Raising a word of caution, Ted Mathas, president and chief operating officer , New York Life Insurance company said that the ongoing surge of premium portfolio of Indian life insurance companies through unit-linked insurance products (ULIPs) may not be sustainable in future, says Propelled by the high Sensex movement in recent times almost 80-90% of the total domestic incremental life insurance premium is mobilised through the ULIPs. ?Globally, any stock market investment is risky and it is not always that Indian stock market would go up, Policy holders should not be misled to buy such products with the promise of high returns” he cautions adding that giving high returns may be a short-term goal for a life insurance company.
Mathas suggests that Indian life insurance companies should have more broad range of products and intermediaries including the agents should get adequate training to maintain the growth momentum in the industry.
According Mathas, India remained a high priority area for the New York Life which had formed a joint venture with Max India. ?We are targeting 10 % of our global premium estimated at $ 3 billion from Indian market.Presently India contributes larger business than China,” he said. Max New York life is now making efforts to scale up its operations by infusing more capital, launching innovative products and expanding distribution channels.
