Hdfc Standard In Distribution Talks With Three State-Run Banks

HDFC Standard Life is in talks with three public sector banks (PSBs) Indian Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank and UCO Bank to enhance its reach in the country.

While Indian Bank will extensively cover the southern part of the country, Punjab & Sind Bank will cover northern India and UCO Bank with an extensive network in the Eastern part of the country will adequately cover this part of India. All however, will depend on the final corporate agency bill, said HDFC Standard Life chairman Deepak Parekh.

These alliances will sell new products of the company, like the planned range of pension products, by July this year. Plans are also to launch group products including annuity, group annuity and pension products.

"With a large void and a sizable demand for pension product, we expect to corner a sizable chunk of the sector", explained Parekh.

HDFC Standard will use three channels of distribution. While its agents will bring in the bulk of the policies, the company has also tied up with a few non-bank corporate agents.

Internet will provide a few value added services along with the ability to purchase policies from its site. Nevertheless, the company does not see Internet as a major distribution channel.

While, products differentiation cannot be the USP of an insurance company, Parekh said, "our thrust will be on the servicing part".

Managing director D M Satwalekar said, "The differentiating factor will be the service standards that we at HDFC Standard Life will set at both the pre-sales and post-sales period. Our multi-channel distribution strategy will make it easy for the customer to be serviced expeditiously, while the intensive training provided by us to our consultants will enable them to personalise our products to suit the individual needs of the customers".

Parekh today inaugurated its Kolkata branch office and sold its first policies today in the city today. While the company has so far set up five offices through out India, the economic number is 18 branches and 25,000 policies in its first year of operation.

A quarter of the company's investible funds will be into equity investments, 50 per cent in government instruments and the remaining 15 per cent in IRDA stipulated sectors like infrastructure and social areas. The company hopes to break even in its seventh year of operation.