Bupa acquires additional 23% stake in Max Bupa

CHENNAI: Max Bupa Health Insurance (Max Bupa) on Monday announced that its foreign partner Bupa has executed agreements to acquire an additional 23% stake in Max Bupa.
Bupa will pay around Rs 191 crore to Max India in an all cash transaction, to increase its stake in Max Bupa from 26% to 49%.
Bupa was one of the first insurers to announce its intent to increase its stake to 49% in its Indian health insurance subsidiary after the Government of India relaxed FDI (foreign direct investment) participation rules for insurance companies.
Since that announcement in January 2015, Bupa and Max India have been working to align their joint venture agreements with the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill 2015 for Indian-owned and controlled businesses.
The new agreement is expected to come into force after the requisite regulatory clearances have been secured from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) and the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).
Launched in 2010, Max Bupa has a customer base of more than two million across India. Its local parent Max India is one of India’s leading multi-business corporates and currently owns 74% of Max Bupa. Its foreign parent Bupa is a UK-headquartered global healthcare group, which holds 26% stake in the company.
“Bupa’s stake increase is a clear affirmation of the huge growth opportunity for health insurance in India. The cash received from the transaction will support growth aspirations of the Max Group as well as for Max Bupa,” said Rahul Khosla, managing director of Max India.
"We see enormous opportunity in India to build on the great foundations of the last few years and use our global expertise to take the business to the next level. We are committed to growing an insurance business,” said David Fletcher, managing director, international development markets.