Max Financial Services: Focus back on fundamentals as Axis deal concludes

December quarter results propped up by single premium products, protection plans stagnating

The stock of Max Financial Services, the holding company of Max Life Insurance, has surged 24 per cent in the past month. Much of the gains were in anticipation of Irdai’s approval, pending for almost a year, for its deal with Axis Bank and its entities.  

With the go-ahead coming last week, the bank and its associates will hold 18 per cent once the transaction concludes. Now that the uncertainty has closed out, the focus shifts back to fundamentals. If value of new business (VNB) and VNB margins are the benchmarks to judge a life insurer’s financials, there’s little to complain