The Royal Insurance Corporation of Bhutan Ltd. (RICBL) has moved its head office from Phuentsholing to Thimphu recently in a move seen as to fight competition from the new private insurance firm and to strength its corporate identity.
Now with Thimphu becoming the hub of activities and the urban population becoming more conscious of insurance benefits, RIBCL authorities felt that having the headquarters at a place as far away as Phuentsholing was not good for the 35-year-old company.
“We are getting only half of the pie,” said the chief executive officer of RICBL, Namgyal Lhendup.
He added that the situation when RICBL was established in Phuentsholing has changed. Now, there are more and important clients in the capital.
“Thimphu has more potential clients and business partners are mostly based in the capital,” he said.
When the head quarters was at Phuentsholing, insurance transactions and approvals took two to three weeks as documents had to be first sent down from Thimphu. Now, with the office shifting, business dealing will be faster and will save the client’s time.
The old headquarters had also taken a toll on company spending. The cost implication of top management officials travelling from Thimphu for frequent meetings and other company needs were increasing. And an out-of-the-station travel meant more allowances.
Another issue was security concern.
“It is very risky in border towns,” he added.
The proximity of Thimphu being near to the airport and important international partners not having enough time to travel to Phuentsholing is also cited as another reason.
“They hardly have time to spend in Bhutan,” said a RICBL general manager.
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