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Who buys insurance policies in Singapore?

Three kinds of party will take an endowment or whole life policy off your hands: your insurer, by surrender; a buyer, who pays you and becomes the owner; and a broker, who looks for a buyer for you. We are a buyer only.

Last reviewed 15 October 2026

The three routes

Each one ends your ownership. They differ in who pays you, how the price is set and who you are dealing with.

Your insurer

Surrender ends the policy. The insurer pays its net surrender value, set by the policy's terms. Every insurer offers it, and there is nothing to negotiate.

How to surrender

A buyer, like us

A company or investor pays you an agreed price and takes over the policy by absolute assignment. It pays any premiums still due and collects the payout later. A buyer may pay more than surrender value for an eligible policy.

A broker or introducer

Looks for a buyer on your behalf and is usually paid a fee or commission, by the buyer, by you, or by both. Ask who pays them, and how much, before you go ahead.

Insurer, buyer or broker: side by side

General patterns in the Singapore market. Each firm sets its own terms, so read the offer.

	Insurer (surrender)	Buyer	Broker
Who pays you	The insurer	The buyer, directly	The buyer the broker finds
Who sets the price	The policy's terms	The buyer, in a written offer	The buyer, through the broker
What happens to the policy	It ends	It continues under the buyer	It continues under the buyer
Who you deal with	The insurer	The buyer, from start to finish	The broker, then the buyer
How they are paid	Not applicable	The policy's later payout	A fee or commission
Regulated by MAS for this?	Yes, as a licensed insurer	No	No

MoneySense states that MAS does not regulate the sale, purchase or distribution of traded life and endowment policies. What that means for you

Where we fit

A buyer only, not a broker.

We buy with our own money
When we make an offer, we are the buyer. We pay you from our company account and become the owner of the policy.
We show you both numbers
Every offer prints your net surrender value beside our price, so you can see whether selling is worth it.
If we can't buy it, we help you surrender
We say why, and point you to your insurer's own form and our guide to it. We don't broker policies or pass your details to other buyers. Our business model

How to check any buyer

Ask these of anyone who offers to buy your policy, including us.

Get the full company name and UEN, and look the company up on ACRA's BizFile.
Ask for a written offer that states the price, every condition and your net surrender value.
Refuse any upfront fee, deposit or charge to release your money.
Make sure payment comes from the company's own account into an account in your own name.
Sign only your insurer's own assignment form, filled in completely.
Call your insurer on a number from its own website to confirm it has recorded the assignment.

Questions about buyers

Will my insurer buy my policy back?

Only by surrender, at the net surrender value. Insurers don't make competing offers for their own policies.

Why would a buyer pay more than surrender value?

Surrender value reflects the insurer's terms for ending a policy early. A buyer keeps the policy running and waits for the payout, so for some policies it can offer more. For others it can't, and a fair buyer says so.

Is a broker better than a buyer?

Not necessarily. A broker may find a good price, but takes a fee and you may not know the final buyer until late. With a buyer, you know who you are dealing with from the start.

Can an individual buy my policy?

A policy can be assigned to a person as well as a company. The checks above matter even more when the buyer is an individual.

Which policies do buyers take?

Mostly participating endowment and whole life policies with a cash value. Term, hospital and accident plans have no cash value to sell. The policies we buy

Ask a buyer directly

Tell us about your policy and we tell you whether we would buy it. No NRIC, no obligation.

Check my policy