SINGAPORE, July 9, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Allianz Partners, a world leader in B2B2C insurance and assistance, today announced the appointment of Carsten Staat as Regional Managing Director for Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (APAC & MEA), effective 1 August 2026. Carsten will report to Jacob Fuest, Chief Markets Officer of Allianz Partners.
Carsten Staat brings a proven track record of delivering exceptional business results. Over the past four years as Managing Director for Allianz Partners Germany, he drove strong growth, elevated customer satisfaction, and secured strategically important partnerships that strengthened the company's market position. He has been with the Allianz Group since 2001, building extensive experience across a diverse range of leadership roles.
Carsten succeeds Vinay Surana, who has been leading the APAC and MEA region for six impactful years and will assume a new role as Senior Advisor to Allianz Partners CEO Tomas Kunzmann from 1 August 2026 through the end of the year.
Jacob Fuest, Chief Markets Officer of Allianz Partners, said: "Asia Pacific is one of the most dynamic growth regions for Allianz Partners. The opportunities across this diverse market — from travel and student health to mobility and roadside assistance— are immense, and we are committed to capturing them. Carsten's ability to drive high-performing teams, create long-lasting partnerships, and deliver sustainable growth makes him an invaluable asset as we enter this next chapter for APAC and MEA. I have every confidence he will achieve exceptional results for our customers, partners, and people across the region. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Vinay for his exemplary contributions over the last six years. Under his strong leadership, Allianz Partners has significantly strengthened its market position in the region."
About Allianz Partners
Allianz Partners is a world leader in B2B2C insurance and assistance, offering global solutions that span international health and life, travel insurance, mobility and assistance. Customer driven, our innovative experts are redefining insurance services by delivering future-ready, high-tech high-touch products and solutions that go beyond traditional insurance. Our products are embedded seamlessly into our partners' businesses, sold through intermediary channels or directly to customers through the Allianz brand. Present in 73 markets, our 22,200 employees speak 70 languages, handle over 89 million cases each year, and are motivated to go the extra mile to offer peace of mind to our customers around the world.
For more information, please visit: www.allianz-partners.com
Social media
Follow us on X @AllianzPartners
Follow us on LinkedIn Allianz Partners
Follow us on YouTube /allianzpartners
Follow us on Instagram @allianzpartners
** This press release is distributed by PR Newswire through automated distribution system, for which the client assumes full responsibility. **
Allianz Partners Appoints Carsten Staat as Regional Managing Director for Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa
In the news release, ZETRIX TO POWER PUBLIC BLOCKCHAIN FOR THE PHILIPPINES GOVERNMENT, issued 08-Jul-2026 by Zetrix over PR Newswire, we are advised by the company that the headline is changed, it should read "Philippines, Malaysia to Enable Cross-Border Digital ID Verification to Make Services Faster and More Secure" rather than "ZETRIX TO POWER PUBLIC BLOCKCHAIN FOR THE PHILIPPINES GOVERNMENT" as originally issued inadvertently. Complete, corrected release follows:
Philippines, Malaysia to Enable Cross-Border Digital ID Verification to Make Services Faster and More Secure
Partnership Marks Another Key Milestone for Expansion of Ecosystem Across ASEAN
PETALING JAYA, Malaysia, July 8, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Zetrix Layer-1 public blockchain platform is set to serve as the underlying protocol for the public blockchain of the Philippines, following the signing of a landmark Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") between Malaysia's Zetrix AI Berhad group and the Philippines government.
Already operating as a core chain of the Malaysia Blockchain Infrastructure ("MBI"), the Zetrix blockchain, developed by Zetrix AI, will now power a second sovereign-grade blockchain infrastructure.
The MOU was signed between three entities, namely Zetrix Philippines Inc., My Blockchain Infrastructure Sdn. Bhd., which is a Zetrix AI joint venture with Malaysia's National Research & Development Agency MIMOS Berhad, and the Department of Information and Communications Technology of the Philippines ("DICT Philippines"), to establish a collaboration that seeks to, among other objectives, implement and operationalise the public blockchain infrastructure of the Philippines based on Zetrix protocol.
In today's agentic AI economy, blockchain technology is increasingly recognised as a critical safeguard in providing tamper-proof provenance for data and verifiable, transparent rails for transactions for both citizens as well as AI agents. As the biggest issuer of trusted credentials, governments have the imperative to provide a platform that enables the issuance, authentication and verification of such credential documents to be performed digitally at scale in a secure, reliable and trustworthy manner, not only within the boundaries of a country but also across borders, capable of efficiently serving individuals, business entities and agentic AI .
Zetrix serves as the foundational chain of Malaysia's MBI national blockchain launched in April 2025 and is now being selected in the Philippines to be the primary blockchain infrastructure for the deployment of digitised credentials issued by the Government and applications of national importance. In addition, Zetrix also operates the international supernode to China's national Xinghuo Blockchain Infrastructure and Facility hence cementing Zetrix's position as the global leader in sovereign-issued digital IDs and enabling verification to almost 20 percent of the global population.
"The initiative is about making trust portable across systems and borders. Through this collaboration, we can make the verification of government-issued credentials more secure and efficient across systems. More importantly, it helps remove unnecessary friction so citizens can access services faster and with greater confidence wherever they are," said Henry R. Aguda, Secretary of DICT Philippines.
"We are grateful for the confidence placed in us by the Government of the Philippines for Zetrix to be the prime mover in leading the Web3 revolution for the Filipino people," said TS Wong, Group Managing Director of Zetrix AI.
"This milestone marks another important step forward in the realisation of our vision of bringing countries in the region onto a common integrated ecosystem, thus playing our part in helping advance economic growth through stronger regional cooperation," he added.
Launched in April 2022, the Zetrix blockchain has been powering a variety of pioneering real-world use cases ranging from digital ID verification to customs clearance processing, global voting applications and stablecoins, to name a few.
Leveraging this proven track record, the collaboration in the Philippines will also see the partners focusing initial efforts on deploying blockchain applications of a similar nature, including cross-border interoperability between the national digital IDs of Malaysia and the Philippines, the issuance, verification and authentication of Philippines government-issued credentials and trade facilitation.
The adoption of Zetrix as the foundational chain in the Philippines adds a new dimension to Zetrix AI's presence in the world's 13th most populous nation, where the Group has been operating for close to a decade as the leading digital government service enabler, counting major government agencies such as the Bureau of Internal Revenue, National Bureau of Investigation, Securities and Exchange Commission, Philippine Ports Authority and Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources as among its partners.
About Zetrix AI Berhad
Zetrix AI Berhad ("Zetrix AI"), formerly known as MY E.G. Services Berhad, is leading the way in the deployment of blockchain technology and artificial intelligence in powering the public and private sectors across ASEAN. Headquartered in Malaysia, Zetrix AI started operations in 2000 as a pioneer in the provision of electronic government services and complementary commercial offerings in its home country. Today, it has advanced to the forefront of technology transformation in the broader region, leveraging its Layer-1 blockchain platform Zetrix and embracing the convergence of Web3, AI and robotics to enable optimally-efficient, intelligent and secure cross-border transactions, digital identity interoperability and automation solutions that seamlessly connect people, businesses and governments.
About Zetrix
Zetrix is a layer-1 public blockchain that facilitates smart contracts and delivers privacy, security and scalability. Zetrix's cryptographic infrastructure can be introduced to multiple industries to connect governments, businesses and their citizens to a global blockchain-based economy. Developed by Zetrix AI Berhad the cross-border and cross-chain integration with China enables Zetrix to serve as a blockchain gateway that facilitates global trade by deploying critical building blocks for Web3 services such as Blockchain-based Identifiers (BID) and Verifiable Credentials (VC).
** This press release is distributed by PR Newswire through automated distribution system, for which the client assumes full responsibility. **
ZETRIX TO POWER PUBLIC BLOCKCHAIN FOR THE PHILIPPINES GOVERNMENT
