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Web-aggregator Policybazaar on Friday said it has got approval from regulator IRDAI to undertake insurance broking, a development that will help the company augment business and expand bouquet of services.
With this development, the company will surrender its web-aggregator licence to Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and undertake business including insurance aggregation under the broking umbrella.
"We received our licence to be a broker for which we have been in touch with the regulator for the last three years," PolicyBazaar.com CEO Yashish Dahiya told PTI.
Venturing into new segments
The broking licence will allow the company to venture into segments which it could not do in the past like claims assistance, offline services, and establish Points of Presence network.
From a revenue perspective, he said, “as a web aggregator we were not paid for life insurance renewals.” As a broker, he said, the company will be entitled for commission as well as fee for web aggregation.
Also read: Serum Institute of India picks up stake in PolicyBazaar
With the help of broking licence, he said, “we will be able to do claims settlement and many other things and we will use this opportunity very wisely.” Policybazaar has a market share of 25 per cent in the life insurance segment while 10 per cent in health insurance.
The parent company PB Fintech also promotes Paisabazaar.com, which is an online credit comparison portal.
PB Fintech had attained the status of a unicorn in 2018 when it raised $200 million in a Series-F round led by Japan's SoftBank. A company valued at over $1 billion is called a unicorn.
Other investors include the likes of Info Edge, Premji Invest, Temasek, Ribbit Capital, Chiratae, Inventus Capital Partners, True North, Tiger Global, Wellington and Steadview.
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