BENGALURU (Reuters) -India’s Bajaj Finserv said on Tuesday that Allianz SE is considering exiting its life and general insurance joint ventures with the Bajaj Group, potentially ending a decades-old partnership.
“Allianz has indicated to Bajaj that given its strategic priorities, it is actively considering an exit from the life and general insurance joint ventures,” Bajaj Finserv said, adding that talks were at an early stage.
Bajaj Finserv holds a 74% stake each in two JVs, while Allianz owns the remaining.
Founded in 2001, Bajaj Allianz General Insurance is one of the biggest private insurers in India, while Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance is among the fastest-growing life insurers in India with assets under management of over 1 trillion rupees ($11.89 billion).
Earlier in the day, Bloomberg News reported that Allianz was weighing the exit due to a dispute over the direction of the partnership.
The report said Bajaj Group was not letting the German insurer raise its stake in the JVs at a discounted price, and Allianz was not given a say in strategic decisions.
Bloomberg adde dthat Allianz is now looking to buy stakes in newly established insurance firms to retain its presence in India, where the insurance sector has grown rapidly in recent years.
Both Bajaj and Allianz did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comments.
($1 = 84.0700 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Nishit Navin in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Sonia Cheema)
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