Not Out of Radar. FinMin signals big ticket insurance reforms ahead
New Delhi: The Finance Ministry has not shelved its earlier planned set of Big Bang insurance reforms including introduction of “composite insurance licence”, captive insurers and differential minimum capital requirements, a top official said. These insurance reforms including composite licence are very much on the table and may be introduced at an appropriate time this year, Vivek Joshi, Secretary, Department of Financial Services in Finance Ministry, told businessline in an interview. Joshi, however, noted no exact timeline can be given on this front. 

Standing Committee on Finance proposes ‘open architecture’ for insurance agents
New Delhi: Standing Committee on Finance headed by BJP MP Jayant Sinha has recommended the introduction of an ‘open architecture’ concept for insurance agents so as to facilitate a larger outreach of insurance products and a stronger distribution infrastructure in the country. This recommendation, if and when accepted by government and consequent legal amendments are introduced, would pave the way for insurance agents to associate with multiple insurance companies.

IRDAI moots changes in rural, social and motor third party norms
Hyderabad: The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) is planning to change norms on rural, social sector and motor third party obligations for the insurers.

Lower costs for insurers, cheaper premiums: Parliamentary panel proposes all-in-one licence in insurace
 

LIC holding drops to all-time low of 3.64% in NSE companies
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), India’s largest institutional investor, saw its shares across 277 NSE-listed companies — where its holding is more than 1 per cent — decline to an all-time low of 3.64 per cent for the quarter ended December, from 3.73 per cent in the previous quarter.

LIC introduces new plan ‘Index Plus’
Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) Chairperson Siddhartha Mohanty launched a new plan, LIC’s Index Plus with effect from February 5. The Unique Identification Number (UIN) for LIC’s Index Plus is UIN: 512L354V01. LIC’s Index Plus is a unit linked, regular premium, individual life insurance plan which offers life insurance cover cum savings throughout the term of the policy. Guaranteed additions as a percentage of annualised premium shall be added to the unit fund on completion of specific duration of policy years under an in-force policy and shall be utilised to purchase units.

The plan can be purchased Offline through agents / other intermediaries as well as Online directly through website www.licindia.in. Minimum age at entry is 90 days (completed). Maximum Age at Entry is 50 or 60 years (nearer birthday) depending on the basic sum assured.

LIC's group yearly renewable premium rises by 137% in Apr-Jan FY24

In January 2024, LIC saw an increase of 36.51 per cent in Group Premium and 41.04 per cent growth in group yearly renewable premium from January 2023.

IRDAI greenlights Axis Bank’s ₹1,612 crore infusion into Max Life Insurance, pending CCI nod
Max Financial Services Limited (MFSL) has announced that insurance regulator IRDAI has approved the capital infusion of ₹1,612 crore by Axis Bank into the company’s material subsidiary, Max Life Insurance.

CCI clears Zurich Insurance’s stake purchase in Kotak Mahindra General Insurance
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Tuesday said it has approved Zurich Insurance Company’s proposed 70 per cent stake purchase in Kotak Mahindra General Insurance Company.

Chola MS posts ₹100 cr profit in Q3, to sustain higher than the industry growth
Chennai: Cholamandalam MS General Insurance Company Ltd, a 60:40 joint venture between Murugappa Group and Japan’s Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance Group (Japan), has posted a net profit of ₹100 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2023, compared with ₹43 crore in the year-ago period, amid the impact of catastrophic events in incurred claims.

Firms raising funds via IPOs under SEBI scrutiny
Mumbai: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has tightened its scrutiny on the objectives for raising fresh capital through initial public offerings (IPOs), said two people in the know. The regulator has expressed its displeasure over companies opting to raise money largely for debt repayment and is asking for more disclosures.

EPFO mulls reinvesting 50% of ETF redemption proceeds in equity market
Sources close to the development said a proposal regarding this was discussed in the investment committee (IC) meeting in October last year, and the recommendation has been sent to the Central Board of Trustees (CBT), the apex decision-making body of the EPFO for its approval.
 

Pension funds ride the bull as 1-year equity returns surge to 29.35%
Benefiting from the bullish momentum in the equities market over the past year, Pension Funds have recorded an average annual return of nearly 30 percent from their equity investments, latest PFRDA data showed. This average annual return of 29.35 percent in equities — as of February 3, 2024  —is more than triple the return of about 7.87 percent seen in Corporate Bonds.  It is also much higher than the 9.61 per cent in Government Securities and about 11.43 per cent in Central and 11.39 per cent in State government Schemes, data showed.

Mutual funds shareholding in listed firms at new high on strong net inflows
The shareholding of MFs in companies listed on the NSE rose to 8.81 per cent from 8.73 per cent in the previous quarter, driven by net inflows worth Rs 58,198 crore, according to primeinfobase.com.

SBI Funds moves RBI to raise industry’s overseas investment limit
Mumbai: SBI Funds Management, the country’s largest fund house with AUM of ₹8.51-lakh crore, has approached the RBI to enhance the overseas investment limit on the back of growing investors interest and India’s comfortable forex position.

HDFC vs ICICI: A tale of two fund houses and their BAFs
In the complex world of mutual funds, where every decision holds potential financial implications, finding the right investment avenue can be challenging. Balanced advantage funds (BAFs) emerge as a relatively stable option, offering investors a balanced mix of equity and fixed income exposure that adapts to market dynamics. Today, we’ll delve into BAFs through the lens of two big players—HDFC Balanced Advantage Fund (HDFC BAF) and ICICI Prudential Balanced Advantage Fund (ICICI PRU BAF).

Mutual funds knock RBI door for hike in foreign investment limits
In June 2022, the capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) permitted MFs to invest in foreign stocks within the aggregate mandated limit of $7 billion after a correction in stocks.

Should you invest in the newly launched PGIM India and Bajaj Finserv Large and Midcap funds? 3 experts answer
In its latest fund offerings, PGIM India Mutual Fund has introduced the PGIM India Large and Midcap Fund. In a more recent development, Bajaj Finserv Mutual Fund introduced its latest offering, the Bajaj Finserv Large and Midcap Fund, on February 6, 2024. The new fund offerings follow a trend where various asset management companies have previously launched funds in this category. Before this, several mutual fund houses had introduced similar funds, providing investors with the opportunity to invest in them and reap the associated benefits.

Nippon India launches Nifty IT and Bank index funds
 

We expect 50-75 bps rate cuts from RBI: Bandhan AMC's Suyash Choudhary
With the government taking the fiscal compression path, as announced in the Interim Budget, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) now has hardly any reason to delay relaxing its liquidity stance at a time when inflation has been undershooting the forecast, says Suyash Choudhary, Head – Fixed Income, Bandhan AMC. In an email interaction with Abhishek Kumar, Choudhary says he expects the central bank to start cutting rates by mid-CY 2024.

Edited Excerpts

HDFC Bank raises $300 million through maiden sustainable finance bond issue