Hannover Re to focus on emerging risks in India

World third largest reinsurer Hannover Re expects to start its operations in India during the first quarter of 2017 and would focus on life and non-life sectors as well as emerging risks, said a senior official on Thursday.

"We expect the licence to operate our Indian branch soon. We would be ready for reinsurance renewals in the first quarter of 2017," G.L.N. Sarma, Managing Director, Hannover Re Consulting Service India Pvt Ltd and the Chief Executive Officer-designate for Hannover Re's India branch.

The German group with a gross premium of around 17 billion euros is celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2016 has over 100 subsidiaries, branches and representative offices worldwide.

Sarma said the parent company received the R2 approval from Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) in November 2016 and expects a quick R3 approval from the insurance regulator.

With the R3 approval Hannover Re will be able to write both life and health, property and casualty business in India.

"The Indian reinsurance market size -- reinsurance premium paid by primary insurers -- is estimated between Rs 16,000 crore and Rs 18,000 crore. The reinsurance premium from the life insurers will be around Rs 1,200 crore and balance is from non-life sector," Sarma told IANS.

Queried about the growing capacity of primary insurers to retain the risk in their balance sheet, Sarma said: "It is true that risk retention capacity of insurers has grown since the private players have come in. But the industry will grow and we will look at emerging risks like cyber risk."

He said Hannover Re Consulting is engaged in market research for the parent company.

--IANS

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