HDFC ERGO General Insurance (HDFC ERGO), India’s third-largest general insurance company in the private sector, announces the completion of the merger of HDFC ERGO Health Insurance (formerly known as Apollo Munich Health Insurance) with HDFC ERGO. Pursuant to approval of the merger by National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and the receipt of final approval from IRDAI, the merger was given effect to on November 13, 2020. The merged entity is HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company Limited.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Deepak Parekh, Chairman, HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company Ltd. said, “The merger of HDFC ERGO Health Insurance with HDFC ERGO General Insurance is a moment of pride for us. This marks the second successful merger in India’s general insurance sector, following the merger of L&T General Insurance and HDFC ERGO in 2017. It makes HDFC ERGO the one-stop-shop for all our general and health insurance offerings. Health insurance is expected to be one of the growth drivers for the general insurance industry, and with this merger, we are now a dominant player within the health insurance industry.”
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Oliver Willmes, COO ERGO International & Director, HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company Ltd. said, “The merger provides us with the opportunity to grow by increasing our footprint and distribution network, in line with our strategic objective to be amongst the top private insurers in our core markets. We fully believe in the HDFC ERGO management, which has done a great job putting tremendous effort into the merger of the two companies. We expect significant synergy potential based on our mature business practices such as high degree of automation and scale, leading to cost efficiencies and better operating ratios.”
Mr.Ritesh Kumar, MD & CEO, HDFC ERGO General Insurance Company Ltd. said, “We welcome the policyholders and channel partners of HDFC ERGO Health Insurance into our family and assure them of a seamless transition and enhanced customer experience with the combined expertise of both the entities. We also welcome the employees of HDFC ERGO Health Insurance into our family. Further, our existing policyholders and channel partners will now be able to access the wider product suite of the merged entity and the health insurance expertise and products of HDFC ERGO Health Insurance.”
Mr.Anuj Tyagi, MD & CEO, HDFC ERGO Health Insurance Ltd. said, “The merger of HDFC ERGO Health Insurance with HDFC ERGO culminates about 10 months of efforts to integrate both the entities. We would like to assure our policyholders of continuity of benefits, access to wider product suite and access to digital capabilities of HDFC ERGO. Our channel partners will now have access to the combined health insurance product suite of the merged entity.”
The merger makes HDFC ERGO the second largest private insurer in the Accident & Health Insurance business, expanding its product suite to 50+ products in this segment. In FY2019-20, the merged entity had an overall market share of 6.2% and an about 8% market share in the Accident & Health Insurance segment. The policyholders will continue to have access to the cashless network of 10,000+ hospitals. They will also benefit from the enhanced reach of HDFC ERGO, which is now present in 203 physical offices across 170 cities and another 250+ digital offices across the country
