AXA increases stake to 49% in JVs with Bharti Enterprises

NEW DELHI: Sunil Mittal-driven Bharti Enterprises and AXA Tuesday said that AXA had increased its stake from 26% to 49% in its life and general insurance joint ventures in India.

The two JVs are Bharti AXA Life Insurance and Bharti AXA General Insurance.

The development has further strengthened the existing partnership between Bharti and AXA in India, and demonstrates the agility and commitment of both parties in further expanding their operations in the country, the two companies said in a joint statement.

No financial details were specified in the statement.

“This is a significant milestone in the journey of the Bharti-AXA joint ventures, and underlines the partnership’s long-term commitment to the Indian market,” said Rahul Bhatnagar, Managing Director & CFO, Bharti Enterprises.

“Our long-standing partnership with Bharti, a leading Indian conglomerate, positions us ideally to succeed in this highly promising market", said Jean-Louis Laurent Josi, CEO of AXA Asia.

In 2014-2015 fiscal, Bharti AXA Life recorded INR 4.7 billion (or Euro 70 million) of new business collected premiums, achieving a yearly growth of 28% on average over the past 3 years.

Bharti AXA GI, during previous FY, recorded INR 14.6 billion (or Euro 214 million) of gross direct premiums, achieving a growth of 18% on average over the past 3 years.