Aviva keen on pension sector foray

CAIRO: Private life insurer Aviva India said it intends to foray into the pension sector when the government decides to open it up. “We are keen to enter the pension business,” Aviva Life Insurance India MD Bert Paterson said at a workshop on insurance here. Avia India, which is a joint venture between FMCG major Dabur and UK-based insurance giant Aviva, would enter the new business either through its existing insurance company or through a new company, depending on the final shape of the legislation, he said.

Aviva, however, would like to partner with Dabur only even if it has to open a new company, Paterson said. Indian Parliament is yet to pass the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) Bill as it has been referred to the standing committee.

When asked whether Aviva would have one scheme for assured returns in pension sector, he said such a decision depended on customers’ choice. Recently, finance minister P Chidambaram had appealed to UPA’s allies to give the government political space for reforms in the financial sector, which includes pension business.