UK Prudential to scale back on India, China

Britain's biggest insurer Prudential has begun a shake-up of its Asian business that will see it scale back its ambitions for growth in India and China, The Sunday Times newspaper said.                                           

Citing an interview with chief executive Tidjane Thiam, the newspaper said that although the firm has no plans to pull out of either country it will push investment into fast-growing economies in southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Vietnam and Indonesia.                                           

Thiam was quoted as saying that regulators in India and China were "understandably cautious" about relaxing restrictions on foreign ownership of financial firms.                                           

"So there are limitations to what a company like us can do in each of those countries," he said.                                           

Earlier this month Prudential purchased the life insurance unit of Singapore's third-biggest lender UOB for S$428 million.