Several life insurance companies in the country are preparing to take on the markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India over unit-linked insurance plans.
IT services firm Wipro on Thursday reported a marginal increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 3,246.2 crore in the July-September quarter, even as company CEO and MD Srini Pallia asserted that the demand environment remains robust with discretionary spends shifting towards AI-related projects.
An Irda official said the idea was to improve the penetration levels of insurance and deepen financial inclusion.
Health insurance claims are often denied due to exclusions in policy terms. Buyers frequently overlook the fine print or misinterpret clauses.
Raising concern over the underwriting skills of insurance companies to properly price products, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority on Monday said it would consider all factors before taking a final decision on de-tariffication of the
Insurance companies will have more infrastructure firms in their equity investment portfolio soon.
"Disclosure norms for insurance coming out with initial public offer will come out next week," Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority chairman J Harinarayan told PTI.
The four public sector general insurance companies -- New India Assurance, United India Insurance, Oriental Insurance, and National Insurance Company -- have lost 800 basis points (bps) in market share in last five years to their private counterparts, the data from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irdai) revealed. In 2018-19, the four had a cumulative market share of 40.04 per cent, with New India Assurance having a market share of 14 per cent and United India Insurance with a market share of 9.63 per cent. But, gradually in the past five years, these state-backed firms have lost their market share to private sector players, due to the declining health of their business.
Amid the ongoing controversy surrounding net asset value-guaranteed products, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority is standardising the method of calculating NAV under the unit-linked plans of life insurance companies.
India's corporate bond market, driven by public sector undertaking (PSU) banks and financial institutions last year, is losing momentum since the second quarter of FY26.
'Insurers should devise procedure to ensure that proposals for contracts with high risk customers are concluded after approval of senior management officials. It is, however, emphasised that proposals of Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) in particular, require approval of senior management, not below head (underwriting)/chief risk officer level,' the regulator stated in a circular issued on Tuesday.
Markets regulator Sebi has proposed introducing a single window access for low risk foreign investors seeking to participate in the Indian securities market, a move aimed at simplifying compliance and enhancing the country's attractiveness as an investment destination.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has withdrawn a major irritant for life insurance companies wanting to hit the capital market with initial public offers.
Since the first Reit listing in 2019, the sector has grown to a market capitalisation of about $18 billion as of August 2025, and is projected to cross $25 billion by 2030.
'One of the aspects for transparency and fair governance is to give the industry being represented the chance of lobbying with the regulator.'
Ever since the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) allowed motor insurance companies to decide premiums in December 2007, car insurance premiums have fallen sharply. The focus, it seems, is clearly on garnering more retail customers.For instance, in March 2007, the premium for a Honda City was Rs 20,760 in Mumbai. But this year it has fallen to Rs 15,770 - a difference of Rs 4,990.
The new Irda chairman's biggest challenge will be to give equal priority to the growth of the industry and customer welfare.
The move comes amid complaints that high returns are being promised by life insurers on ULIPs accompanied by non-existent guaranteed returns.
FM announces 12-point action plan to revive sector
The Life Insurance Council has made a representation to the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority (Irda), seeking some revisions pertaining to unit-linked products.
Just like investors holding dematerialised shares with depository participants, individual insurance policyholders will be able to stack their insurance policies too in electronic form very soon, thanks to some path breaking initiatives by the insurance regulator, Insurance Regulatory Development Authority.
Sales of health and pension policies of life insurance companies have taken a beating in June, according to the latest data released by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA).
'We want to play the value game for our consumers, which is health and retail will grow faster for us than the group.'
Insurers say there is not enough time for them to adopt the guidelines and enforce them within the stipulated time.
The government and the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority mooted a 'micro-insurance' scheme and asked insurers to collaborate with non-governmental organisations.
If Irda's guidelines are implemented, cases of surrendering policies and making these paid-up might decline.
The information will bring about more transparency by providing prospective policyholders clear information about the amount that has been collected from them as brokerage or commission, an IRDA circular said.
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 regulator has the role of ensuring that the policyholder is always protected.
This will help expand the distribution channels, said Subhash Chandra Khuntia, chairman of the insurance regulatory and development authority of India.
Insurance funds will soon start flowing to special economic zone projects, agro-processing and infrastructure projects, domestic satellite services and social infrastructure like educational institutions and hospitals.
Having got the regulatory clearance to offer add-on insurance policies, non-life insurers are now preparing to launch the same in the coming weeks. Some of the insurers have said, however, that they need some time to launch these products. They say that, unlike commercial products which can be launched straight away, products meant for retail consumers need a certain level of preparation before they are ready for sale.
Cyber insurance policies cover ransomware attacks and the ensuing damages, including ransom payments, data restoration costs, forensic and other first-party costs, and loss of profit due to business interruption.
Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) , the country's largest domestic institutional investor (DII), has seen a Rs 46,000 crore erosion in the value of its equity holdings amid market downturns in July. The benchmark indices, Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex, have slipped 2.6 per cent from their June 2025-end level to 24,837 and 81,463.09 respectively.
In order to improve the quality of service rendered by third-party administrators, a committee formed by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority has recommended that general insurers should hire at least two agencies to execute back office jobs for settlement of health insurance claims. In addition, to improve the coverage and quality of services provided by TPAs, the panel has suggested that the minimum capital requirement should be doubled.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority on Thursday allowed portability of health insurance products. It will be applicable for all existing and new contracts from July.
Customers must sign the agreement promptly to avoid disruptions. They should read it thoroughly and understand their rights and obligations.
