PB Fintech’s Q3 Profit Zooms 92% YoY To INR 72 Cr

Insurtech major Policybazaar’s parent PB Fintech reported a 92% jump in its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to INR 71.54 Cr in the third quarter of the fiscal year 2024-25 (Q3 FY25) from INR 37.23 Cr in the year-ago quarter, buoyed by healthy insurance premium collection.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, net profit climbed over 40% from INR 50.98 Cr. Notably, this was the fifth consecutive profitable quarter for PB Fintech.

The company clocked an EBITDA profit of INR 28 Cr during the quarter under review against an EBITDA loss of INR 25 Cr in Q3 FY24.

Operating revenue zoomed 48% to INR 1,291.62 Cr in Q3 FY25 from INR 870.89 Cr in the corresponding quarter last year. Sequentially, it rose nearly 11% from INR 1,167.23 Cr.

Total insurance premium for the quarter ended December 2024 stood at INR 6,135 Cr, up 44% YoY, led by robust growth in the new health and life insurance business.

“Our core health and life insurance businesses are growing ahead of expectations. In anticipation of this steady growth, we continue to invest in operational capacity as well as brand awareness campaigns,” said PB Fintech in its earnings release.

The company primarily generates revenue from its insurance business PolicyBazaar and credit services business Paisabazaar. 

While revenue from the insurance business jumped 45% year-on-year to INR 651 Cr in Q3 FY25, revenue from the credit business declined 18% YoY to INR 119 Cr due to a slowdown in demand.

“Credit business has been down 20% YoY in terms of disbursal in the online side of business … however, the secured credit business, which was started in Q2 FY25 and is now classified under new initiatives, is showing growth at INR 2,570 Cr disbursal & INR 24 Cr revenue for the quarter,” the company said.

New initiatives, which include PB Partners, PB For Business, PB UAE and PB Connect, contributed INR 521 Cr to the company’s top line in Q3 FY25, a 1.87X increase YoY.

The fintech major said that PB Partners, its platform for insurance agents, continues to lead the market in terms of scale and operational efficiency. It is pertinent to mention that PB Partners is currently under investigation by GST authorities for alleged tax evasion of INR 80-90 Cr.

PB Fintech distributed loans worth INR 5,437 Cr during the quarter under review, up 52% from INR 3,580 Cr worth of loans disbursed in the December quarter last year.

Zooming Into Expenses

In line with the growth in its top line, PB Fintech’s expenses also surged 41% to INR 1,306.82 Cr in the December quarter of FY25 from INR 925.91 Cr in the same quarter last year.

Employee Costs: This was the biggest expense head for the Paisabazaar parent in Q3 FY25. The company spent INR 487.43 Cr on employee benefit expenses during the quarter under review, up 23% from INR 397.75 Cr in the year-ago period. Of this, it spent INR 51 Cr on employee stock option plans (ESOPs).

Ad Expenses: The spending under this bucket spiked 35% to INR 289.46 Cr in the third quarter of the ongoing fiscal year from INR 214.85 Cr in the year-ago period.

Other Expenses: The company spent INR 450.15 Cr in this bracket in the reported quarter, up 76% from INR 256.07 Cr in Q3 FY24. However, it did not give a breakup of other expenses.

Earlier this month, the insurtech giant set up a wholly owned subsidiary PB Healthcare Services Pvt Ltd, marking its entry into the healthcare segment. 

The move was greenlit by the insurance major’s board in December 2024. In September, group chairman and CEO Yashish Dahiya said that PB Fintech would make a one-time investment of $100 Mn to acquire a 30% stake in a new healthcare company.

In a post-earnings call, Yashish Dahiya said that the company is in talks with multiple investors to bring them on board its healthcare subsidiary. The company expects to make an announcement on this front in the next 30 days.

Ahead of the company’s Q3 earnings announcement, shares of PB Fintech closed Thursday’s trading session 3.41% lower at INR 1,654.60 apiece on the BSE.