Mr. Bhargav Dasgupta - MD & CEO, ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd

Mr. Bhargav Dasgupta - MD & CEO, ICICI Lombard GIC Ltd

“The Finance Minister’s announcement on surety bonds as a substitute for bank guarantee is a fillip to project financing. Given surety bonds is an entirely new line of business, insurance companies would need clarity on various aspects such as pricing, the recourse available against defaulting contractors, reinsurance options and global best practices. As an industry, we would urge the regulatory bodies to facilitate changes to laws such as the Indian Contract Act and the IBC and bring surety bonds on par with bank guarantees regarding recourse available to issuers. This will help the industry approach surety solutions with much more confidence, but it will be even more a viable proposition for all stakeholders.”