Millennials reshape Philippines pre-need market with digital, flexible plans

CEBU, Philippines — Millennials are emerging as the fastest-growing customer segment for the Philippines’ pre-need industry, prompting providers to introduce longer payment terms and expand digital services as younger Filipinos increasingly view advance memorial planning as part of broader financial preparedness.

The demographic shift is helping reshape a sector once dominated by older buyers, according to executives of Cebu-based Cosmopolitan Funeral Homes Inc. and Cosmo Climbs Life Plans Inc. (CCLPI), a cooperative-backed pre-need company.

“People have become more accepting of these realities because, eventually, everyone has to face them,” Cosmopolitan Chairman and President Renato Dychangco said in an interview during the company’s 75th anniversary celebration on July 6. “Preparing ahead eases the financial burden on the family left behind.”

The trend has encouraged new business models. Cosmopolitan partnered with CCLPI in what Dychangco described as the country’s first alliance between a private funeral services provider and the cooperative sector, giving the company access to a network of about 4,700 affiliated cooperatives nationwide.

The partnership targets a younger customer base that is becoming increasingly receptive to long-term memorial planning.

CCLPI President Mansueto dela Peña said market research found millennials account for roughly 45 percent of cooperative members, prompting the company to introduce seven-year and 10-year installment options to make life plans more affordable.

The longer payment periods have broadened demand beyond traditional buyers, with many millennials purchasing plans not only for themselves but also for their parents, he said.

The plans are transferable and assignable, allowing policyholders to extend coverage to family members.

CCLPI has accumulated more than 52,000 plan holders nationwide, representing about P2.1 billion in plan value.

Monthly premiums start at P540 for memorial benefits worth P60,000, with coverage reaching as much as P1 million.

The company has also invested in digital payment and account monitoring platforms as consumers increasingly expect online access and greater transparency in managing long-term financial products.

The industry’s recovery has also been underpinned by tighter regulation following years of consolidation.

Dychangco said stricter oversight by the Insurance Commission (IC) has reduced the number of licensed pre-need firms to about 14 or 15 from more than 100 previously operating, strengthening the sector’s financial stability by requiring companies to maintain sufficient trust funds to meet future obligations.

He warned consumers against joining informal memorial contribution schemes that operate outside the regulatory framework and lack the funding safeguards required of licensed pre-need providers.

As part of its 75th anniversary, Cosmopolitan also opened the Cosmopolitan Legacy Museum in Cebu, showcasing the company’s history through photographs, artifacts and memorabilia while promoting greater public awareness of advance memorial planning and end-of-life care.