Cholamandalam MS General Insurance Company is betting on retail health insurance for growth, according to A. Vellayan, Chairman, Murugappa Group, the joint venture partner of the company.
Addressing presspersons here on Monday on the completion of ten years of operations of the insurance joint venture, Mr. Vellayan felt people were not adequately covered. With more awareness happening in the retail segment, the company would expand its reach through bank assurance and by increasing the number of branches from the present 100. He said the company was also witnessing growth opportunity on the commercial side with a lot of Japanese and Korean companies setting up their operations here and Bangalore.
Out of the three Indo-Japan joint general insurance ventures operating in India, Chola MS General Insurance had registered the highest growth rate, he said. At the moment, Japanese and Korean companies contributed six per cent of the business of Chola MS, he said.
Structured approach
The structured underwriting approach, excellent claims settlement capability and the well laid out risk management processes had all helped the company achieve an average compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 65 per cent since inception, Mr. Vallayan said.
S. S. Gopalarathnam, Managing Director, said the company achieved a gross written premium (GWP) of Rs. 1,347 crore last year. The aim was to achieve a GWP of Rs. 2,500 crore by 2014-15. This would be possible by expanding the retail health portfolio to Rs. 500 crore over the next year from Rs. 50 crore at present, and increasing the share in property insurance business.
N. Srinivasan, Director, Chola MS, said the company had grown to be a niche player in the retail segment, offering value-based solutions, and was working with McKinsey & Company, a renowned consultant, to improve its competitive position.
