Shares of PB Fintech, the parent company of Policybazaar, soared to a two-year high of ₹1,400. On Wednesday (April 10), the shares marked a 7% intraday rally on BSE. This uptick follows two significant developments by the company.
Firstly, ICICI Lombard, a private insurance major, announced a strategic partnership with PB Fintech. Under this collaboration, ICICI Lombard will offer its diverse range of insurance products on the Policybazaar platform.
This strategic alliance is poised to enhance both companies’ market penetration and customer reach, the companies said in a statement.
Additionally, PB Fintech revealed the incorporation of a subsidiary unit named PB Pay Private Limited. This wholly-owned subsidiary, as confirmed by the company through an exchange filing, was officially incorporated on April 9, 2024.
PB Pay has been established to facilitate the business of payment aggregation, with an initial paid-up capital of ₹27 crore, PB Fintech said.
In March, PB Pay was incorporated by the promoters of PB Fintech. The subsidiary was conceptualised to operate as a payment aggregator, aiming to tap into emerging opportunities in the digital payment ecosystem, as per PB Fintech.
The stock, which attained a record high of ₹1,470 on November 17, 2021, is currently trading at ₹1,360.30, marking a 4.14% increase as of 10:39 am.
Meanwhile, shares of ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company observed a 1% uptick, trading at ₹1,713 on the BSE.
Notably, ICICI Lombard had been absent from Policybazaar’s online retail platform for several years, making its recent partnership a significant development for both entities.
On the development, brokerage firm Morgan Stanley said it had maintained an equal-weight call on PB Fintech with a target price of ₹1,010 per share.
The entry of ICICI Lombard into Policybazaar’s platform is viewed as reinforcing PB Fintech’s business model. However, concerns about the company’s expensive valuation persist, prompting an equal-weight stance, the brokerage firm said.
In the current year, PB Fintech shares have surged by over 70% outperforming the benchmark Nifty 50 index, which has witnessed a 4.4% rise.
