Most High-Net-Worth Individuals Know Their Portfolio Allocation, But Fewer Are Willing To Consider How Much Of Their Wealth Sits Uninsured, Unhedged, And One Bad Event Away From Unravelling, Says Gehan Rajapaksha, Chief Executive At Amana Takaful Life. That Gap, Between What People Build And What They Protect, Is Where He Thinks The Wealth Management Industry Has Been Getting It Wrong.
“We currently have around 950 active agents, against an industry mid-tier average of 2,000 to 2,500, and our near-term target is to reach 1,200 by the end of this year.”
In a conversation with Echelon, Rajapaksha notes that this separation does not fully reflect how financial outcomes evolve over time. Risks such as loss of income, health-related expenses, or the inability to meet long-term commitments can alter financial trajectories, regardless of investment performance. Managing these risks, in his view, is not distinct from managing wealth, but an integral part of it.
For example, he says, consider a person who owns a residence valued at Rs75 million. Insuring that asset against risks such as fire, and transferring that risk to an insurer, is a fundamental aspect of wealth management. Similarly, ensuring adequate protection through life insurance, critical illness cover, and health insurance plays an equally important role. These are not separate from wealth creation, but essential to preserving and sustaining it over time.
This perspective informs how the company structures its offerings. Rather than focusing solely on protection or on returns, its products combine both elements through an investment-linked approach. Policyholders are given access to a range of funds across different asset classes, alongside life insurance coverage, allowing them to engage with both risk and return within a single framework.
The emphasis is less on short-term positioning and more on providing options that align with a range of investment goals and risk preferences. Customers are able to choose between conservative and growth-oriented allocations, and to adjust those allocations over time if their circumstances or outlook changes. While allocations can be changed at any time at Amana Takaful Life, Rajapaksha says most choose the plan that best serves their interests and then stay the course.
Amana Takaful Life delivered standout returns in 2025. What drove this performance, and how repeatable are they in a different market cycle?
Most life insurers pool policyholder premiums into a single fund and make investment decisions on their behalf. We take a different approach, offering five distinct funds across different asset classes, from a protected fund anchored in fixed deposits to an equity-heavy option and a dedicated Gold Investment Fund, and we leave the allocation decision to the policyholder. The logic is simple: a customer saving for a child’s education over 15 years has very different needs from one looking for steady, low-risk growth, and a single pooled fund cannot serve both well.
That structure paid off in 2025. The Gold Investment Fund returned 32.4% for the year, while our two equity-linked funds came in at roughly 23.5% and 23.6% respectively. The more conservative funds delivered steadier, lower returns as expected. Past performance is not a guarantee, but the fund-switching feature means policyholders are never locked into a single position. If their outlook or circumstances change, so can their allocation.
Your gold-linked fund has clearly been a main contributor. How do you determine when to lean into assets like gold, and how does that fit into your broader portfolio strategy?
The decision to launch the Gold Investment Fund was made around four years ago, driven by a reading of where global markets were heading. The dollar’s long-term dominance was increasingly being questioned, and the contestation of the petrodollar by BRICS nations added to a broader sense of uncertainty. In environments like that, gold tends to attract investors seeking stability, and we built the fund on that premise.
There was also a more local consideration. Sri Lankans have historically trusted gold as a store of value in a way that does not always translate to equity markets, and that familiarity made it a natural fit for our customer base, one that might otherwise default entirely to fixed deposits. Our policies are designed for the long term, we do not sell short-duration products, and gold as an asset class suits that horizon well. It is also worth noting that no other life insurer in Sri Lanka currently offers a dedicated gold fund, which has made it a meaningful point of difference for us.
How much of the 2025 performance was the result of favourable market conditions, and how do you ensure consistency beyond a strong year?
In the case of the Gold Fund, the returns were a product of being in the right asset class at the right time. We do not trade gold or attempt to time the market within the fund. The gain came from the asset itself, not from active management on our part. On the equity side it is somewhat different, because we have outsourced those investments to professional fund managers who make stock-level decisions and engage in active trading.
But my broader view, and this comes from my own background in fund management, is that asset allocation decisions drive the majority of returns over time, not trading activity. What we offer policyholders is access to the right asset classes and the flexibility to move between them, and that flexibility is itself the consistency mechanism.
No single fund needs to perform well every year, because policyholders are never locked into one.
Are policyholders actively using that flexibility, and does their behaviour suggest they are thinking about long-term wealth creation?
Our customer base broadly splits into two groups. The majority opt for the more conservative protected fund and treat their policy primarily as a protection instrument, with the investment component as a secondary consideration.
A smaller but growing segment, drawn largely to the Gold Fund, tends to be more financially engaged and takes a longer view. Switching activity is relatively low even among this group, which I read as a positive sign as most came in with a 15–20 year horizon in mind and have stayed the course rather than reacting to short-term movements. Our pitch to them is that they are building a fund for a child’s education or a daughter’s wedding, and that kind of goal does not lend itself to a trading mentality.
The more telling indicator of how the product is resonating is the premium data. First-year premiums grew by 59% in 2025 against an industry average of around 35%. The difference is due to more policies being sold as well as our average policy size climbing significantly, as customers put larger sums to work through the investment-linked structure.
That said, I would estimate that only around 5–10% of our policyholders are actively engaging with the fund options available to them, and increasing that awareness is something we are focused on. The flexibility is there, so the next step is making sure customers understand how to use it to their advantage.
What are your growth goals for the next few years?
The priority is distribution. We currently have around 950 active agents, against an industry mid-tier average of 2,000 to 2,500, and our near-term target is to reach 1,200 by the end of this year. I see the agency network as our primary growth lever for the next 5–6 years. Our product range is already competitive, so the bigger constraint is reach.
Digital tools are integrated into our sales process, but the actual sale still happens through an agent. The market is not yet at the point where customers seek out life insurance independently online, and I think it will take time to get there.
“The Gold Investment Fund returned 32.4% for the year, while our two equity-linked funds came in at roughly 23.5% and 23.6% respectively.”
The broader industry context adds some urgency to that expansion. Life insurance penetration in Sri Lanka sits at around 0.5% of GDP, well below regional peers, and the industry has recently submitted a roadmap to the regulator with the goal of doubling the market by 2030. Initiatives under consideration include reaching underserved segments through non-traditional channels and opening the market more meaningfully to Sri Lankan expatriates, who currently face regulatory restrictions on claims.
For us, those shifts represent a real opportunity, but my immediate focus is ensuring the distribution base will be ready to match the market’s growth.