Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence 2025: HDFC Life’s Vibha Padalkar named Businesswoman of the year

Vibha Padalkar has been named Businesswoman of the Year for driving growth at HDFC Life, one of India’s largest private life insurers, as its chief executive officer. When Padalkar took charge as managing director and CEO in September 2018, HDFC Life was already among the country’s top private insurers.

The challenge was not scale alone, but sustaining growth, navigating regulatory churn and steering a complex ownership transition. Nearly seven years on, HDFC Life has not just held its ground but strengthened its position.

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HDFC Life’s market capitalisation has nearly doubled since Padalkar became CEO, rising from Rs 90,000 crore to Rs 1.65 lakh crore, underscoring investor confidence in execution and governance. “I feel very honoured that such an eminent jury picked me as a worthy recipient for this coveted award,” Padalkar told ET. “The Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence are very coveted because of a track record of having an impeccable and eminent jury.”

The jury noted that HDFC Life has grown significantly under Padalkar’s leadership. “Even as one of the largest private insurers, its growth rate has been exceptional,” it said. “What has helped especially is the company’s digital transformation, which has been driven by Padalkar.”

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Achartered accountant by training, Padalkar joined HDFC Life in 2008 and rose steadily through the ranks, becoming executive director in 2012 and CEO six years later. She played a key role in HDFC Life’s landmark IPO in 2017, the second public listing by a life insurer in India.

She led the company’s first M&A in 2022, when it acquired Exide Life Insurance in a Rs 6,687 crore deal to expand its footprint in south India and smaller cities. She also navigated HDFC Life’s transition from a joint venture with UK-based Standard Life to becoming a subsidiary of HDFC Bank from July 1, 2023. This followed the merger of HDFC Ltd with HDFC Bank.

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Within two years of her appointment as CEO, the pandemic struck, triggering a surge in claims and disruption. Early investments in technology helped HDFC Life manage elevated claims seamlessly and adapt to regulatory changes, including revised surrender value norms, expense management rules and GST exemptions through tighter cost controls and deferred commissions. Despite these challenges, the company’s annualised premium equivalent (APE) grew at a compounded annual rate of 17% between FY21 and FY25, outpacing the industry’s roughly 10%.

This growth trajectory has enabled HDFC Life to double key metrics every four to five years—a rare feat for a large, mature insurer. HDFC Life reported a 15% increase in net profit during FY25 to Rs 1,802 crore against Rs 1,569 crore in FY24.

Padalkar said the award brings visibility to aspiring women leaders at a time when the BFSI sector, despite having produced many strong contenders, has seen relatively few of them in top roles. “While it is personally gratifying, what matters more is the visibility it brings,” she said. “There could be no better platform than The Economic Times. It’s the first paper the BFSI sector reads every morning.”