Competition Commission approves Bharti AXA-ICICI Lombard deal

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Monday approved the acquisition of general insurance business of Bharti AXA General Insurance Company Limited (Bharti AXA) by ICICI General Insurance Company Limited (ICICI Lombard). The acquisition was approved under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002.

Marking a major consolidation move in the insurance space, the proposed deal was announced in August this year.

Pursuant to the proposed combination, the entire general insurance business of Bharti AXA would be transferred by way of a demerger to ICICI Lombard in consideration of issuance of shares by ICICI Lombard to Bharti AXA, an official release said.

The fair trade regulator in a tweet said, "Commission approves acquisition of General Insurance Business of Bharti AXA@BhartiAXAGI by ICICI Lombard @ICICILombard."

ICICI Lombard is a general insurance company registered with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and is engaged in providing a comprehensive and well-diversified range of general insurance products, including motor, health, fire, personal accident, marine, engineering and liability insurance, through multiple distribution channels.

On the other hand, Bharti AXA is a general insurance company registered with the IRDAI and is a joint venture held by Bharti General Ventures Private Limited (51 per cent) and Societe Beaujon (49 per cent). It is engaged in providing general insurance products, including motor, health, travel, crop and home insurance to its customers.