GIC Re expects 25-30% growth in intl biz this fiscal

National reinsurer GIC Re is looking at a growth of 25-30 per cent in its global business and planning to open two international offices this fiscal, a top company official said.

"We are eyeing a growth of 25-30 per cent in our international business in the current financial year," General Insurance Corp of India (GIC Re) Chairman and Managing Director Yogesh Lohiya told reporters here today.

However, the government-owned company expects a growth of around 6-7 per cent in the domestic market, he said.

GIC Re, which has two offices in Dubai and London and one representative office in Moscow, is expanding its network by opening one office each in Malaysia and South Africa, he said.

 

"We aim to grow further internationally this year. In the current fiscal, we will open an office in Malaysia. We are also eyeing South Africa," Lohiya said.

"We are emphasising more on international business because of pricing. Besides, risks are lower and underwritten is better. We are also getting good results," he added.

The board has cleared the proposal for opening the Malaysian office and the company was working on modalities to open the office in this fiscal, he said.

GIC Re today declared its results for the financial year ended March 31, 2009. Its net profit in the period was Rs 1,407.2 crore, up from Rs 992.7 crore in the previous year.

The company garnered a gross premium of Rs 8,061.13 crore in FY09 compared to Rs 7,949.83 crore last year.

During the period under review, the net premium collection was Rs 7,402.3 crore and net incurred claims were of Rs 6,217.1 crore.

Of the total premium collected, international operations contributed 38 per cent while the rest came from the domestic market, Lohiya said.

"We plan to bring the ratio of our business to 50:50 between domestic and international by 2015," he said. "We think we will achieve this much earlier."

During 2008-09, the Corporation's income from investment was Rs 1,785.8 crore and total investments as on March 31, 2009, stood at Rs 21,714 crore.

In the domestic market, fire contributed 29 per cent to GIC Re's total premium collection in FY09, while motor accounted for 24 per cent.

The solvency ratio of the company in 2008-09 was 3.67 per cent.