GIC Re board of directors approves setting up wholly owned subsidiary in UK

General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re)'s board of directors has approved the incorporation of a wholly owned subsidiary—GIC Re, India Service Company—in the United Kingdom.

 

The new company will be promoted by the corporation and incorporated as per applicable UK laws.

 

"The approval from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) for the formation of the wholly owned subsidiary shall be sought before making the investment, and directives as per Foreign Exchange Management (Overseas Investment) Directions, 2022, shall be complied with," the company said in an exchange filing.

 

The company has no minimum capital requirement and can be set up with a capital of £1. The corporation will initially subscribe to the minimum capital as may be necessary, at face value.

 

Currently, GIC Re's group includes subsidiary companies such as GIC Re South Africa, GIC Re Corporate Member, London, and GIC Perestrakhovanie LLC, Moscow.

 

It has branch offices in London and Kuala Lumpur. In April 2018, a syndicate fully capitalised by GIC Re became operational at Lloyd's of London. This syndicate is expected to scale up over the next few quarters towards achieving the medium-term management objective of a 60:40 (domestic: international) risk portfolio composition.

 

Additionally, GIC Re has 100 per cent subsidiaries in South Africa, Russia, and the United Kingdom, along with associate companies in Bhutan, Singapore, and India. GIC Re transacts business across 137 countries.

 

The corporation reported a 6.8 per cent growth in net profit to Rs 1,621.35 crore in the quarter ended December 31, 2024, compared to the year-ago period, driven by narrowing underwriting losses and premium growth. The net premium rose by 18 per cent year on year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 9,281.03 crore.

 

The underwriting loss of the company dropped to Rs 582.4 crore in the October-December period of FY25, compared to a loss of Rs 1,547.6 crore last year.

 

The combined ratio of the reinsurer dropped to 107.83 per cent in Q3 FY25 from 120.47 per cent in Q3 FY24. The solvency ratio increased to 352 per cent from 294 per cent in the year-ago period.