Max Bupa Health Insurance rebrands as Niva Bupa – The Hindu BusinessLine

Max Bupa Health Insurance Company Ltd, which is now rechristened as Niva Bupa Health Insurance Company Limited, has rebranded itself as ‘Niva Bupa’, Krishnan Ramachandran, MD and CEO, Niva Bupa has said. This stand-alone Health insurer will look to complete its brand transition by December this year.

This new brand identity of ‘Niva Bupa’ comes in the wake of change in shareholding pattern, with the exit of Max India and entry of Private Equity firm True North in 2019. True North now owns 55 per cent, while Bupa owns 44 per cent in the new legal entity Niva Bupa Health Insurance Company Ltd.

Also read: Max Bupa Health Insurance and Axis Bank enter into a Bancassurance partnership

“The decision of the new brand name was based on a survey and in-depth interviews with millennials and middle-aged customers. The term Niva is derived from a Sanskrit word that means ‘Sun’ — a symbol of hope, source of energy and positivity.” Ramachandran said.

“Following the shareholder transition of Max Bupa from Max India to True North in 2019, we are ready with our new brand identity as Niva Bupa. The new brand will stand at the intersection of financial services and healthcare to fulfill the needs of the people in India. The health insurance industry is poised for a monumental growth, and we will take our new brand identity to our customers with a renewed promise of protection and care. Our core purpose and brand ethos will remain unchanged,” Ramachandran added.

He said that under the new brand Niva Bupa, the standalone health insurer will continue to expand its digital and network presence.

Business goal

Ramachandran said that the company expects to become a ₹2,500 crore company by the end of this fiscal and is eyeing ₹5,000 crore Gross Written Premium (GWP) by FY25. Niva Bupa will bring over 10 million people in India under the ambit of health insurance by FY25, he added.

“The company grew at 41 per cent overall last year and this year in Q1 our growth has been in excess of 90 per cent. We have been able to grow with our suite of products and services. We want to serve our customer needs in these times so I would say, one brief highlight of the journey has been around growth”, Ramachandran told BusinessLine.

He said that the company had opened 50 new offices this year. Niva Bupa plans to take the total count to over 200 offices across the country in the next two years.

The company is currently engaged with over 70,000 agents across the country and has about 13 bank partners, who distribute its products through about 30,000 branches.

Public listing

On plans to take Niva Bupa public, Ramachandran said that there are no immediate plans to go to the public markets. He highlighted that the shareholders — True North and Bupa—are committed to bring the required growth capital.