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Mr Uday Shankar Roy

Our Bureau

Kolkata, July 20 SBI Life hopes to achieve more than 100 per cent growth in new business in the first quarter of 2008-09 over the same period last fiscal, when the size of the new business amounted to Rs 426 crore.

Mr Uday Shankar Roy, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, SBI Life, told newspersons that the accounts for the first quarter are being finalised for the board’s approval.In West Bengal, SBI Life, as Mr Roy indicated, is poised to undertake new business worth Rs 580 crore in the current fiscal, up from Rs 300 crore in 2007-08. This should be possible due to various steps being initiated such as opening more offices (from the present 11 to 26), appointing more agents and strengthening the delivery systems through the bankassurance channel.

He said a health insurance policy would be launched shortly. “The IRDA approval has been obtained and we’re waiting for a few arrangements to firm up,” he said, adding that it would be a standalone policy, not linked to reimbursement.

At the national level, SBI Life hopes to achieve Rs 8,500 crore of new business and a total business of Rs 10,500 crore in the current fiscal. About 250 new offices are proposed to be added in 2008-09 to the present network of 187 offices across the country. There are also plans to double the number of agents, whose present strength is 42,000, he added.

SBI Life also sells insurance policies through 15,000 branches of State Bank of India and its associates, Mr Roy said, pointing out that 40 per cent of its total business came through the bancassurance routes.

While there were plans to reduce the share of the unit-linked insurance plans (ULIPs) in the total business this year, much would depend on consumer preference, he said. Currently ULIPs accounted for 70 per cent of the total business.

The company’s assets under management stood at 10,493 crore as on March 31, 2008, he added.

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