Ample opportunities as India’s re/insurance market at inflection point: Policybazaar’s Mathur

India’s risk transfer market is at an inflection point, as reinsurance infrastructure in the country lags the evolution of the rapidly expanding primary insurance market, creating opportunities for new ideas and models, according to Tarun Mathur, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer, Policybazaar.

Founded in 2008, Policybazaar is an insurance and reinsurance broker and India’s one stop destination online for all types of insurance products, and with a more than 90% market share and having sold more than 42 million policies since its inception, the company has a deep understanding of India’s growing re/insurance industry.

In light of recent regulatory changes in the region and rising insurance penetration, which is creating more demand for reinsurance protection, Reinsurance News spoke with the broker’s Co-founder about the outlook for India’s risk transfer space.

“India is at an inflection point—its insurance market is expanding rapidly, but reinsurance infrastructure hasn’t quite evolved at the same pace. That’s where we see an opportunity,” said Mathur.

Mathur explained that as Indian businesses become more digitally driven and increasingly risk-aware, Policybazaar helps insurers expand coverage across industries with tailored plans, supporting broader risk appetite and improved pricing, with reinsurance expected to play a key role in fuelling the next wave of growth.

“The idea is to give insurers the confidence to underwrite everything from logistics and healthcare to IT services and infrastructure,” said Mathur.

Support for emerging risk classes and enabling long-tail risk coverage is also part of the firm’s remit.
“Covers like cyber, liability, PI, and parametric are becoming mainstream. Reinsurers play a big part in making these scalable. Sectors like manufacturing or construction need long-term liability support—reinsurance makes these sustainable,” he said.

Additionally, “data-led underwriting, and better insights on risk, usage, and claims trends can allow reinsurers to price smarter, even in traditionally underpenetrated sectors,” continued Mathur.

Last year, the broker received an updated license from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to include reinsurance services to its established clientele.

Mathur provided some insights into the opportunities as the company positions itself to cater to a larger audience.
This includes Reinsurance-as-a-Service (RaaS) for all portfolios. “We’ve built a tech-first reinsurance model designed for India’s massive economy: simple, modular, and easy to plug into, something the market will appreciate,” explained Mathur.

Reducing friction in the value chain is another area Mathur sees an opportunity, revealing that the company is “streamlining what has historically been a very manual market with more clerical than analytical work,” with “faster quotes, structured information, and greater transparency.”

Further, Policybazaar is co-creating products with reinsurers. “With insights from thousands of Indian businesses, we help global reinsurers localise products and pricing strategies. Our strength lies in data visibility, last-mile servicing, and claims digitisation,” Mathur told Reinsurance News.

Currently, the Indian regulatory direction is forward-looking so is very open to innovation, global participation, and digital enablement.

“As the market evolves, continued progress on faster approvals, sandbox access, and support for tech-first models will be key,” explained Mathur. “There is currently a lot of talk on the regulations and the push towards FRBs. But this is a healthy movement as it encourages more and more reinsurers to set up shop in India. Plus, there are benefits to be had using the GIFT city route which each reinsurance company must consider.”

“Overall, with the economic growth foreseen and the increased hunger for capacity, regulations will also see changes enabling ease of business whilst keeping security and solvency in check. Recent IRDAI reforms, such as reduced capital requirements for FRBs, simplified reinsurance program norms, and alignment with IFSCA and signal a clear intent to make India a global reinsurance hub,” he continued.

Given this interview took place shortly after the April 1st, 2025, reinsurance renewals, a key renewal date for the Indian market, we also questioned Mathur on the outcome of this year’s renewals in India.

“This year’s renewals reflected a shift—towards innovation, diversification, and faster execution,” he stated.

He went on to explain that the April 2025 renewals gave more importance to structured and layered programs, as insurers are moving towards reinsurance designs that reflect the diversified nature of corporate India.

There was also a notable shift from just catastrophes to broader risk focus, including cyber, health, and commercial liability, which, as classes got more attention this renewal, reflected a clear change in priorities.

According to Mathur, one of the key things that stood out in the April renewals for India was the digital readiness of the reinsurers, those with strong tech capabilities and local insights gained ground.

Since the Indian market is no different from its international counterparts, the appetite for co-innovation was greatly appreciated. Both global and domestic reinsurers showed interest in building bespoke solutions for Indian corporates, explained Mathur.

To end, Reinsurance News asked Mathur for his outlook for the Indian reinsurance market over the next 12-24 months.

“We’re headed into a more specialised, data-driven phase of reinsurance—with plenty of room for new ideas and models,” said Mathur.

He highlighted growth across business segments as “startups need lean, modular products, large corporates need comprehensive programs,” emphasising that reinsurance supports both ends.

Mathur stressed that domestic reinsurers are evolving fast, noting that Policybazaar is “excited to work alongside” homegrown players that are increasingly investing in technology and sector expertise.

At the same time, he expects that “brokers, insurers, and reinsurers will collaborate more closely to create faster, smarter, and more sustainable solutions.”

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India’s risk transfer market is at an inflection point, as reinsurance infrastructure in the country lags the evolution of the rapidly expanding primary insurance market, creating opportunities for new ideas and models, according to Tarun Mathur, Co-founder and Chief Business Officer, Policybazaar. Founded in 2008, Policybazaar is an insurance and reinsurance broker and India’s one…