Insurance brokerage Aon hops in Catamaran for India re-entry

Risk management and reinsurance brokerage major Aon has partnered with Bengaluru-based Catamaran to form a new broking joint venture, marking its re-entry into the Indian market.
Catamaran is an investment arm promoted by the family of Infosys co-founder N R Narayana Murthy and provides angel, early, late stage and mezzanine financing to start-ups.
Aon will hold 49 per cent and Catamaran 51 per cent in the JV. Completion of the transaction is subject to regulatory approvals, Aon said.
The UK-based insurance broking giant announced a new JV around four months after it ended its previous Indian joint venture with Global Insurance over some regulatory issues.

"We entered the Indian market in 2003 and decided to terminate our joint venture in October 2015. Both the partners had different views on how to take the business forward," Aon Risk Solutions' Asia Chief Executive Sandeep Malik told PTI.
"We are happy to partner with Catamaran as they have deep understanding of the Indian market and technology, and we bring knowledge on the insurance and reinsurance market," Malik added.

Aon was holding 26 per cent stake in the earlier JV with Global Insurance. The association broke over the issue of management control of the JV, Aon Global Insurance Broking.

Aon in a statement said that by combining Catamaran's local expertise with Aon's global resources, technical skills and powerful data insights, the two partners will provide world-class risk management and insurance broking solutions, empowering results for clients in India.
Besides, the partnership will leverage technical solutions developed by Catamaran and its affiliate companies for the benefit of Aon clients and Aon group companies worldwide, the statement said.