General insurers violated IRDA norms on discounts. IRDA reveals plans for 2008
Insurance companies have started offering IT, IT-enabled services, business process outsourcing and non-manufacturing companies with policies due for renewal on January 1 discounts of more than 60 per cent.
Seventy five per cent of the non-life insurance industry, which consists of fire, engineering and motor covers, was subject to rates prescribed by the Tariff Advisory Committee up to December 2006, irrespective of whether the risk was good or bad. The industry was partially detariffed on January 1, 2007, but the regulator restricted the discounts insurers could give to minimise the dangers of an irrational price war.
State Bank of India (SBI) is asking prospective partners for its general insurance foray to pay it Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion) to Rs 350 crore (Rs 3.5 billion) as entry premium, insurance industry sources said.
The group has earmarked over Rs 4,000 crore (Rs 40 billion) to acquire coal mines in foreign countries.
Vodafone-Essar, the leading GSM operator is raising around $500 million (Rs 2,000 crore) through overseas borrowing. This is the first fund raising by the telecom major after British telecom major Vodafone acquired a majority stake.
Videocon Industries, the oil-to-consumer durables company, has joined the race for the acquisition of the London-based Burren Energy, which recently rejected several approaches including one worth $3.5 billion (Rs 14,000 crore) from the Italian major ENI.
The Hinduja Group plans to enter the financial services space in India with a bang. Apart from plans to set up life insurance, non-life insurance and asset management companies, the group is also working towards areas such as wealth management, broking and portfolio management services. The group has finalised its partners for setting up a holding company, which will have three business arms offering wealth management, broking and portfolio management services.
Farmers will no longer have to wait endlessly for claiming their payments from the government.
The total number of Indian agents registering with the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), a prestigious international trade association of insurance agents, has more than tripled to 1,931 agents for 2007 compared with 532 in 2006. To qualify for the MDRT, an Indian insurance agent has to get a premium (read business) of Rs 23.92 lakh to his insurance company or earn a commission of Rs 5.98 lakh.
Dubai Holding, an investment firm of the Dubai government, has threatened to come out with an open offer for Orient-Express Hotels if the Tata group acquires a significant stake in the hotel chain. This comes exactly a month after the Tata group's Indian Hotels Company bought 10 per cent and expressed interest in striking a deal which was turned down by Orient-Express.
The top slots at three Tata companies -- Tata Motors, Tata Steel and Tata Consultancy Services -- will be up for grabs in two years with incumbents Ravi Kant, B Muthuraman and S Ramadorai due to retire in 2009.
Interested parties are concerned about the possibility of 24 domestic banks and six financial institutions converting to equity Rs 1,480 crore worth of zero-coupon debentures to which they subscribed in 2002-03.
Even as the Bajaj imbroglio comes up for hearing before the Company Law Board (CLB) on October 23, there is every indication that this might turn out to be the longest-running family feud of all times.
IFCI, say sources, owes nearly Rs 500 crore in debt to LIC, which has the option to convert it into equity and take its total stake from 8.4 per cent now to 49%. IFCI's proposed strategic sale has attracted expressions of interest from 10 entities.
SBI Life, ICICI Pru have seen their valuations increase by 33 per cent and 35 per cent recently. SBI Life Insurance has seen its valuation soar after just 3 months while ICICI Prudential's valuation has increased in just 5 months.
Despite all its problems, V Thulasidas, head of the merged Air India-Indian Airlines, feels the elite cadre provides the most challenging environment.
Essel Propack, Amcore other contenders for $1bn deal.
The Indian steel industry is poised to witness an investment of more than Rs 5 lakh crore (Rs billion), which is over six times the total money ploughed into the sector since independence.
Arysta, the target, is a leading crop protection and life sciences firm.
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