IDRA asks 75 applicants for hearing in June 16-20
The Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority has asked 75 applicants for licences of about 10-12 new insurance companies to appear before it for hearing in June 16-20.
The insurance regulator made the decision to hear the detail business plans of the applicants at a meeting presided over by the IDRA chairman M Shefique Ahmed on Tuesday.
‘We have already finished the preliminary scrutiny of the applications for licences of news insurance companies,’ an IDRA source told New Age on Wednesday.
‘During the scrutiny process we have detected different inconsistencies in the applications. Apart from the business plan, the IDRA in the hearing process will ask for clarifications about their applications,’ he said.
As per the IDRA decision, only two representatives from each aspirant company will be allowed to attend the hearing.
The IDRA received 77 applications between April and May after it had sought applications for new licences in April. Finally, 75 applications were primarily selected for hearing.
The government has allegedly taken the move to give more insurance licences to ruling party high ups and businesses with strong political link ahead of the end of its tenure.
There are 62 insurance companies currently operating in the country, of which 44 are general and 18 are life insurance companies.
Although the IDRA has not made it clear about the number of licences it plans to give, finance ministry sources said up to 12 new licences for life insurance might be given.
Earlier, another Awami League-led government issued 11 licences for new insurance companies in 1996-2001, with three given on the last day of the government under controversial circumstances in 2001.
The present government also recently took a move to award licences for nine commercial banks to ruling party high ups and businesses with political links.
-With New Age input
