Private life insurers benefit from focus on 'protection' products

Despite mark-to-market losses, value of new business and profitability improved during the first half

HDFC Standard Life Insurance, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance and SBI Life Insurance, the three in the segment from the private sector, reported healthy results at the operating level for the September quarter. The mark-to-market losses (redoing asset calculations at current values) on account of the pressure in bond markets, however, restricted the increase in their embedded value (EV), a key valuation parameter for life insurance companies.

HDFC Life had growth in profit after tax of 17.4 per cent from the same period a year before, to nearly Rs 2.9 billion, beating most analyst estimates. Net premium income grew 25.7 per