Page 10 - Insurance Times September 2023

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Update

IRDAI relief for insurers Top 15 Insurance firms to mates of the financials as per parallel
IFRS-17 for their consolidated balance
in HDFC investments adopt IND-AS from April sheets, which need to be presented on
The insurance sector is set for a game- their foreign partner's home turf. Ac-
IRDAI issued a statement declaring
that bonds and debentures held by changing development with the IRDAI cording to sources, some of the compa-
insurers in HDFC Ltd as of the date of asking the top 15 companies, across life nies identified for the pilot phase in-
the merger announcement, April 4, and non-life, to adopt the new IND-AS clude ICICI Prudential Life, ICICI
2022, will maintain their status as accounting framework from April 1, Lombard General, TATA AIG General,
investments in the "Housing and In- 2024 (FY25), sources told. Niva Bupa Health, HDFC Life, and HDFC
frastructure" category until the ma- This is the first such partial roll-out of Ergo General, among others.
turity of the respective bonds. accounting standards for the insurance
In addition, the IRDAI has provided industry in many decades, and the IRDAI okays appointment
an exemption allowing insurers not move is aimed at bringing Indian ac- of Amit Jhingran as SBI Life
to comply with the single investee counting practices closer to global stan-
equity exposure norms for individual dards. This is expected to help stake- chief
segregated funds at the Scheme holders understand insurers' risk expo- IRDAI approved the appointment of
Identification Number (SIN) level sure, profitability, and financial position Amit Jhingran as the new Managing
pertaining to HDFC Bank Ltd shares accurately. Director and Chief Executive Officer for
post-merger. This exemption will be Designed in coordination with IFRS-17, SBI Life Insurance Company Limited.
in effect until June 30, 2024. How-
the revised standard under IND-AS 117 Amit Jhingran has over three decades
ever, the exemption will only apply
will mandate insurers to explicitly de- of experience in the insurance sector
to the holdings of the respective in-
clare unbiased estimates of future cash and serves as the Assistant General
surers as of June 30, 2023. Shares sold flows, discount rates reflecting the con- Manager of the Hyderabad Circle.
after this date will be reduced to the
tracts' cash flows, and adjustments for He joined the company in 1991 as a pro-
extent of the sale of shares thereaf-
non-financial risk. Further, revenue will bationary officer and has been with SBI
ter, the regulator added.
no longer be equal to written premi- Life since then. Amit Jhingran had also
This ruling follows the recent merger ums but to the change in contract li- held the post of CEO of SBI, Chicago.
between HDFC Ltd and HDFC Bank ability.
Ltd, after which insurance companies
The insurance regulator has identified
sought permission from IRDAI to con- IRDAI moves towards risk-
15 companies that have foreign equity
tinue to classify their investments in partners and/or strategic collabora- based capital regime
HDFC Ltd bonds under the "Housing
tions for the purpose. The reason here IRDAI has taken the first step towards
and Infrastructure" sector.
is that these entities may have esti- introduction of risk based capital frame-

The Insurance Times September 2023 9