Zurich International Life Ltd. said late Thursday it has been approved by Taiwan's financial regulator to open a life-insurance branch aimed at high-net-worth individuals on the island.

Zurich International, a unit of Switzerland's largest life insurer Zurich Financial Services AG (ZURN.VX), is the latest foreign financial services provider to start selling personal wealth management advice and products in Taiwan, which trails only Japan and China in Asia in terms of private wealth.

"After careful consideration and market analysis we have identified a large number of high-net-worth Taiwanese customers looking for trusted and well-managed 'international choice' when it comes to their investment decisions," Carlos Sabugueiro, Zurich International's Asia regional director, said in the statement.

Zurich International is based in the Isle of Man and also operates in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Zurich Financial pulled out of the Taiwan market in 2004, when traditional insurance products as opposed to investment-linked products still dominated the market, according to a Commercial Times report Friday. -By Perris Lee Choon Siong, Dow Jones Newswires; 8862-2502-2557; perris.lee@dowjones.com

Fuente: Dow Jones