State-owned Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) is not keen on a composite license but it is looking to buy less than 50 per cent stake in a standalone health insurance company to enter the health insurance segment such that they have a say in the management of the company, without having to run the company, sources in the know said. "LIC doesn't need a composite licence. "Even if it is introduced, they will not opt for it.
This will not affect the tax exemption provided to the amount received on the death of a person insured. It will also not affect insurance policies issued till March 31, 2023
Who pays what into EPF, EPS, and EDLI -- the 12% math explained.
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) reported encouraging results for the April-June quarter (Q1) of FY26. The net premium income of India's largest life insurer was Rs 1.2 trillion, up 5 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), in Q1. Renewal premium grew 6 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 59,900 crore, while first-year and single premium grew 1 per cent and 4 per cent Y-o-Y respectively to Rs 7,500 crore and Rs 51,900 crore.
At times, this stress reaches a tipping point, resulting in tragedy. 'Organisations need to empower their people managers to foster psychological safety, where employees feel seen, heard, and supported -- not just as professionals, but as people navigating the pressures of work and life.'
Among the Sensex firms, Mahindra & Mahindra jumped the most by 5.96 per cent. Bajaj Finance, Bajaj Finserv, Trent, ITC and HDFC Bank were also among the gainers. However, Maruti Suzuki India, Bharat Electronics, HCL Tech, NTPC, Power Grid, Infosys and Reliance Industries were among the laggards.
Max Life Insurance plans to hire 30,000 agents and open 50 to 100 new offices in the financial year 2024-25 (FY25) to drive premium growth, said Prashant Tripathy, managing director and chief executive officer of the company. The private insurer's total agent count will rise to 1,30,000 in FY25. It added 47,957 agents in FY24, 54 per cent more than the year before.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday proposed a G20 initiative aimed at enhancing clean energy transitions by boosting recycling, easing supply chain pressures and advancing joint research on critical minerals, and suggested forging a partnership to make satellite data more accessible and interoperable.
'India has not faced a major terrorism loss since the Mumbai terrorist attacks in 2008.'
Why not stream all the data in real time to multiple recipients? It would make the investigation of aviation incidents much easier and far more transparent, recommends Devangshu Datta.
The government's move to cut GST on medicines and medical devices while exempting lifesaving drugs from the levy is a bold step that will bring direct relief to patients and families while significantly reducing financial strain on them, pharmaceuticals and healthcare industry players said on Thursday.
The GST Council on Wednesday approved a two-tier rate structure of 5 and 18 per cent, which will be implemented from September 22.
While the move may give a competitive edge over rivals like Bangladesh in the global market, several industry bodies raised concerns that many state governments may not implement it on the ground.
The rationalisation of goods and services tax (GST), announced on Wednesday, directly lowers the cost of everyday medical consumables, and also high-end therapies in oncology and rare diseases, helping reduce out-of-pocket patient expenditure and better adherence to medication.
rediffGURU Chocko Valliappa counsels students how to choose the right course and career after Class 12.
Insurance companies reported nearly 23 per cent growth in first year premium in the first quarter of financial year 2024-25, when compared to the same period last year, with market leader LIC leading the charge with 28 per cent growth. According to the data released by the Life Insurance Council, the new business premium (NBP) increased by 22.91 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to ~89,726.7 crore in Q1FY25 from ~73,004.87 crore in Q1 FY24, reflecting a robust demand for insurance policies in the country.
HDFC Life Insurance Company on Thursday said it has received GST demand orders of over Rs 27 crore for alleged short payment of taxes. In two separate regulatory filings, the insurer said it has received tax demand orders of over Rs 16.5 crore and Rs 10.5 crore from authorities for alleged short payment of GST and input tax credit claim mismatch.
Contrary to expectations, the new business premium (NBP) of life insurance companies dropped 12.62 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in March 2023 due to an over 30 per cent drop in Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India's premiums, albeit on a high base. Data released by the Life Insurance Council shows the industry racked up NBP of Rs 52,081 crore in March 2023, compared with Rs 59,608.83 crore in the year-ago period. NBP is the premium acquired from new policies in a year. It is the sum of the first-year premium and single premium, reflecting the total premium received from new businesses.
General insurance companies are likely to see a surge in demand for health insurance in the coming months due to falling air quality in the country. The health insurance segment has registered a strong growth after the pandemic due to higher awareness. In the first half of financial year 2023-24, the segment grew by 24.4 per cent to Rs 54,713.52 crore from Rs 43,981.54 crore in H1FY23, driving growth of the non-life insurance industry.
ICICI Prudential Life Insurance (IPRU) disappointed the market even though some analysts said the Q3FY25 results were in line. Most analysts cut margin estimates. The insurer reported M9FY25 growth of 8.5 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) in value of new business (VNB) premium to Rs 1,575 crore, while total annual premium equivalent (APE) grew 27.2 per cent to Rs 6,910 crore.
HDFC Life Insurance Company (HDFC Life) delivered a strong performance in the December quarter of the current financial year (Q3FY25), exceeding market expectations with robust earnings growth. The company reported a 13.7 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) increase in net profit to Rs 414.9 crore in the quarter. The value of new business (VNB) rose 8.6 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 930 crore, compared to Rs 856 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
While basic policies focus on structural damage, comprehensive ones extend to household contents like furniture, electronics, clothing, and other personal belongings.
Currently investment in saving instruments, like risk cover, pension products, PF contributions, National Savings Certificates and others, are eligible for aggregate deduction of Rs 100,000.
Fraudsters lure individuals with false promises of recovering bonuses or maturity proceeds from lapsed policies.
Ask rediffGURU and PF, MF and insurance expert Purshotam Lal your mutual fund, insurance and personal finance-related questions.
From appointment letters becoming mandatory to gig workers receiving social security to enhanced rights for women and contract labour, the changes reflect India's attempt to balance ease of doing business with stronger worker welfare.
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.
Dr Sulbha Arora, clinical director and fertility specialist at Nova IVF Fertility, explains everything you need to know about egg freezing in India, including the process, the cost and the risks involved.
Though exposure draft proposed 35-60% hike, Irda raised it only 19%.
'Don't look at Russia only as a place to earn quickly and then leave.' 'Try to build experience in serious companies, skills and certifications that will serve you anywhere in the world.'
But selectively, with regulatory scrutiny and special approval, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Mutual funds (MFs) - flush with cash amid record inflows in July - invested heavily in the Rs 25,000-crore qualified institutional placement (QIP) of India's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI). Fund managers acquired SBI shares worth Rs 10,200 crore last month, making the lender their biggest buy in July.
Private insurance firms say, over the past few years, they have been investing on digital technologies to reach semi urban and rural areas.
Ahead of the Union Budget 2023, insurers are hoping that the Centre will act on their recommendations, which includes increasing the limit for tax deduction under 80D of the Income Tax Act. Also among them are issuance of long-term bonds, tax incentives for home insurance premiums, and a separate section to claim deduction for term-insurance premium, among others. These suggestions would help improve the penetration of insurance in the country.
It is important to look at factors like claim settlement ratios, persistency ratios, the extent of premium increase with age, insurer's reputation, etc, says Vaidyanathan Ramani.
When Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India gets listed on the bourses next month, it will be among the biggest listed life insurers globally in terms of market capitalisation (m-cap), assets, and revenue, but will also be among the least profitable and capitalised among its peer group. A big gap between LIC's m-cap, profits, and networth (shareholder capital) will make it one of the priciest insurers globally, in terms of price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple and price-to-book value (P/B) ratio. LIC also lags behind its Indian listed peers in terms of profit and networth.
After overtaking foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in market ownership, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have further solidified their dominance. DII ownership reached a new all-time high of 17.82 per cent as of June 2025, up from 17.62 per cent at the end of March 2025, according to an analysis by Prime Database.
If they act now, they can reshape the strategic map of Asia without firing a shot. If they wait, the next opportunity will come only after a serious Taiwan Strait incident -- by which time the price will be far higher, and the room for boldness far smaller -- the opportunity may well be lost by then. The question is no longer whether this can or should be done, points out Varun Arya.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries has retained its position as the highest-ranked Indian company on the 2025 Fortune Global 500 list, according to the latest rankings released by the publication. The oil-to-telecom-and-retail conglomerate has been ranked at No.88 on the latest list, down from 86th position in 2024.
'Our new business premium is around Rs 700 crore, which we want to take to Rs 2,000 crore.'
