Edelweiss General Insurance in Talks to Find a Joint Venture Partner

Operating since one and a half years, Edelweiss General Insurance is now open to having a Joint Venture partner for the business. The Chief Executive Officer of Edelweiss, Shanai Ghosh shares that the insurer is in talks to get a partner. She also shared that reputation and cultural fitment are really important factors while looking for a partner.

Shanai Ghosh is the ED (Executive Director) and CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of Edelweiss General Insurance since May 2019 and the appointment was confirmed after the board and regulatory approvals.

She adds, “When it comes to a potential partner, we want someone who looks at India from a long-term perspective. It should not be a firm that has a short-term view of the business.”

Edelweiss General Insurance is a part of Edelweiss Financial Services that completed the first year of operations in FY19 with a gross premium collection of Rs. 92.55 Crore. It was able to collect Rs. 51.52 Crore of premium for the April to September 2019 duration. It witnessed the growth of 70.4% year on year.

Shanai shared, “Growth is a given since we have a low base. Penetration levels are so low in the country that there will be growth. However, our focus will be on being in the right segment at the right price.”

Shanai shared that as far as technology is concerned, they have a digital operating platform. They are one of the country’s first ‘cloud-native’ insurer, which is an approach to build and run applications.

The company has invested in SAP Suite as well that refers to a group of business apps offering integration of information and processes, industry-specific functionality, scalability, and collaboration.

Edelweiss General Insurance has an amalgamation of 70-75% business from the retail segment, while the remaining from a corporate business. As per Ghosh, this mix will continue.

“We do enjoy the advantage of being part of the Edelweiss Group and this helps us get better access to clients. At least 10-15 per cent of our business would come from the Edelweiss platform itself,” she shares.

While discounts have always concerned the industry, Ghosh says that they have been very selective as far as business segments are concerned. They won’t enter any segment that is not sustainable, she says.