The Hindu Business Line : ING Vysya Life to raise Rs 100 cr more capital

“The current capital that has been infused is Rs 790 crore and by March we want to raise it around Rs 900 crore. The board has given approval for up to Rs 1,400 crore capital and we expect to touch the figure by the end of the calendar year,” Mr Kshitij Jain, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, ING Vysya Life Insurance Company Ltd, said during a press conference here on Thursday.

According to him, the company was looking at adding around six lakh customers during the year from the current base of 5.5 lakh customers.

ING Vysya expects the premium income to touch Rs 2,100 crore during 2008. “Last year (December 2007) the total premium collected was around Rs 950 crore out of which Rs 630 crore was from new business. This year we expect it to touch Rs 2,100 crore out of which Rs 1,350 is expected to come from new business and the rest of the Rs 750 crore from renewal business,” Mr Jain said.

The company, Mr Jain said, is looking at expanding its presence in north and central parts of the country. “ING Vysya Life currently has a network of 308 branches across 246 cities. But now we are looking at aggressive expansion in north and central India as part of our growth strategy,” he added.

New product

The company on Thursday also launched a new unit-linked product, ING Guaranteed Growth Plan.

“The plan is unique in its category of products in the market, as it offers five per cent guaranteed return on the premium invested with a potential of investing in equity markets, meeting the customer’s need of reaping the benefit of market-linked return, without having to suffer the pitfall of its volatility,” Mr Jain said.

The plan offers customers two term choices. Customers can choose either 10 years or 15 years term and it also offers a premium paying choice between single premium and a limited premium paying term of two or three years.