Cairo, Oct. 31: Aviva Life Insurance, which announced its expansion plans for the Indian market, is planning to more than double its annualised premium equivalent (APE) to Rs 600 crore in the current calendar year.

In simple words, APE is 100 per cent of the regular premium income and 10 per cent of the single premium income that insurance companies collect from their new business in a year.

Private life insurer Aviva’s APE was Rs 313 crore in 2005. As for the current year, the company has already garnered Rs 516 crore for the April-September period.

Meanwhile, the UK-headquartered Aviva has said it will expand its business process outsourcing operations in India, which currently employs approximately 7,500 people in its existing BPO operations here. The company has its BPO offices spread across Bangalore, Pune and Noida (near Delhi).

Announcing the company’s expansion plans which will be completed by mid next year, Aviva India managing director Bert Paterson said the insurer will add 91 branches to its existing network in India. This will take the total to 192.

Aviva India also announced its bancassurance tie-up with six more regional and co-operative banks, taking the total number to 29.

The company’s new bancassurance partners include Janaseva Sahakari Bank, Patliputra Central Co-operative, Kakinada District Central Co-operative Bank, Dena Gujarat Gramin Bank, Bardhaman Grameen and Ranchi Kunthi DCCB.

In addition, the direct sales force will increase to 31,000 financial planning advisers from the present 14,000.

Refusing to say how much it will invest in its expansion programme, Paterson said, “It is difficult to share numbers. It is calculated as part of our financial planning done in the beginning of the year. But it will be done in the 74:26 ratio as permitted under insurance regulations.”

Aviva India, which has a current paid-up capital of Rs 559 crore, earns nearly 70 per cent of its total income through bancassurance tie-ups. Meanwhile, industry data suggests, India contributes 15 per cent to the total premium collected from the Asian market through bancassurance tie-ups.

New premium income generation of insurance companies from bancassurance varies from 25 to 75 per cent in India.