Mahindra And Manulife Agree To Establish 50:50 Life Insurance Joint Venture In India

MUMBAI :

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M) and Manulife today announced that the two companies have agreed to establish a 50:50 life insurance joint venture, subject to regulatory approval. This new venture will strengthen Mahindra and Manulife’s existing footprint in India and underscores their commitment to enhancing the financial well-being of customers in one of the fastest-growing markets. The vision is to be the #1 life insurance company for rural and semi-urban India, and to serve urban customers through leadership in protection solutions.

The joint venture aims to offer long-term savings and protection solutions tailored to the diverse and growing needs of India’s population, in line with India’s “Insurance for All” vision by 20471.

Combining Mahindra’s deep access and extensive distribution in rural and semi-urban areas with Manulife’s proven quality agency capabilities catered to urban customers, the joint venture will create long-term value by driving customer centricity and leveraging new technologies.

Upon regulatory approval, this joint venture will expand on the collaboration between Mahindra and Manulife in India, following the successful launch of Mahindra Manulife Investment Management in 2020.

The total capital commitment from each shareholder is up to Rs 3,600 crores (US$400 million). We expect each shareholder to invest Rs 1,250 crores (US$140 million) in the first 5 years.

India: A compelling growth opportunity underpinned by strong megatrends

The life Insurance market has surpassed US$20 billion in new business premiums, growing at a 12% CAGR over the past five years. Yet, India continues to have a high protection gap and low insurance penetration, providing significant long-term growth potential. These tailwinds position India to become the world’s fastest-growing life insurance market over the next decade, on track to become the fourth largest globally3.

This growth is underpinned by robust GDP expansion, a rising middle class, and a supportive regulatory environment.

Mahindra & Manulife: A very strong partnership

Dr Anish Shah, Group CEO & Managing Director, Mahindra Group, said, “Mahindra brand strength, deep distribution capabilities in rural and semi-urban India, and execution excellence make life insurance a logical extension towards our goal of building a comprehensive financial services portfolio. Manulife is the best natural partner for us, given its global capabilities in insurance products, underwriting, and reinsurance.

With a focus on leveraging technology, the joint venture will build an efficient, customer-centric insurer in India. We are confident that this joint venture offers a very compelling opportunity to create meaningful value for our shareholders.”

Mr. Phil Witherington, President and CEO, Manulife, said, “Today marks an important milestone as we seek to enter one of the world’s fastest-growing insurance markets – India. This will further strengthen our diverse portfolio and position us for tremendous growth in a mega economy of the future. We have a trusted partner in Mahindra Group, with whom we already have a successful asset management collaboration, and we see tremendous opportunity to build on our efforts by leveraging their deep distribution network alongside our industry-leading agency distribution and insurance expertise.”

“Insurance for All” vision by 2047 is an initiative by The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to address India’s protection gap and enhance coverage for the Indian population.

Following today’s signing, the Mahindra and Manulife teams will work together to apply for an insurance license.

Kotak Investment Banking acted as financial adviser, and AZB & Partners acted as legal counsel to the Mahindra Group. Debevoise & Plimpton LLP acted as legal counsel to Manulife.