Aviva Life Insurance and Centurion Bank of Punjab today announced their tie up as bancassurance partners.
- Covering 241 branches and extension counters
- Newly merged Bank to promote Aviva policies
- Reaches out to a customer base of 2.2 million Centurion Bank of Punjab customers
- All products including products such as LifeLong, SaveGuard, EasyLife Plus will be available to the customers of these banks
Aviva Life Insurance and Centurion Bank of Punjab (CBOP) today announced their tie up as bancassurance partners. Aviva has now extended its leadership position in the bancassurance channel with 18 tie ups, the largest number of bank partnerships by any private insurer in India. The company has increased its presence to 353 locations in the country from the current 224 locations.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Stuart Purdy, managing director, Aviva Life Insurance, said: “The tie up with CBOP is a major strategic deal for Aviva India. Aviva is India’s leading bancassurer with more partnerships and a first class reputation for implementation. Bancassurance channel contributes close to 66% of Aviva’s business in India. In CBOP, Aviva has found a partner with an extensive distribution reach and one that also shares the vision and values of providing world class products to its customers.”
He added, “This tie up further strengthens our position in the market.”
Mr Shailendra Bhandari, managing director, Centurion Bank of Punjab, said: “The tie up with Aviva Life Insurance will help us achieve our strategic vision of becoming a one-stop shop for all our customer’s financial needs. With this partnership, CBOP now offers its customers a comprehensive range of life insurance products. I am also happy that the needs based approach we will use assures our customers of solutions that are tailor-made to their individual insurance needs.”
All products including products like LifeLong, SaveGuard and EasyLife Plus will be available to customers through the CBOP. The business model with the new bank partner will be referral.
Aviva Life Insurance, one of the pioneers of the bancassurance model, now has 18 banks as their bancassurance partners in India:
Centurion Bank of Punjab, ABN Amro Bank, American Express Bank, Canara Bank, The Lakshmi Vilas Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Prime Co-operative Bank, Citizens’ Co-operative Bank, Jammu Central Co-operative Bank, Shree Warna Sahakari Bank, Rajkot Nagrik Sahakari Bank, Bhagyalakshmi Mahila Sahakari Bank, Ichalkaranji Janata Sahakari Bank, Sabarkantha District Co-operative Bank, Surat District Co-operative Bank, Ganganagar Kendriya Sahakari Bank, Krishna Sahakari Bank and State Bank of Sikkim.
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Notes to editors:
About Aviva Life Insurance
Aviva Life Insurance is a joint venture between Dabur and Aviva. Current paid up capital amounts to 320 Crores. Dabur are the 74% shareholder and Aviva the 26% shareholder. Aviva plc is the UK’s largest insurance group and the world’s oldest insurance Group, with a history dating back to 1696. Today, it is the sixth largest insurer worldwide, with 30 million customers and Ł291 billion assets under management. Prior to nationalization, Aviva was the biggest of the foreign insurers operating in the Indian market.
Founded in 1884, Dabur is one of India’s oldest and largest groups of companies with the group’s consolidated annual sales in excess of Rs 1,537 crores. A professionally managed company it is the country’s leading producer of traditional healthcare products.
Aviva pioneered the concept of bancassurance in India, and has leveraged its global expertise in this area successfully in India. Bancassurance has been contributing close to 65% of the total sales of Aviva India. Through its branches and its bancassurance partner locations, Aviva products are available in 353 towns and cities across India.
Aviva’s products have been designed in a manner to provide customers flexibility, transparency and value for money. We have been among the first companies to introduce unit linked products in the market.
Aviva has a unique need based sales approach through the “financial health check” (FHC). The FHC is a free service administered by our FPAs (financial planning advisers) for a need-based analysis of the customer’s long-term savings and insurance needs. Depending on the life stage and earnings of the customer, the financial health check assesses and recommends the right insurance product for them.
Aviva is also keen to reach out to the underprivileged that have not had access to insurance so far. Through its association with BASIX (a micro financial institution) and other NGOs, it has been able to cover lakhs of lives.
About Centurion Bank of Punjab
Centurion Bank of Punjab is a new generation private sector bank offering a wide spectrum of retail and corporate banking products and services. It holds leadership positions in retail two-wheeler loans and commercial vehicle loans. It has been among the earliest banks to offer a technology-enabled customer interface that provides easy access and superior customer service. A globally experienced management team is in place, including Mr Rana Talwar as the chairman of the board of directors and Mr Shailendra Bhandari as the managing director. In addition to being listed on the major Indian stock exchanges, the bank’s shares are also listed on the Luxembourg Stock Exchange.
RBI has approved the merger between Centurion Bank and Bank of Punjab effective from 1 October 2005. The merged entity, named Centurion Bank of Punjab, has a strong nationwide franchise of 240 branches and extension counters and 386 ATMs. With strengths in the retail, SME and agriculture businesses the bank is well poised to capture the opportunities that exist in the Indian market. The combined bank’s 3,500 employees will continue to provide support and an enhanced banking experience to our customers, as part of a bigger, stronger bank.