ICICI Prudential Life posts higher quarterly profit as new business growth picks up

Icici Prudential Life Insurance

14/04/2026 11:32

April 14 (Reuters) - India's ICICI Prudential Life Insurance ICIR.NS reported a near 58% rise in fourth-quarter profit on Tuesday, aided by a pickup in new business growth and steady income from renewed policies.

Profit stood at 6.09 billion rupees ($65.4 million) for the three months ended March 31, up from 3.86 billion rupees a year earlier.

For the full year, profit rose 34.6% to 16 billion rupees, and included gains from the sale of its stake in ICICI Pension Fund Management Company.

Net premium income jumped 17% to 191.8 billion rupees. One-time premiums increased 46%, while renewal premiums rose nearly 6%.

ICICI Prudential is India's first major life insurer to report its results, in a quarter where retail policy growth is expected to be supported by tax cut benefits, while demand for market-linked products, where returns depend on equity market performance, is likely to remain subdued amid volatility.

"The recent '0% GST reform' in September 2025 has made insurance policies more affordable and our retail protection segment registered a strong 50.9% year-on-year growth in second half of FY26," said MD and CEO Anup Bagchi.

Analysts had expected momentum to pick up for ICICI Prudential Life as it shifted focus back to growth after prioritising margins over volumes in recent quarters, supported by a higher mix of protection and non-participating savings products.

Annualised premium equivalent (APE) sales, a key measure of new business for insurers, rose 9.4% to 38.30 billion rupees.

   Value of new business, which reflects expected profit from new policies, increased more than 21% to 9.65 billion rupees, supported by an improved product mix.

Margins on new business expanded to 24.7% at the end of March from 22.8% a year earlier, as a shift toward higher-margin products helped offset the impact of the loss of a tax credit that was removed following tax cuts.

Non-linked and protection products together accounted for 38% of APE, up from 37% a year earlier, while ULIPs made up 48%, down from 49%.

($1 = 93.1060 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Nishit Navin; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair)

 ((Nishit.Navin@thomsonreuters.com;))