Bharti AXA Life Insurance posts maiden profit of Rs 5 cr in FY18

Private insurer Bharti AXA Life Insurance on Tuesday said it turned profitable by posting maiden profit of Rs 5 crore for the fiscal ended March 31, 2018.

This is the first time Bharti AXA Life Insurance reported profits since it started operations in 2006, on the back of better productivity and cost efficiency, the insurer said in a statement.

The company, a joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and global insurance major AXA, registered a profit against a loss of Rs 120 crore during 2016-17, it said.

"We have brought down our operating expense ratio. Cost efficiency, high renewal premiums, better product mix and productivity and higher persistency helped the company record profits," said Bharti AXA Life Insurance Managing Director Vikas Seth.

The company has registered 20 per cent increase in its new business premium at Rs 730 crore in 2017-18 against Rs 608 crore over the corresponding fiscal a year ago.

It recorded 21 per cent growth in its renewal premium to Rs 954 crore in the year ended March 31, 2018, as compared to Rs 788 crore during 2016-17.

The total premium grew by 21 per cent to Rs 1,684 crore during 2017-18, as compared to Rs 1,397 crore in the same period a year earlier.

Seth said, going forward, the focus would be on growth, including that from non-traditional channels, robust profitability and operational efficiency coupled with customer-friendly and congenial ways of accessing insurance.