Insurance News: India International Insurance to expand in Asia

Singapore-based India International Insurance Pvt Ltd (III), a joint venture of India’s five state-owned insurance companies, plans to expand operations into Vietnam and Malaysia in the coming years, its director N S R Chandraprasad has said.

III, which was formed as a regional business unit in 1987 by Indian insurance companies, has grown over the last 25 years, providing cover worth millions of dollars, told a press conference.

“But going forward, our plans are to expand III businesses and product lines,” said Chandraprasad who is the chairman- cum-managing director for National Insurance Company Ltd. He said the joint venture aimed at entering the Vietnamese and Malaysian markets in the coming years. The insurance major is one of the five partners holding equal 20 per cent share in IIC.

The joint venture has been paying annual dividend of around SGD 39 million to its five state-owned parent companies.

The other four partners are: General Insurance Corp of India, The New India Assurance Co Ltd, The Oriental Insurance Co Ltd and United India Insurance Co Ltd.

M Parshad, CEO of the New Delhi-based General Insurers Public Sector Association of India said while the assets of the five partners are worth USD 30 billion, their net worth stood at USD 4 billion.

The operations of the five companies, which have a network in 27 global markets, would lend strong support to III expansion in the years ahead, he said.

Ish Kumar, managing director and CEO of III, said III had a vast presence in the Island nation.

“We are rated as seventh largest insurance company in Singapore and have grown our premium to SGD 200 million this year from SGD 45 million at the start of business year in 1988,” he said.