Lloyd's gets final approval from IRDAI to open branch in India

This is a watershed moment in Lloyd's international strategy, claims Lloyd's Chairman John Nelson

Lloyd's, the specialist insurance and reinsurance market, on Thursday said it plans to open a reinsurance branch in the country, in time for the April major reinsurance renewals.

Lloyd's plans to open a reinsurance branch in the country, in time for the April major reinsurance renewals, following final regulatory (R3 or final) approval from the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India (IRDAI), a company statement issued here today said.

This will enable Lloyd's syndicates to offer specialist reinsurance in a variety of classes from a Lloyd's India branch in Mumbai, it added.

"This is a watershed moment in Lloyd's international strategy. We have now cemented our access to the world's largest, fast-growth economies, those most in need of the specialist insurance to protect their expanding asset base," Lloyd's Chairman John Nelson said.

"Lloyd's will bring expertise and specialist capacity to India's insurance market and work in partnership with local insurance businesses to develop innovative solutions that meet the unique needs of the growing economy," he said.

Lloyd's will help to share and develop expertise across the industry to position India as an international centre for insurance and reinsurance, Nelson said.

A strong and diverse reinsurance market will de-risk the economy and enable its entrepreneurs and businesses to take risks and thrive, he added.

According to him, a local presence in India will bring Lloyd's closer to clients and risks enhancing understanding and the ability to develop new solutions for the needs of the Indian market with a particular focus on agriculture, infrastructure and disaster management.