
Westwood Insurance Agency to close its doors after losing a bid to acquire the insurance agency of the countrys largest coal company
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Westwood, the insurance giant, has decided to close the Westwood Agency for Commercial Insurance (WAIC) after the company’s bid to buy the insurance arm of Coal India Limited (CIL) failed.
The WAIC will be sold to CIL.WAIC will no longer be a part of the WAIC Group.
“It is a very difficult moment for the WAIS as the group is a key component in the commercial insurance market.
We have to find a solution in a short time frame.
The WAIS have decided to sell the business and we will have no involvement in the WAICS business,” said Sanjeev Gupta, chief executive officer of WAIC.
The decision was taken after CIL’s chairman, R.R. Rupani, and two directors, Vijay Kumar and Shruti Singh, informed WAIC’s board of directors that they were leaving the group.
“The decision is taken as a precautionary measure and is not related to any action taken by the board,” Gupta said.
“We have not been involved in any decision-making process with CIL and we have no knowledge about their plan to acquire WAIC,” Gupta added.
According to Gupta, WAIC had already approached the Centre for compensation for loss of revenue and interest due to the sale of the agency to Cil.
“We have sought compensation for this loss of revenues and interest for at least 12 months,” he said.CIL said the sale was a result of Cil’s decision to exit the commercial sector, and said it was “devastated” at WAIC having “unwilling to continue to operate in the same way”.
“WAIS was a key part of our commercial and investment portfolio.
The sale is a direct result of the decision by CIL to exit its commercial business.
As part of its strategic plans, CIL has been focusing on expanding its market footprint in the state.
Our decision to terminate WAIS was driven by the needs of the company, not the state,” the company said in a statement.WAIS is the largest of the state’s insurance agencies and has about 40 employees.
The company’s insurance division, which covers the entire coal sector, has been losing revenue every year since the coal ministry decided to cap the wholesale price of coal, at a level that would not cause any adverse effect on the state budget.WAI said it will now focus on restructuring its business and expanding its business in the other sectors, such as real estate and banking.