L to R – PK Arora, Member, IRDAI, T Alamelu, Principal Advisor, Insurance, International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA ) , K Rajaraman, chairman, IFSCA at the inaugural of 2nd Edition of IFSCA-IRDAI GIFT IFSC Global Reinsurance Summit’ in Mumbai on Monday
“We have allowed index-based annuities to the insurers. And currently, we are considering allowing insurers to invest in equity derivatives. So, when all these things are happening, it is quite possible that there will be requirement of new products for these investment avenues. We need index, usage-based, tax-based products,’’ PK Arora, member, Actuary,IRDAI
Mumbai: K Rajaraman, chairman, International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA), India’s unified regulator, has urged that the global re/insurers take a long-term view of India and start investing into the country in a big way by seizing larger opportunities spurred by the county’s economic transformation and government’s vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047.
“We believe, that it is possible for the insurance industry to actually take a long-term view of India. We also intend to facilitate the global insurance funds in actually using IFSCA as a platform to not only invest into India, but also into the region as well,’’ said Rajaraman while addressing `2nd Edition of IFSCA-IRDAI GIFT IFSC Global Reinsurance Summit’ in Mumbai on Monday.
The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) is a unified authority for the development and regulation of financial products, financial services and financial institutions in the International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) in India.
“Our thought process as a unified regulator is to ensure that businesses that get built within GIFT City should complement the businesses that are there in domestic India. So, our work with the Indian insurance regulator IRDAI will be complementary and will aid and assist the domestic insurance market to grow to the size that is required for implementing its vision of Insurance for All by 2047. We in IFSCA are committed to support it by ensuring that the reinsurance capacity is made available for all the services that is offered in the domestic area,’’ outlined Rajaraman.
IFSCA ‘s vision for India in 2047 is larger and is just not about offering financial services, but also about raising capital for its the country’s economic journey. This also includes drawing investment from the global reinsurance pools. In fact, the global reinsurance capital size has crossed about $ 750 to $ 800 billion and IFSCA will like to see that these pools of money can actually find itself profitably invested into India as well, added Rajaraman.
“ So, our estimates show that the insurance industry worldwide has about nearly about $ 13 trillion dollars in assets. And India is a very important investment destination for the next 25, 30, 40, 50 years. The government’s 2047 agenda will require that we have a society which is insured and pensioned as social security is on the top of the agenda of the government. After onshoring the offshore, I think, today our focus has now shifted to India in 2047. With a simple tax structure and also enabling policy regime, which enables the whole line of businesses to be set up here, the IFSCA could actually aid, support, facilitate the 2047 agenda” explained IFSCA chairman.

Earlier, addressing the event, participated by around 350 Indian and overseas re/insurance professionals, PK Arora, member, Actuary, IRDAI, stated that as part of ease of doing business, 167 circulars have been repealed and 207 circulars have been merged by the Indian insurance regulator in recent times.
Now, there are just 12 or 13 circulars and master circulars which stand reduced from around 400 circulars.
“Everything is available at one go. If you see the insurance laws manual, three years back, there were 78 regulations. Now, there were just 15 or 16.’’ said Arora.
Talking about vast opportunities for re/insurers in India, Arora highlighted that the country uniquely offers demographic ,economic, commercial and, regulatory advantages and is one of the fastest growing insurance market that will need reinsurance capacity in all segments of the economy.
“We have allowed index-based annuities to the insurers. And currently, we are considering allowing insurers to invest in equity derivatives. So, when all these things are happening, it is quite possible that there will be requirement of new products for these investment avenues. We need index products. We need usage-based products. We need tax-based products,’’ he said.
Dipesh Shah, executive director, IFSCA, said that the number re/insurance companies including overseas players in IFSC- GIFT City have surged from 16 in 2020 to 41 by the end of 2024, while (re)insurance premium booked by these re/insurance offices risen from $45m to $504m during the period.