Religare, Swiss Re ties up for health insurance jv in India
June 1, 2009
Religare Enterprises Ltd said it has signed a non-binding agreement with Swiss Reinsurance Co (Swiss Re) to develop a joint venture health insurance company in India.
In a release, Religare said Swiss Re will be a minority shareholder and will seek to provide its actuarial, risk management and underwriting expertise to the new venture.
The proposed joint venture will seek to commit sufficient investment to achieve a successful launch of the business, which Religare and Swiss Re anticipate will be operational by 2010, the company said.
Religare said the overall health insurance industry in India is expected to grow at a CAGR of at least 25% by 2015 and would reach a market size of about Rs280 billion.
Earlier the Economic Times reported, both the companies are planning to invest up to Rs5 billion initially in the venture.
Swiss Re already has a presence in the health insurance in India through a 26% stake in TTK Healthcare Services, a health insurance third-party administrator.
International reinsurer Munich Re is already active in India with its European insurance unit DKV holding a 26% stake in Apollo DKV Insurance Corp, a joint venture between Apollo Group of Hospitals and DKV while Oman-based engineering and construction conglomerate ETA-Ascon Group, is a partner in Star Health and Allied Insurance. - Yogesh Sapkale