renée Laflamme, the insurer's executive vice-president of individual insurance, savings and retirement.
The first reason is “a very disciplined approach to sales,” Laflamme says. This means being close to MGAs and advisors.
Second, two products were launched in 2020, one of which is participating whole life insurance, she adds.
Third, the COVID-19 pandemic led advisors to turn to iA Financial Group for the remote selling solutions it offers.
Do these advisors come from networks that the insurer owns, such as the career network and the MGA PPI? “The great majority would come from all distribution networks from all MGAs. Not necessarily from the networks that we own,” explains. Laflamme.
iA CEO Denis Ricard adds that digital technology has helped the insurer recruit new advisors. “Some sales managers told me – because they recruit green agents most of the time – that they were able to recruit advisors from other organizations over the past year because of our digital tool,” he says.
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