Insurance 4.0: Aligning with the World View – A Discussion on Insurance for All

Published By: Business Standard

Published Date: NA

The insurance sector in India stands at a pivotal moment of transformation, driven by regulatory changes and amendments proposed to the Insurance Act by the Centre. At the Business Standard BFSI Summit 2022, leaders of major insurance companies discussed these developments.

Bhargav Dasgupta, MD & CEO of ICICI Lombard, highlighted that ""for the first time in 20 years, we are seeing a lot of initiatives from the Centre and the regulator in terms of addressing the need gap."" He emphasised the shift from rule-based regulation to principle-based approaches, which will streamline operations. Ritesh Kumar, MD & CEO of HDFC Ergo, noted the evolution of the insurance sector from government-dominated to private participation that began at the turn of the millennium. He stressed the industry's efforts to align with global insurance standards through the proposed amendments to the Insurance Act.

Anup Rau, MD & CEO of Future Generali India Insurance, expressed optimism about enabling regulations to bring out consumer-led products. He pointed out the concerning statistics that general insurance penetration in India remains at approximately 1% – much lower than other BRICS nations and only one-tenth of China's insurance density.

Rakesh Jain, ED & CEO of Reliance General Insurance, identified COVID-19 as an inflection point that changed public perception of risk. He stated that the industry is ""on the cusp of creating the next 20 years in a very different way than the past two decades.""

The leaders collectively acknowledged that current regulatory changes represent a positive long-term development that will expand distribution channels and address India's significant insurance coverage gaps.