After re-emerging as a standalone insurer, Janashakthi Life has carved out a distinctive path in Sri Lanka’s insurance landscape, defined by targeted innovation, rapid product development, and a strong sense of social responsibility. In recent years, the company has introduced affordable micro-products for younger generations, pioneered coverage for pandemics like HIV and COVID, and expanded its presence through both digital channels and on-the-ground networks.
Underpinning this progress is a high-performance culture rooted in recognition, inclusion, and shared values like resilience and teamwork, which are qualities reinforced through Janashakthi’s long-standing relationship with sport. Building on this foundation, the company is now exploring how Artificial Intelligence can further elevate the customer experience, from streamlining onboarding and underwriting to enabling wellness monitoring and personalised policy upgrades in the years ahead.
As Sri Lankans face rising healthcare costs, economic uncertainty, and widening protection gaps, Janashakthi Life is positioning itself to meet these evolving needs with flexible, future-facing solutions. Ravi Liyanage, Director and Chief Executive Officer of Janashakthi Life, shares how the brand is investing in technology, culture, and ESG principles to empower the next generation of policyholders, while staying grounded in the mission it began with: to uplift lives and empower dreams.
How does your mission to uplift lives and empower dreams guide your strategic choices today, three decades after entering the market?
We’ve protected the dreams of thousands, making sure to support them during the most unseen and unprepared eventualities in life. We’ve ensured minimal impact on their living standards and lifestyles when faced with the untimely demise of a loved one, illness, disability, and other unforeseen circumstances. Moreover, children have continued their education, retirees have maintained their quality of life, policyholders have received high-quality healthcare, and businesses have persevered despite losing key personnel. As such, the company has paid Rs15.8 billion during the last 5 years in uplifting the lives of our policyholders and empowering their dreams.
Our strategic choice in our operating space is not confined to protection-based solutions only. We’ve expanded our offerings to include investment-based products, providing superior investment opportunities, annuities, and retirement solutions.
Janashakthi Life re-emerged as a standalone life insurer around 5 years ago. What did that pivotal relaunch reveal about where the company needed to go next?
The primary reason for re-emerging as a standalone life insurance company as a part of JXG (Janashakthi Group), was to sharpen our focus and build stronger capabilities to serve our policyholders better than the competition. This specialised knowledge has enabled the company to grow exponentially during the last five years, achieving significant increases not only in revenue but also in profitability. As of 2025, we have achieved the milestone of being the fastest-growing life insurer in the country.
Janashakthi Insurance PLC is licensed by the Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (IRCSL) and is well-positioned to become a major force in life insurance. We’re focusing on opportunities where over 50% of the working population remains uninsured, and even those with insurance often lack adequate coverage. To address this, we are enhancing our footprint by enhancing our branch network, agency force and digital presence.
What daily practices or feedback loops keep your people engaged and growing within your high-performance culture?’
Our organisation embraces the concept of “Digital Janashakthi.” Every department is digitally connected, both hierarchically and functionally, allowing smooth information flow and real-time performance tracking through dashboards. Employees have easy access to analysis related to delivery, cost, and timelines. Furthermore, our employee engagement efforts are inclusive, irrespective of generational differences, hierarchy, or demographics.
Among our organisational values, performance is key. This is communicated and deeply rooted in our company DNA through visual reminders and a supportive environment that promotes innovation and collaboration. Regular recognition initiatives such as long service awards and the “Good to Great” awards for our sales force, including categories like “Great Sales Personality,” “Great Sales Leader,” and “Great Manager”, further reinforce our high-performance culture.
As healthcare needs evolve, what future-facing solutions are you conceiving now to protect Sri Lankan families from tomorrow’s risks?
Healthcare costs in the country are skyrocketing, especially with the devaluation of the Sri Lankan rupee. Our company has developed a range of products tailored to protect Sri Lankans based on their socioeconomic status and individual needs. For groups relying on state hospitals, we offer daily cash benefits to cover supplementary expenses such as medicines. For those seeking more comprehensive coverage, we provide reimbursement-based and cashless hospitalisation products to help manage unexpected financial burdens.
Additionally, we’ve introduced affordable “sachet” products, particularly aimed at younger generations like Gen Z, to encourage the habit of healthcare protection at accessible prices as low as Rs500 per month. Our Janashakthi Good Health Cover can provide medical protection up to Rs50 million per life, with global coverage options available. Our responsive New Product Development (NPD) team ensures swift product launches, which is particularly important during health crises. Being the first in the industry to introduce specific coverage for pandemics like HIV and COVID is a testament to our proactive approach.
With digital transformation accelerating across industries, how do you decide which technologies are worth investing in?
Our company heavily utilises digital technology to streamline operations and for business intelligence. Currently, our focus is on harnessing Artificial Intelligence (AI) to improve areas such as prospecting new policyholders, onboarding and underwriting processes, claims management, and policyholder wellness programmes aimed at improving health outcomes and reducing claim expenses. Additionally, AI will support performance management, policyholder profiling, expense management, claim profiling, and many other use cases.
Janashakthi has had a longstanding relationship with sport in Sri Lanka. What drives the company’s passion for such events, and how has it shaped your brand identity over the years?
Our company always strives to be associated with attributes like competitiveness, agility, strength, resilience, respect, and fighting spirit, qualities naturally associated with sports. Additionally, sports nurture leadership, teamwork, and high performance, some of which are our core values as well. Over the years, we’ve supported sports such as cricket, hockey, squash, sailing, and athletics, among others. We’ve also actively assisted many well-known cricketers, athletes, and other sportsmen and women early in their careers, even before they made a significant mark in their respective fields.
What do you hope will be the company’s defining breakthrough in customer experience or social impact over the coming decade?
In this area, we anticipate several breakthroughs. Key opportunities include capturing demand driven by low-interest rates and the increasing need for mortgage protection, responding to the rising healthcare insurance requirements due to escalating medical costs, and innovating in the market for investment-linked life insurance products.
Additionally, we’re aiming to enhance customer engagement and convenience through technology that connects policyholders and communities with our offerings. A key breakthrough would be to leverage AI to profitably onboard targeted customers, aligning our products closely with their evolving needs to increase market penetration. AI will also help us manage the customer journey over long-term policies (typically 15 to 20 years), allowing us to adapt to changing lifestyles and protection needs, thus creating opportunities to upsell and upgrade coverage.
Moreover, we will emphasise ESG reporting to attract ethically conscious consumers, managing their long-term insurance relationships through our company’s ESG commitments.
Further information about the 100 Most Valuable Brands in Sri Lanka:
Sri Lanka’s Top 100 Most Valuable Brands
Introducing Brand Finance and Sri Lanka’s Most Valuable Brands
Brand Valuation Methodology: Identifying Sri Lanka’s Top 100 Brands