SBI Life Insurance today reported 52% growth in profit after tax (PAT) at Rs 556 crore during the financial year ended March 31, 2012 on account of operational efficiency.
The private insurer's PAT stood at Rs 366 crore in 2010-11, SBI Life said in a release here.
The company, which launched operations in 2001, has proposed to declare its maiden dividend of 5%.
"We attribute our sound holistic performance to the strength of SBI brand, efficiency and productivity of our distribution channels, customer-centric approach and robust multi-distribution business model.
"We will continue to strengthen our business practices to accomplish excellence across multiple dimensions of business," SBI Life Insurance Managing Director and CEO M N Rao said.
However, the company's new business premium dipped 14% to Rs 6,531.33 crore in FY12 from Rs 7,589.58 crore in FY11.
SBI Life, which ranks No. 1 amongst private life insurers, saw a 23% growth in renewal premium at Rs 6,602 crore during 2011-12 from Rs 5,339 crore in 2010-11.
The Gross Written Premium (GWP), or the total premium collected by company, grew by over 1% at Rs 13,133.74 crore in FY12 compared to Rs 12,945.29 crore over the last fiscal.
The Asset Under Management (AUM) jumped 16% to Rs 46,576 crore from Rs 40,163 crore in the previous fiscal.
During the financial year 2011-12, the company added 85 new branches and 618 employees. In spite of the continued tough external conditions, the company maintained the lowest "expense to GWP" ratio in industry at 7.8%.
About 22% of total lives covered by the firm are from rural segment. Further, 1,08,000 lives covered by the company are from the underprivileged social sector.
The company, a joint venture between State Bank of India and BNP Paribas Cardif, has an authorised capital of Rs 2,000 crore and a paid up capital of Rs 1,000 crore. PTI SM DKR ns