PBF's subsidiary now empowered for reinsurance product sales

PB Fintech's wholly-owned subsidiary, Policybazaar Insurance Brokers (Policybazaar), has been granted approval by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) to upgrade its license from a direct insurance broker to a composite insurance broker. According to an exchange filing, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has given in-principle approval to Policybazaar Insurance Brokers (Policybazaar), a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company, for the upgrade of its license from a direct insurance broker (Life and General) to a composite insurance broker. It was stated by the company that this approval will enable them to increase insurance penetration in the country by incorporating more technology, process control, and data analytics-based innovation into reinsurance capacity. In a post-earnings analyst meeting, the management mentioned their anticipation for updates on the reinsurance brokerage application, saying, We have an interesting business mix and various strategic aspects to manage. So, yes, we continue to be active managers and also continue to explore new opportunities. We are involved in account aggregation, and we are considering the reinsurance brokerage. The updated license will permit Policybazaar to broaden its range of services into risk management, facilitate the sale of reinsurance products, and manage claims data. For the December quarter, PB Fintech reported its first-ever net profit of Rs 370.2 million, compared to a net loss of Rs 870 million in Q3FY23. Meanwhile, revenue from operations increased by 43 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 8.71 billion.