Bajaj Finserv net jumps 40% on robust life insurance biz

Financial services player Bajaj Finserv today reported 40 per cent jump in consolidated net profit at Rs 441 crore on better performance by Bajaj Finance that reported its best quarterly show, and improved business of life insurance arm, during the three months to September.
"Healthy growth in Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance contributed to good set of profit numbers," Chief Financial Officer S Sreenivasan told PTI.
He added that the life insurance arm has more than doubled its profit, turning in a net income of Rs 216 crore, up from Rs 103 crore.
However, there was decline in profit in general insurance business.

Sreenivasan also said that its overseas partners in the insurance businesses are keen to increase their stakes in the respective companies but refused to share details, saying they are still in discussions.
Its consolidated gross revenue was up 9 per cent at Rs 5,185 crore from Rs 4,774 crore in the same period last year.

Bajaj Finance's profit after tax jumped 42 per cent to Rs 279 crore in quarter ended September from Rs 197 crore last year.
"We saw very strong volume growth in the commercial, SMEs, consumer and rural business, which led to higher profit in the quarter," Bajaj Finance MD Rajeev Jain said.

Its asset under management grew 36 per cent to Rs 37,964 crore from Rs 28,004 crore in the year-ago quarter.
Net interest income grew 44 per cent to Rs 1,006 crore from Rs 698 crore in the same period last year.
Total income was up 37 per cent to Rs 1,701 crore from Rs 1,242 crore last year.
Gross NPAs and net NPA for quarter stood at 1.67 per cent and 0.46 per cent, respectively.
Loan losses and provisions rose 71 per cent to Rs 137 crore as against Rs 80 crore in the quarter. It took an accelerated provision of Rs 31 crore in the quarter.

Bajaj Finance raised Rs 1,800 crore through tier I capital and Rs 4,000 crore through debt during the first half of the fiscal.
Its capital adequacy ratio including tier-II capital stood at 20.49 per cent as of end-September.
Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance profit after tax stood at Rs 216 crore from Rs 103 crore. Gross written premium was Rs 1,172 crore in the quarter as against Rs 1,401 crore in the same period last year. New business premium stood at Rs 460 crore as compared to Rs 610 crore.
During the quarter, life arm transferred surplus of Rs 65 crore in the policyholders' revenue account.

Bajaj Allianz General Insurance net came down to Rs 141 crore from Rs 145 crore a year ago.
Its gross written premium rose marginally by 2 per cent to Rs 1,500 crore as against Rs 1,475 crore.
Underwriting loss stood at Rs 8 crore as compared to a profit of Rs 23 crore in Q2 FY15.