The fear of losing purchasing power due to inflation and low-interest rates has led many to explore safe alternatives to fixed deposits with high returns
New business premium (NBP) growth of life insurers in March is expected to be weak owing to the high base effect in the year-ago period due to revision in taxation norms for high-value policies, insurers said. In the Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed that insurance policies (excluding unit-linked insurance plans or Ulips) with an aggregate premium exceeding Rs 5 lakh would be taxed. This rule came into effect on April 1, 2023. In March 2023, the NBP of life insurance companies witnessed a strong growth after the tax announcement. Premiums rose by 14.45 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 59,608.83 crore in March 2023 from Rs 52,081.12 crore.
'We are expected to grow at above 28 per cent this year, higher than the industry.'
India has a huge untapped population which doesn't have facilities for financial aid and insurance, and it is perhaps plausible to look at the option of having niche players catering to smaller sectors akin to non-banks and microfinance institutions in lending, said Rakesh Joshi, member (Finance & Investment), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai). Speaking at the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit, Joshi said, "Today, most of our insurance companies operate at a national level. There is arguably a case for having differentiated operations, which cater to niche sectors the same way we have non-banking financial companies (NBFC) and microfinance institutions in lending." "The capital requirement for niche players may not be as large as those having national ambitions. "Enabling these niche players, which require lower capital, will enhance the penetration in areas which hitherto had not seen traction from large players," he said.
The average ticket size of retail health insurance in India has increased by nearly 48 per cent over 6 years due to elevated medical inflation and increased demand for higher coverage policies among policyholders. According to data by online insurance broker PolicyBazaar, the average ticket size of retail health insurance in India has increased to Rs 26,533 so far in FY24, up 48.22 per cent from Rs 17,900 in FY19.
Tough times don't last, but tough people -- and smart financial strategies - do, says Ramalingam Kalirajan
Market-linked products have been driving the growth of private insurers for some time now. But, the market volatility has forced the companies to re-think their strategies, reports Subrata Panda.
Simplifying GST rates, removing exemptions, easing disputes, and speeding up refunds can boost investment in India and offer the best reply to Trump's tariffs, observes V S Krishnan, former member, Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs.
The interplay between domestic and foreign capital will shape India's equity markets.
High-value insurance policies experienced muted growth in the first six months of the current financial year after the Centre decided to tax such products in this year's Budget. Simultaneously, there has been a marked improvement in the growth of policies with premiums of 'less than Rs 5 lakh', mainly originating from smaller cities. During this year's Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed that insurance policies (excluding unit linked insurance plans or ULIPs) with an aggregate premium exceeding Rs 5 lakh, and the maturity amount, would not be exempt from tax.
The ownership by domestic investors, individual as well as institutional, in companies listed on the National Stock Exchange (NSE) has breached the 25 per cent mark for the first time. The share stood at 25.72 per cent at the end of the March 2023 quarter, up from 24.44 per cent in the previous quarter, according to data from Prime Database. The share of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs), meanwhile, rose slightly to 20.56 per cent from 20.24 per cent as on December 31, 2022.
Firms in which IP is critical, such as pharma and research and knowledge-based organisations, were taking the lead in seeking cyber covers to protect their computer systems from hack attacks
Brokerages expect a further slowdown in Indian firms' revenue and earnings growth in Q4FY25, following low single-digit growth in the preceding three quarters, as factors like weak consumer demand and credit growth linger on.
The resilience of the economy and strength of domestic demand will continue to make India an engine of growth amid the rapidly evolving global trade landscape as a result of US tariffs, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in London on Tuesday.
India's private equity industry is evolving, with local funds securing substantial capital and achieving consistent returns. During a panel discussion at TiEcon Mumbai 2025, industry leaders emphasised growing opportunities in scaling buyouts and expanding domestic investor participation.
'Unless we consistently show up with the right cars, at the right time, priced fairly, we risk becoming irrelevant very quickly.'
Billionaire industrialist Mukesh Ambani described his 2016 return to the telecom industry with Reliance Jio as the "biggest risk" of his life, saying that even if analysts' predictions of financial failure had come true, it would still have been worth it for the role it played in transforming India digitally.
For long-term financial security, millennials must not only provide social security for their young families but also ensure that their financial burdens are not passed down to their families, says Casparus Kromhout.
'As our per capita income increases and various demographic segments emerge, the need for various kinds of protection and risk covers will become even more explicit.'
Even as concerns grow over the residential real estate market reaching its peak, the outlook for office real estate remains strong, with listed real estate investment trusts (Reits) standing to benefit from sustained demand in the segment.
Ask rediffGURU and PF and MF expert Janak Patel your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
ICICI Infotech Ltd is foraying into integrated insurance management solutions and would develop Islamic insurance solutions soon.
While a giant, it's a nimble-footed one, and is growing at a speed that even some of its private sector peers find enviable.
Between FY18 and FY24, it doubled its balance sheet. Despite being a late entrant in some segments, it has been able to grab market share, observes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
'Today, we have 2 million active drivers earning through our platform every month.'
Insurance companies are banking in on health insurance, as it promises to be Rs 25,000-cr industry by 2010.
Ask rediffGURU and PF and MF expert Janak Patel your mutual fund and personal finance-related questions.
Private life insurers experienced reasonable growth in the July-September quarter (second quarter, or Q2) of 2023-24 (FY24), and the October data is also encouraging. The individual weighted received premium (WRP) for private players grew by 19.8 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in October. However, Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India had slower growth, pulling the industry growth rate down to 13 per cent Y-o-Y.
'Because it is the only public sector company in this sector, currently.'
Neo banks, along with mid-sized banks, are establishing global capability centres (GCCs) in India, mirroring the expansion strategies of larger global counterparts. This trend is being seen as the next major wave in the country's banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) sector.
Wouldn't it be better to reach 45 with a backup engine of passive income that helps you glide through these years instead of grinding, asks Ramalingam Kalirajan
India's office market was very active in 2024 with gross leasing of workspace witnessing a 19 per cent increase to a record 885.2 lakh square feet across eight major cities, according to Cushman & Wakefield. The gross leasing or absorption of office space stood at 745.6 lakh square feet in the preceding year, data from real estate consultant Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) showed.
There are challenges galore before him, and it is not going to be easy. In the next four years, he has to conjure a system that changes the optics about him and the BJP both nationally and internationally so that he can ride back on his own, claim the top slot, and not have to lean on a coalition, asserts Ramesh Menon as Modi 3.0 completes a year in power.
The merged entity will have a combined market share of 6.4 per cent in the non-life insurance industry with 308 branches in the country. The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and the entire process is expected to be completed in nine months.
'We have opened 100 branches in the last one and a half years. Our manpower is also in place.'
India, the world's third largest oil consuming and importing nation, spent 112.5 billion euro (about Rs 1.5 lakh crore) on buying crude oil from Russia since the start of the Ukraine war, a European think tank said on Thursday. The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) released a report on payments to Russia for fossil fuels since February 24, 2022. "According to our estimates, since the beginning of the war, Russia earned EUR 835 billion in revenue from fossil fuel exports," it said.
The growing complexity of E2Ws and the evolving threat landscape make it challenging to guarantee complete immunity from attacks.
