Page 16 - Insurance Sector

LIC reports Q2 net profit at Rs 7,925 crore; net premium income down 18.7%

Insurer says numbers not comparable due to change in accounting norms

Insurance surety bond issued for NHAI monetization bid of TOT Bundle 14

State-owned National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Friday said it has accepted first insurance surety bond for the monetization program of the upcoming bid of Toll Operate Transfer (TOT) Bundle 14 to boost liquidity and capacity of bidders. In a statement NHAI said, this will be the first time this innovative instrument is being utilized as a Bank Guarantee (BG) in the road infrastructure sector for monetization of bids. Insurance surety bonds are instruments where insurance companies act as 'surety' and provide the financial guarantee that the contractor will fulfil its obligation as per the agreed terms. The Ministry of Finance has made e-BG and Insurance Surety Bonds at par with Bank Guarantees for all government procurement. According to the statement, NHAI has been working closely with Highway Operators Association of India (HOAI), SBI General Insurance and AON India Insurance to implement this initiative. "Insurance surety bond has been issued for NHAI monetization b

New India Assurance posts one-off loss of Rs 200 cr in Q2FY24 due to floods

The underwriting loss of the largest general insurer widened to Rs 2446.93 crore from Rs 1506.92 crore in Q2FY23

Insurance ombudsman disposes of 92% of complaints in FY23

The Delhi centre disposed of all the 5,257 complaints it got during the year

Bad air quality may breathe fresh life into health insurance business

Most of the metro cities in India are battling acute air pollution with the Air Quality Index (AQI) readings being around "poor", "moderate" and "severe" levels for most of them

Zurich Insurance to pick 51% stake in Kotak Gen Insurance for Rs 4,051 cr

Plans to increase stake to 70% within three years

Zurich Insurance to buy 51% stake in Kotak Mahindra General Insurance

Further, within three years from the initial acquisition, Zurich Insurance Company Ltd will buy an additional 19% stake in the Kotak Mahindra General Insurance Company Ltd

Grassroots insurance

SLBC-like forum could be a useful step

Life insurance a sunrise sector poised for lift-off: CEOs at BS BFSI Summit

This capital gap alone shows the growth opportunity available in the life insurance industry over the next 10 to 15 years according to Naveen

BS BFSI Summit: General Insurance sector eyeing 1.5% penetration by 2030

In the past two decades, the industry grew at a rate of over 16 per cent despite seeing correction in prices

BS BFSI Summit 2023: 'Technology creating watershed moment in insurance'

IRDAI's chairperson Debasish Panda said there is a need for regulators to embrace innovation and make consumer-centric policies

SBI Life Insurance Q2 net profit stays flat amid rise in expenses

The net premium income of the insurer jumped by 21.68 per cent to Rs 20,049.66 crore from Rs 16,477.26 crore, as compared to the corresponding period last year

SBI Life Insurance Q2 PAT flat at Rs 380 crore as higher expenses weigh

Net premium income rose 21.7% to Rs 20,050 crore from Rs 16,477 crore, while expenses surged 22.1%, mainly due to higher commissions and rewards during the quarter

True North to sell 20% stake worth $325 million in Niva Bupa Insurance

Niva Bupa, a joint venture between British United Provident Association (Bupa) and India's True North, offers health insurance through more than 20 bank partners

Finance ministry seeks applications for post of whole time member Irdai

The finance ministry has invited applications for the post of Whole Time Member (Distribution) at insurance regulator Irdai. The applicant should preferably have at least 25 years of experience in the relevant area with a minimum of three years experience at a senior level, the Department of Financial Services said in an advertisement. The applicant should not be below the rank of a Chief General Manager of the Reserve Bank of India or equivalent that place in other financial institutions or regulatory bodies, it said. The department, under the finance ministry, said the applicant should have a minimum of two years of residual service as of the date of vacancy, that is March 4, 2024, and the applicant's age should not exceed 60 years on the said date. The term of the office of the member will be in accordance with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act. No person will hold the office of the Whole Time Member after attaining the age of 62 years, it added. Currently,

UK, India agree pensions and insurance partnership, says British FM

Britain and India have agreed to launch partnership to boost cross-market investment by insurance and pension sectors, Britain's finance ministry said

In a first, PSU general insurers' market share below a third of industry

For the first time, state-run general insurers account for less than a third of the industry premium at 32.5 per cent, as larger private non-life insurers have consolidated their position in the first five months of the current fiscal, according to the General Insurance Council data. Public sector insurers saw their premium income fall by 1 per cent to Rs 34,203 crore during the first five months of the current fiscal. As a result, their market share plunged to less than a third at 32.5 per cent from 33.4 per cent, while premium income slipped from Rs 37,100 crore to Rs 34,203 crore. In another first, driven by the health segment, standalone health insurers' market share also rose to double digits at 10.4 per cent during this period from 9.2 per cent. Although segment-wise data is yet to be released, standalone health insurers' performance shows higher growth in the segment. The General Insurance Council data showed that the non-life insurance sector grew by 11.7 per cent during t

RenewBuy raises $40 mn from Japanese insurance major Dai-ichi Life Holdings

InsurTech firm RenewBuy on Thursday said it has raised USD 40 million (around Rs 332 crore) in a funding round from Japanese insurance major Dai-ichi Life Holdings Inc. It is part of the company's ongoing Series D fund raise, which is attracting interest from several marquee investors and is expected to close soon, RenewBuy said in a statement. RenewBuy's technology is used by more than 1,00,000 advisors across life, health and motor insurance firms to compare product features and prices before issuing policies on the spot, it said. The company works with more than 40 insurers and has more than 5 million consumers, it added.

PB Fintech down 5% in 2 days on Bima Sugam worry; analysts say buy the dip

The selling in PB Fintech (Policybazaar) shares, analysts feel, is overdone as the owner of the online insurance portal remains committed to achieving profitability

Insurance firm expected to act in fair manner, not for own profits: SC

An insurance company is expected to act in a bonafide and fair manner with its client and not just care for and cater to its own profits, the Supreme Court has said. A bench of justices A S Bopanna and Sanjay Kumar, in a verdict on a plea by an insuree company, said it is the fundamental principle of insurance law that utmost good faith must be observed by the contracting parties. The top court said it is the duty of the insured and the insurance company to disclose all material facts within their knowledge. "Having undertaken to indemnify an insured against possible loss in specified situations, an insurance company is expected to make good on its promise in a bonafide and fair manner and not just care for and cater to its own profits," the bench said. The observations came while deciding a plea by Isnar Aqua Farms against an order of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) which directed the insurance firm United India Insurance Co. Ltd to pay Rs 30.69 lakh to