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MetLife Inc, a global insurance major, is “fully committed” to growth of its Indian life insurance joint venture unit, a top official said.
“As a shareholder and a partner in this joint venture, we are fully committed to the growth and success of PNB MetLife,” said Chris Townsend, President Asia, MetLife Inc.
“We believe that with the combination of PNB’s extensive network and our global strategy supporting its ambitions, PNB MetLife is well positioned to capture the opportunities in this fast-growing market,” he said.
His remark is significant as it comes amidst speculation that MetLife Inc was looking to exit the market. However, sources said that MetLife may actually increase stake in PNB MetLife from the current 26 per cent to 49 per cent, the maximum allowed under the new FDI limits for the insurance sector.
PNB and MetLife Inc had come together in 2011 for the joint venture — PNB MetLife. In recent years, the proportion of traditional policies in the overall business mix has been on the rise. In 2016, traditional accounted for 87 per cent and the balance 13 per cent was ULIPs.
Meanwhile, PNB MetLife has strengthened its board of directors with the appointment of Anisha Motwani as an independent director.
Motwani will be chairing the ‘Policyholders Protection Committee’ and the ‘CSR Committee’. She will also be a member of the ALM & Risk Management Committee, Audit Committee, and Nomination & Remuneration Committee.
PNB MetLife is now ranked No 5 in retail-weighted premiums for the period ended December 31, 2016. It has assets under management (AUM) in excess of ₹14,327 crore and has been profitable for the last six years.
Additionally, it recently achieved the milestone of insuring the lives of over half a million PNB customers in the five years of its successful distribution partnership in India.
PNB MetLife had achieved average new business premium of ₹252 crore in October-December 2016 and ₹964 crore in 2016, reflecting a 10 per cent increase over 2015.
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