Edelweiss, Tokio Marine ink insurance JV

After Dai-ichi, Tokio Marine will be the second Japanese life insurer to enter India, report CNBC-TV18's Neha Bothra and Priyal Guliani.

Tokio Marine today announced a Rs 550 crore joint venture with Edelweiss Capital. In spite of being a late entrant, it sees immense potential in India's life insurance industry. Tokio Marine is keen to increase its stake to 49% if and when the foreign direct investment (FDI) cap is raised. But why is India such a critical market?

Hiroshi Endo, MD, Tokio Marine Holdings, says, "It's the fastest growing economy with a young population. India's GDP is also growing rapidly. But penetration in life insurance is low, so there is a huge potential for us to grow in India."

Meanwhile, Edelweiss Capital wants to tap into Tokio Marine's financial strength and its experience in developing markets. It hopes to bring its expertise in financial markets to the table. Rashesh Shah, Chairman and CEO, Edelweiss Capital, says it may take another year before this joint venture gets regulatory approvals from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority. By then, the company is working on getting its strategy in place.