Recently, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has officially launched the Bima Sugam portal, a unified digital marketplace for all insurance services.
- The launch was announced by the Bima Sugam India Federation (BSIF) with the unveiling of its official website.
About Bima Sugam
- Refers to: A one-stop digital marketplace for all insurance stakeholders—consumers, insurers, intermediaries, and agents—to promote transparency, efficiency, and collaboration across the insurance value chain (As per Gazette Notification, March 20, 2024).
- Under Aegis Of: The Bima Sugam Portal is an initiative of the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), which functions under the Ministry of Finance.
- Backed by: Life Insurance Council and General Insurance Council (GIC).
- Part of Bima Trinity: It forms part of the “Bima Trinity” conceived by IRDAI — alongside Bima Vistaar (a composite insurance product) & Bima Vahak (a women-centric distribution channel).
- Vision: To act as the “Unified Payments Interface (UPI)/Amazon of insurance”, providing easy access, purchase, management, renewal, and claims settlement for all insurance policies.
- Objectives:
- Empower policyholders with transparency and simplified processes.
- Deepen insurance penetration and ensure “Insurance for All by 2047” (Viksit Bharat 2047 vision).
- Enable end-to-end digital servicing—buying, renewing, storing, and claiming policies.
- Promote innovation and support sandbox/customised products.
- Build trust through secure, compliant, and scalable infrastructure.
- Key Features:
- Coverage: Life insurance (term plans, annuity, Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIPs)), health insurance, motor insurance, travel insurance, property insurance, agriculture insurance, and commercial insurance.
- Centralised Database: Secure policy storage and easy query/claim access.
- Low-Cost Model: Minimal charges; all insurers are members and equity stakeholders in the Bima Sugam India Federation (BSIF).
- Advanced Technology: Automation, digitisation, and integration with external data sources.
- Collaboration: Insurers, brokers, banks, and agents under one platform.
Unique Features of Bima Sugam
- Global First: World’s first unified insurance marketplace integrating life, health, general, and commercial products on one platform.
- Public Infrastructure Model: Functions as Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for insurance, similar to Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in payments.
- Industry Ownership: Operated by the Bima Sugam India Federation (BSIF) with all insurers as equity stakeholders, unlike private aggregators.
- End-to-End Services: Provides complete policy lifecycle services—purchase, comparison, renewal, claim settlement, and secure digital storage.
Insurance Sector in India
- Market Size: India is the 10th largest insurance market globally and the 2nd largest in emerging Asia.
- Penetration: Insurance penetration (premium as % of GDP) remains ~4.2% (2023), lower than the global average (~7%).
- Density: Insurance density (premium per capita) was around $91 (2023), reflecting large untapped potential.
- Structure: Includes life insurance, non-life/general insurance, reinsurance, and health insurance.
Key Regulators & Institutions
- IRDAI (1999): Apex regulator ensuring policyholder protection, financial stability, and sectoral growth.
- A statutory body formed under an Act of Parliament, i.e., the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999.
- Role: It is an autonomous body and regulates and supervises the development of the Insurance sector in India.
- Functions: To protect the interests of the policyholders in matters concerning the assigning of policy, nomination by policyholders, insurable interest, settlement of insurance claim, surrender value of the policy and other terms and conditions of contracts of insurance
- Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC): Largest life insurer, dominant market share despite private competition.
- General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re): State-owned reinsurer.
- Private Insurers: More than 20 life insurance companies and 30 non-life (general) insurance companies operate alongside the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) and Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) insurers.
Recent Reforms & Initiatives
- Bima Trinity: IRDAI’s reform package — Bima Sugam (digital marketplace), Bima Vistaar (composite product), Bima Vahak (women-centric distribution).
- Foreign Direct Investment (FDI): Increased to 74% (2021) in insurance companies.
- Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY): Flagship crop insurance scheme.
- Ayushman Bharat (PMJAY): Largest government-funded health insurance scheme.
- Digital Push: Use of insurance repositories, e-KYC, and InsurTech platforms.
|
Read More About: IRDAI
20 Sep 2025
.png)
GS Foundation
Optional Course
Combo Courses
Degree Program
