ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company Ltd.VNB +22.3%, margin 26%

ICICI Life Insurance, formerly ICICI Prudential Life, reported first-half value of new business of ₹1,283 crore, up 22.3% year-on-year, with a VNB margin of 26.0% against 24.7% for FY26.

Total premium grew 15.3% to ₹24,505 crore and new business premium grew 25.0% to ₹11,821 crore. Sum assured rose 30.1% to ₹8.81 lakh crore, protection APE grew 39.5% and protection reached 23.4% of APE. Profit after tax was ₹760 crore, up 26.5%, embedded value was ₹56,669 crore, up 12.2%, and solvency was 229.9%. Cost to premium excluding GST improved 30 basis points to 18.3%. Agency grew 3.3%, bancassurance about 5%, partnership 34.1% and group 39.2%.

Sidharatha Mishra succeeds Anup Bagchi as MD and CEO from 14 October, with strategy unchanged. Management said IRDAI's distribution consultation paper is not yet a draft regulation, that it is too early to assess its impact, including a proposed cap on credit life commissions, and that retail protection growth should taper in the second half from the 40% to 50% range. The company gave no growth guidance.