The NITI Aayog has recommended privatisation of state-owned insurer United India Insurance Company as the government aims to move ahead with its new public sector enterprise (PSE) policy for Atmanirbhar Bharat. The policy think tank has suggested that the public sector insurer be considered for privatisation in the banking, insurance and financial services sector, which has been classified as 'strategic' in the PSE policy, said an official. The policy proposes the "bare minimum" presence of government-owned companies in strategic sectors, and privatisation, merger or closure of remaining public sector undertakings (PSUs).
These changes will entail a relook at the various laws governing banks in the country - the two Bank Nationalisation Acts (passed in 1970 and 1980); the State Bank of India (SBI) Act of 1955; and the Companies Act of 2013.
The Rajya Sabha on Thursday approved a bill to raise the foreign investment limit in the insurance sector to 74 per cent, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman saying while control will go to foreign companies, the majority of directors and key management persons will be resident Indians who will be covered by law of the land.
Rakesh Kaul, CDO, Edelweiss General Insurance, answers your health insurance queries.
Insurance companies are seeking a separate deduction limit of Rs 1 lakh for insurance premium payment under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act in the upcoming Union Budget to bring in more people under the ambit of insurance. The insurers also want reduction in the goods and services tax (GST) rate of 18 per cent currently applied on health insurance products to 5 per cent to make such products more affordable to common people. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget for 2022-23 on February 1.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) will look at Indian executives for all top posts at insurance companies.
'Last year (FY21), we had about 1 million intimated claims for Covid.' 'This year (FY22), in six months, we got about 1.6 million claims.'
Advait Rao Palepu reports how a recent Supreme Court order will impact motor vehicles insurance policies.
Unlike other health insurance policies, which mostly covers hospitalisation expenses alone, the specialised cover is likely to include the cost of treatment during quarantine and payment of cash for incidental expenses.
Sanjib Jha, CEO, Coverfox Insurance Broking, answers your health insurance related queries.
As a result of the mass state-led scheme, the processes in the health insurance market could get simplified over time and become uniform
The meeting will review the current global and domestic economic situation and financial stability issues, including those concerning banking and NBFCs.
LIC identifies the problems well, but what the markets will watch is how nimble it is with the solutions.
Cost of the diagnostic test for Covid-19 has been fixed at Rs 4,500 per test by the government. Hospitals, however, do not think this is feasible.
With at least three IPOs in the offing this year, stock market investors have a lot to look forward to.
Ashish Mehrotra, MD and CEO, Max Bupa Health Insurance, explains the changes we can expect in health insurance this year.
A customer can also appoint a surveyor on his own expense
'In FY21, as of October, LIC has booked a profit of Rs 18,800 crore through sale of equities.'
The regulator has put a cap on the business a bank can get from a single insurer.
The banking, financial services and insurance sector was the most targeted by scamsters, says Indeevar Krishna, head, operations and customer service, Max Life Insurance
The insurance sector is seeking clarity on the 'Indian management control' clause.
Investors in LIC's insurance and other schemes are receiving a lower rate of return because LIC is subsidising incompetence at best and malfeasance at worst in institutions such as IDBI Bank and IL&FS, says Jaimini Bhagwati.
Amitabh Chaudhry, who will now head the merged entity, will manage assets under management of about Rs 1.10 lakh crore and an employee base of 23,620 after the completion of the deal
At its heart, the issue is more than compliance. It is the risk of possible breakdown of a strong nexus between insurance firms and motor car dealers that makes the business the top earner for the former.
Officials said Sebi first proposed to the FinMin to amend the relevant provisions in the Sebi Act to discontinue RBI's representation on its board, as it already has adequate presence of government nominees and in its over 25 years of existence the regulator has evolved as an "effective and one of the best in the world".
Till June-end alone, insurance regulator is expected to bring about more than half a dozen reforms that will have a significant impact on the customer.
However, the number of renewals has grown by only 0.4 per cent, which means only high value and ticket size renewals are coming.
Markets regulator Sebi on Tuesday proposed to rationalise the definition of 'promoter group' and move to the concept of 'person in control' as well as reduce the minimum lock-in periods for promoters' and other shareholders post an IPO. In a consultation paper, the watchdog has also suggested streamlining the disclosures requirement of group companies. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has sough comments from public on the proposals till June 10.
Allowing it to lapse leaves you unprotected and can, in some cases, cause loss of premiums paid, experts tell Sanjay Kumar Singh.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has issued guidelines that will allow car dealers to become Motor Insurance Service Providers (MISP) and offer the policies of multiple general insurers, says Sanjay Kumar Singh.
After the Delhi high court's ruling, blanket exclusion of genetic disorders from coverage is likely to become a thing of the past.
Vehicles are depreciating assets and lose their value over time.
If the Personal Data Protection Bill gets passed in its present form, a new class of companies and entities could emerge. The sole job of these new entities would be to manage the consent for data usage of a user.Banks, healthcare firms and fintech companies, among others, fear that sharing non-personal data with the government may hurt business interests. Banks also fear the threat of data misuse.
Moving to a new company means losing out on continuity benefits
Section 45, which says no claim can be rejected after three years of a policy being in force, remains a bone of contention
Private insurance firms say, over the past few years, they have been investing on digital technologies to reach semi urban and rural areas.
Irdai's push will make insurance cheaper for consumers and enable a consolidated view of all policies.
Most customers still don't understand this concept and are unable to benefit from it.
While regulators are trying to do their bit, the onus is on you to prove it.
Inflow of more funds is likely to widen the reach of insurance and drive M&A activities in the sector where growth has stalled.
