Sahara Life rejigs shareholding pattern

Sahara Life, the life insurance venture of the Rs.6,000-crore asset-based Sahara group, is awaiting clearance of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) for its revised shareholding pattern.

The company, which has filed R1 form for an insurance licence, had stated that the entire Rs.100-crore and plus equity will be contributed by four individual promoters, Mr.Subrato Roy Sahara, Mr. O.P. Srivatsava, Mr. J. B. Roy and Ms. Swapna Roy. All the four are on Sahara Life's board.

Though such a contribution is legally valid, IRDA seems to have expressed some reservation on the individuals promoting the venture and their capability to infuse funds periodically, says Mr. Liyaquat Khan, chief executive officer, Sahara Life.

It may be recalled that the Sahara Group is the second group to foray into the life insurance sector without an overseas partner. The first one is Reliance Industries.

According to Mr. Khan, the promoters are planning to route the required start-up capital through other group outfits. Describing the company's business plan as "healthy", Mr. Khan adds that sales talent/agents will be tapped only from the group's residuary non-banking finance company, Sahara India Financial Corporation.

"The sales persons are adept in selling financial products and it will not be an issue for them to add a life insurance product to their portfolio," says Mr. Khan.