Generali Central General Insurance targets ₹10K cr premium in five years

The insurer plans to focus on profitable growth by expanding retail health, fire and SME insurance while reducing exposure to intensely competitive group health business

Generali Central General Insurance plans to pursue steady, profitable growth rather than aggressively chasing market share, targeting around 7-8 per cent annual premium growth and aiming to increase gross written premium from about ₹5,600 crore to ₹10,000 crore over the next five years, said Krishnamoorthy Rao, managing director and chief executive officer (MD & CEO) of the company.

 

"We are looking at steady growth going forward. We cannot say that we will always grow more than the market or less than the market. We are also looking at the profitability of the business as there is no point in aggressively growing certain lines," he said.

 

 

During the year, the company is balancing its business by reducing exposure to segments where its pricing and loss ratios are high, while expanding across retail health and other lines of business. As part of its portfolio recalibration, the insurer plans to reduce its exposure to group health insurance, where intense competition has led to aggressive pricing despite elevated claims ratios.

 

According to General Insurance Council data, the insurer's gross direct premium stood at ₹5,233 crore, down from ₹5,408 crore in FY25. Out of the total health portfolio of nearly ₹1,500 crore, group health accounted for almost 87 per cent of the business and retail health insurance 13 per cent. Motor insurance accounted for almost 35 per cent of its business.

 

The company's combined ratio stood at 115 per cent during the year, compared with 112 per cent in FY25. The solvency ratio remained stable at 196 per cent in FY26.

 

Instead, the company will sharpen its focus on retail health insurance, where it sees sustained demand driven by higher consumer awareness and rising medical costs. Healthcare inflation is currently running at around 10-15 per cent annually, making health insurance increasingly relevant for households, he said.

 

Rao said, "By launching better products as well as giving better service to the customer, we should be able to grow this line of business."

 

In motor insurance, the company will continue writing third-party (TP) policies as part of comprehensive policies but has no plans to aggressively increase its standalone TP market share until premium rates become more viable.

 

"The premium rates are controlled by the regulator. Depending upon how the rate increase is announced, we will look at whether it is advisable to increase TP business," he said.

 

Beyond motor and health, Generali Central is looking to strengthen its presence in fire, engineering and marine cargo insurance, while also expanding in relatively underpenetrated segments such as home insurance, SME insurance and cyber insurance.

 

Home insurance, in particular, remains significantly underinsured in India despite growing asset ownership. The company plans to introduce simpler products that can be distributed through agents and bancassurance partners.

 

The insurance company is a joint venture between Italy-based Generali Group, which holds a 74 per cent stake, and Central Bank of India, which owns the remaining 26 per cent. The insurer accounts for 30-35 per cent of the bank's business, he said.

 

The company is targeting ₹10,000 crore in gross written premium over the next five years while maintaining a comfortable capital position. With a solvency ratio of around 190 per cent, well above the regulatory requirement, it does not foresee an immediate need for fresh capital, although shareholders remain willing to infuse funds if growth accelerates.

 

On the broader industry, Rao expects general insurance to continue growing, though at a slower pace than last year as weak pricing in commercial lines weighs on premium expansion.

 

India's non-life insurance industry grew 9 per cent in FY26 to ₹3.36 trillion in gross direct premium income, with health insurance continuing to drive growth while pricing pressure persisted in several commercial lines.

 

He believes the industry's next phase of growth will depend less on competing for the same pool of motor and health business and more on expanding insurance penetration into underinsured segments. "Insurance is a long-term business and we want to have sustainable growth," he said.