The following is excerpted from the question-and-answer section of the transcript.
(Questions from industry analysts are provided in full, but answers are omitted - download the transcript to see the full question-and-answer session)
Question: Nidhesh Jain - Investec Bank plc, Research Division - Analyst
: Firstly, on the life insurance, 2 questions. One is our margins have improved quite significantly over next 2 -- over last 2 years, around 12%, 13%
VNB margins, but some of the companies which are having bancassurance partners are operating at around 25% margin. So do we think that, over
next 5 -- 3 to 5 years, that the bridge between -- the gap between our margin and some of the larger players' can reduce, over a period of time,
given that our product mix has now already been stabilized quite a bit? Some of the high-margin products like protection and annuity have already
been forming decent share (inaudible) mix. So do you expect the VNB margin gap between [us and our peers] bridging? And what could be the
drivers of that?
Question: Nidhesh Jain - Investec Bank plc, Research Division - Analyst
: Sure. Secondly, what will be the provision for future claims from COVID? So the provision that we have provided -- entirely IBNR? Or we are -- also
made some provisions for the future claims after Q1, which may come on account of...
Question: Nidhesh Jain - Investec Bank plc, Research Division - Analyst
: Sure. And that's -- on the general insurance business, in the motor segment specifically, if I look from a longer-term perspective on last 7, 8 years
data: We have lost a bit of market share in the motor segment. And within motor segment, the market share loss is more pronounced in the [mobile
holding], while I think in motor third party we have gained market share. So any particular reason why in that segment we have lost market share
over last 7 to 8 years?
Question: Nidhesh Jain - Investec Bank plc, Research Division - Analyst
: Yes, yes, yes. And then the health insurance, what I see, that SAHIs are growing at almost 40%, 50%. Some of the SAHIs have become 10x of our
size in terms of retail health insurance, while they have been there for 20 years. [They have been in the industry] for 10 years. So why do you think
multiline insurance companies have not been able to scale? I know there is a regulatory arbitrage in terms of agency channels, but I don't think
that completely explains the differential in scale that they have been able to achieve [as to this].
Question: Bunny Babjee - JM Financial Institutional Securities Limited, Research Division - Analyst
: On behalf of JM Financial, I would like to thank Sreeni, [sir]; the staff management of the insurance businesses; and all the participants for joining
us on the call today. Thank you and have a good day.
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