At Marsh India in Mumbai, Managing Director Bill Jones said: “We are pleased to do business in India. There have been a lot of changes in India in the past two, three years when foreign insurers began operating and created additional capacity and additional choices for consumers.”

Patrick G. Ryan, Aons chairman and chief executive officer, said: “The Indian market is strategically very important to Aon, as many of our multinational clients are active in India through subsidiaries or joint venture companies. India is the second largest market in the world by population and is at the cutting edge of many high tech industries.”

“We look forward to providing our resources to the rapidly changing needs of indigenous Indian companies as well as our multinational clients following the recent liberalization of the insurance market in India,” added Prabodh Thakker, Aon Global Insurance Services chairman.

Marsh said it has already been offering reinsurance brokerage services to Indian clients from its London office for years. Now the firm will be able to deliver a comprehensive range of services such as risk assessment, insurance placement, claims servicing, loss prevention and risk control to clients in India, Mr. Jones told National Underwriter.

“We want to be here now and for many years to come,” said Mr. Jones, who pointed out Indias growing population of one-billion-plus people and the countrys economic growth, as well as a significant increase in premiums in its insurance industry.

Foreign insurance brokers have not been licensed to do business in the country until now because of the Indian Parliaments reluctance to approve an amendment to the 1938 Insurance Act to correct a provision that disallowed charging of commission by insurance intermediaries.

Some foreign brokerages, however, have had an indirect presence in India for some years because they operated in the reinsurance market liaison offices and alliances with local firms.

Under Indias laws, foreign brokers licensed in the country need to choose an Indian partner to enter the market and are allowed only up to a 26 percent stake in the partnership to form a brokerage firm in India.

Marsh Indias principal business focus will include indigenous companies, public entities and multinational companies. It will also emphasize specialization in power and energy, infrastructure, construction, financial and professional services, and credit insurance, Marsh stated.

Marsh India now has a core staff of insurance brokerage professionals in its Mumbai office and plans to expand operations to New Delhi and Bangalore in the near future.

“These plans demonstrate our confidence in, and commitment to, India's insurance market,” Mr. Jones said.

Aon said it has an existing office in Mumbai and has no current plans for physical expansion of the office. The broker plans to offer its full range of services throughout all segments of the country.

Aon said besides delivering insurance and reinsurance services, it would also provide consulting, loss control and safety engineering services in India.

Reproduced from National Underwriter Edition, March 17, 2003. Copyright 2003 by The National Underwriter Company in the serial publication. All rights reserved. Copyright in this article as an independent work may be held by the author.