In the spring weeks leading up to the 2004 GAIF conference, Lebanese insurers engaged in a flurry of new product releases. Each of three fancy launch events presented results of collaboration between local insurers and partner firms, from a leading multinational insurer and an international finance firm, to well-known domestic players in banking and trade. AXA Middle East, the Beirut-based affiliate of insurance multinational AXA and the fifth-largest sector company here, used the opportunity to unveil Viva, a new life insurance plan. Buyers of the plan can benefit from participating in fixed-income and equity-based funds managed by the asset arm of the AXA group. The insurers celebrated by inviting friends over for lunch – over 250 of them. UFA Insurance, a provider ranked in the upper third of the market, teamed up with payment card company, Visa International, and Lebanese financial institution Fransabank, in co-branding a credit card that offers
