Policybazaar To Venture Into Reinsurance Sector With Upgraded Licence

PB Fintech’s wholly-owned subsidiary PolicyBazaar Insurance Brokers has received in-principle approval from the insurance regulator to upgrade its licence, allowing its entry into the reinsurance business, the company said in an exchange filing.

“We are pleased to inform that Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India vide its letter no. IRDA/COR 742/2024 dated February 16, 2024, has granted In-Principle approval to Policybazaar Insurance Brokers Private Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company for upgradation of license from Direct Insurance Broker to Composite Insurance Broker under IRDAI Regulations, 2018,” it said in a statement.

The company said the approval would allow it to deepen the insurance penetration in the country by bringing more technology, process control and data analytics based innovation into re-insurance capacity.

A reinsurance company facilitates the aggregation of policies for insurers, spreading out existing risks. This allows a single insurance entity to accommodate customers whose coverage limits would be too challenging to manage independently.

Last year, IRDAI approved amendments to reinsurance regulations to promote a favourable business environment and attract more reinsurers to set up operations in India.

Meanwhile, PB Fintech turned profitable for the first time ever during the December quarter.

The Gurugram-based company reported a profit after tax of INR 37 Cr for the third quarter, fuelled by growth in insurance premiums, better renewals which have higher margins and improvement in contributing margins.

PB Fintech is the parent company of insurtech platform Paisabazaar and Policybazaar,

PB Fintech’s total operating revenue jumped 43% to INR 871 Cr in the reported quarter from INR 610 Cr in Q3 FY23. However, this was a marginal rise on a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis from INR 812 Cr in Q2 FY24.

Revenue of its core online business, which includes Policybazaar and Paisabazaar, grew 39% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 593 Cr in Q3 FY24. This vertical’s contribution margin also improved to 44% in the quarter.

Last month, Japanese conglomerate SoftBank reportedly marked a full exit from PB Fintech, the parent entity of insurance aggregator PolicyBazaar, scoring returns of around $650 Mn on its investment.