Buffett's Berkshire shuts insurance broking biz in India

At a time when Posco and Arcelor Mittal have shelved their mega steel projects in India, another global player, US billionaire Warren Buffett-led investment firm Berkshire Hathaway Inc has decided to close its online insurance broking business in the country.

These developments comes at a time when India is trying hard to attract foreign investments to boost the sagging economy.

Legendary investor Buffet's Berkshire had forayed with a much fan-fare into the Indian non-life insurance sector as a corporate agent of Bajaj Allianz General in 2011.

"We have received an intimation that our corporate agent (Berkshire India, a majority-owned non-direct subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway) has decided to discontinue their online model of selling insurance," Bajaj Allianz General spokesperson said in a statement.

All the customers sourced by them would be provided seamless service by an exclusive team set up at Bajaj Allianz General Insurance, it said.

The official, however, declined to give reasons behind the development.

Bajaj Allianz is the joint venture between Germany-based Allianz Group and Bajaj Finserv in which 74 per cent of stake is held by the latter. The company had a gross written premium collection of around Rs 4,000 crore last fiscal.

With the total asset size of $427.45 billion Berkshire Hathaway and its subsidiaries engage in diverse business activities including property and casualty insurance and reinsurance, as well as finance and retailing services.

Meanwhile, in the biggest foreign investment pullout, world's largest steel maker ArcelorMittal today scrapped its $12 billion steel plant in Odisha over inordinate delays, problems in acquiring land and securing iron ore linkages.

The development comes just a day after South Korean steel major Posco pulled out of its Rs 30,000-crore steel mill in Karnataka and the government widened its doors to foreign direct investment for a dozen sectors.

Steel baron Lakshmi Mittal-headed ArcelorMittal's proposed plant in Odisha was among the biggest foreign direct investments India has attracted.

Two other plants -- Rs 52,000 crore steel mill of Posco in Odisha and Rs 50,000 crore steel mill of ArcelorMittal in Jharkhand are the two other largest FDI India has attracted.

Both the projects are also facing inordinate delays.