Jun Ji-hye, a reporter at the finance desk of The Korea Times, focuses primarily on economic policy and government agencies, mainly covering the Ministry of Finance and Economy, the Ministry of Budget and Planning, the National Tax Service and the Korea Customs Service. She previously covered financial authorities, including the Financial Services Commission and the Financial Supervisory Service, and earlier worked on the political, city and business desks, reporting on a wide range of issues.
Hanwha Life launches trust service for customized death benefit payments
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By Jun Ji-hye
Hanwha Life Insurance rolled out a new service that allows policyholders to manage how their life insurance payouts are distributed to their families after they die, the company said Tuesday.
Under this system, policyholders can entrust their insurance payouts to a trust company, which then distributes the funds to the chosen beneficiaries according to a schedule set in advance.
The new trust service is designed to address the growing demand for customized, cross-generational financial management in an aging society.
Launched with guidance from Hanwha Life’s Inheritance Solution Institute, it enables clients to structure their finances according to different life stages, covering needs such as children’s education, inheritance tax planning and long-term living expenses.
The trust offers the advantage of distributing life insurance payouts in installments instead of a lump sum, allowing for more organized financial planning.
Grandparents, for example, can use it to support their grandchildren’s college expenses over time.
It also ensures that the payouts reach the intended family members, making it particularly useful for protecting minors or disabled dependents.
For example, a 500 million won ($360,000) death benefit payout could be structured to provide a 100 million won lump sum for inheritance tax, with the remainder distributed as monthly payments of 2 million won over 17 years to support living expenses.
“Hanwha Life is broadening its offerings in both products and consulting to provide comprehensive wealth management beyond traditional insurance,” said Choi In-hee, head of the Inheritance Solution Institute. “With growing client concerns over inheritance taxes, we plan to deliver specialized trust consultations and tailored inheritance planning services.”
Since its establishment in November 2024, the institute has been supporting wealth management across generations, offering not only financial solutions for asset transfers, gifts and business succession, but also programs that span clients’ entire life cycles, including next-generation leadership development and humanities education.