iING Asigurari de Viata has set itself as a target winning one million customers from the 3 million employee market of compulsory private pensions (pillar II), says Radu Vasilescu, pensions manager with the company.
"The compulsory private pension market will have 3 million customers, of whom ING wants to lure 1 million," says Radu Vasilescu. He says that half of the 3 million contributors will have the obligation to participate to the system, being aged below 35, while the rest will participate on a voluntary basis, being aged below 45. Overall, ING plans to grab a market share of around 33% of the number of customers.
ING Fond the Pensii, the pillar II specialised company of ING Asigurari de Viata, is the only company that has filed a licensing application for compulsory pensions for the time being. By August, when the sale campaign for these pensions starts, around ten management companies say they will be ready to enter this market.
As part of the race for customers, ING has earmarked an advertising campaign budget of more than one million euros, to also be destined to the promotion of optional private pensions (pillar III). Referring to the public campaign meant to inform the population on private pensions the authorities promised to launch in July, Vasilescu says he does not have very high expectations about it and that it will be the same first companies to sell the products that will have to assume the task of educating and informing clients.
Vasilescu also specified the optional pensions market, where the first contributions can be collected starting next month, will be seriously hurt by the overlapping campaign for compulsory pensions of August-November.
"The entire sales force of the market will focus on the compulsory pensions campaign. Optional pensions will be sold for two months at best, between May and July, after whi
