Page 8 - Insurance Times May 2019

Paytm to sell general in- Airtel Payments Bank tiesup with Bharti AXA for two-

surance products wheeler insurance
Airtel Payments Bank has tied up with Bharti AXA General Insurance to offer
two-wheeler insurance to its customers across
India. This insurance will be available on My Airtel
app and at over 40,000 Airtel Payments Bank --
banking points, with presence even in rural India.
Anubrata Biswas, Managing Director and Chief
Executive Officer, Airtel Payments Bank, said, "We
are delighted to partner with Bharti AXA General Insurance to launch an afford-
able and convenient two-wheeler insurance product. This partnership is one
important step of many, in our journey towards offering a full suite of acces-
Paytm will start distribution of gen-
sible, simple and easy-to-use financial solutions for an inclusive India."
eral insurance products soon, said its
founder and CEO, Vijay Shekhar In India, approximately 75 per cent two-wheelers are uninsured, despite being
Sharma. mandatory by law. This is because of the lack of reach and distributor interest
in pursuing small-ticket premiums, even more so in rural India. Sanjeev
The foray into general insurance dis-
Srinivasan, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Bharti AXA General
tribution will come on the heels of Insurance said that the general insurer sees immense opportunity in this asso-
Paytm expanding in the financial ser- ciation with Airtel Payments Bank.
vices space through wealth products
(SIP registration already launched), Public sector insurers lose market share
stock broking, and planned offer of
The public sector general insurance companies are slowly losing market share
small consumer loans through part-
nerships with banks and NBFCs. in premium collection to private players. Data re-
leased by the General Insurance Council shows
At the same time, Sharma made it that the four main public sector insurers - New
clear that Paytm was mainly focused India Assurance, United India Insurance, National
on building its payments system Insurance and Oriental Insurance Company -
first before spreading its wings. "We which have recorded a premium collection of Rs
are conscious of the fact that we 68,719 crore, up 1.37 per cent, have ceded five per cent of their market share
have to first build payments and to the private sector insurers (excluding stand alone health insurers) which have
then other financial services," mobilised a total premium of Rs 81,600 crore, up almost 25 per cent, during
Sharma. Sharma also said that 2018-19.
Paytm is aiming to double its active The merger proposal of three public sector insurers by the government, sol-
customer base as well as merchant vency issues and unfair practices by private players in the motor business are
base this fiscal. being cited by experts for the erosion in market share by public sector players.
"By 2020, we should be having 50- The four public sector companies, led by New India Assurance, have a market
crore active customers. The biggest share of 42.50 per cent at the end of FY 2018-19 as compared to almost 48 per
priority for us is to advance the pay- cent in 2017-18.
ments system deeper into India," he The total private sector market share, including health insurers, has gone up to
said. As on date, Paytm has over 26- around 56.34 per cent from 52 per cent last year. The private sector insurers
crore wallet users. (excluding the stand alone health insurers) led by ICICI Lombard General Insur-
"Response of technology-led distri- ance, have increased their market share to 50.47 per cent in 2018-19.
bution of financial services has been Seven stand-alone private sector health insurers, led by Star Health, have
great. We want to try out things mobilised a total premium of Rs 8,314 crore, up 37 per cent, and have expanded
that can be completely digital first their market share from 5.87 per cent to seven per cent in 2018-19.
and then adopt assisted model," he
"Public sector banks faced similar issues earlier and lost market share. The
said.
government was also slow in appointing CEOs in public sector players," he said.
8 The Insurance Times, May 2019