Bharti Enterprises, AXA sign pact for general insurance

Bharti Enterprises and AXA today announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to establish a joint venture company to launch general insurance business in the country. The two already have a life insurance company that started operations last year.

In the general insurance company, Bharti Enterprises will hold a 74 per cent equity interest while AXA will have a 26 per cent equity interest.

AXA, a global leader in general insurance, will enable the joint venture to tap into AXA's leading technology and expertise. Bharti will bring its strong local market knowledge, reputation and branding, and country-wide retail distribution network.

Announcing the agreement, Sunil Bharti Mittal, chairman and group managing director, Bharti Enterprises, said: "We are delighted to expand the portfolio of our insurance business. The Indian insurance market has been witnessing robust growth and we see tremendous opportunity in the general insurance segment. Bharti's life insurance venture with AXA has already commenced national operations and we are happy to further strengthen our relationship. We are confident of emerging as a top player in the country's general insurance market over the next few years."

Bernard Marseille, regional managing director of AXA Asia Regional Centre, said: "I'm very pleased with our partnership with Bharti Enterprises for general insurance in the country. This JV will enable both AXA and Bharti to develop a very strong business platform in India. I am confident that with our complementary skills, the partnership will penetrate the market to attain significant market share in the medium term."

The joint venture, which will be headquartered in Bangalore, is expected to commence operation in the second half of 2007, subject to IRDA, FIPB and other statutory approvals.

AXA Group is a worldwide leader in Financial Protection. AXA's operations are diverse geographically, with major operations in Western Europe, North America and the Asia/Pacific area. IFRS revenues amounted to ¤72 billion for full year 2005 and ¤59 billion in 9M06.

The AXA ordinary share is listed and trades under the symbol AXA on the Paris Stock Exchange. The AXA American Depository Share is also listed on the NYSE under the ticker symbol AXA.