SBI Life to roll out co-branded product with United Bank

SBI Life Insurance Company will launch its first co-branded insurance product for United Bank of India's customers "" Griha Shobha "" a home loan risk product. It will shortly launch its unit-linked insurance product, which is a speciality of Cardif SA "" SBI Life's foreign partner.

SBI Life chief executive officer R Krishnamurthy said, "We are developing a home loan product for United Bank of India, which will be underwritten by SBI Life. This product will not carry SBI Life brandname and will have features specified by the bank."

With the proposed launch of SBI Life's unit-linked product, the insurance company has an indirect interest in the asset management company (AMC).

"We can package unit-linked with a mutual fund product provided it is within the group," said Gerard Binet, head of international at Cardif group of companies.

SBI Life will either build AMC expertise internally or could also use SBI Mutual Fund. In the recent past, Cardif's banking arm, BNP Paribas, had indicated interest in an AMC in the country.

Cardif SA offers risk products to various banks across the globe, where the product does not carry the Cardiff brand, but is underwritten by the insurance entity.

"We sell it to Citibank in Taiwan, GE Capital in Austria and Deutsche Bank in Germany," said Paul Villemagne, chairman and CEO of Cardif.

Operating with banks across 30 countries, the $10.5 billion Cardif is the 15th largest insurer in Europe.