Turtlemint Crashes Another 20%, PB Fintech Falls 8% On IRDAI’s Proposed Commission Caps

Investors saw their portfolios take a hit for the second day in a row as India's Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) proposed a crackdown on insurance distribution commissions. Shares of Policybazaar parent PB Fintech plummeted by as much as 7.8% to reach an all-time low of ₹1,115.10 on the BSE. Turtlemint shares, meanwhile, opened at their 20% lower circuit of ₹87.30, marking a new all-time low.

Throughout the day, PB Fintech fell by 5.12% to ₹1,148.10 and Turtlemint experienced an 18.84% dip, landing at ₹88.55. In total, PB Fintech shares have lost roughly 39% over the two trading sessions, while Turtlemint has slipped about 35% from its pre-sell-off valuation. The market turmoil started yesterday, following IRDAI's release of a consultation paper suggesting product- and channel-specific caps on insurance distributor commissions.

This initiative would reintroduce product-level commission limits after the regulator scrapped them in April 2023 and switched to an expenses of management framework. Under the proposed framework, the commission rates for insurance distributors would be determined by the product, distribution channel, and effort invested in selling and servicing the policy.

Open-architecture insurance distribution platforms like Policybazaar and Turtlemint's insurance broking arm would likely face lower caps compared to individual agents and other distributors. Industry experts have warned that the proposed changes could be far graver than initially imagined. Bernstein, for instance, called the commission cuts "much worse than imagined" and warned that they could disrupt PB Fintech's business model, particularly in health and motor insurance.

Investment houses have been assessing the potential fallout from IRDAI's proposed overhaul, with some predicting a significant dip in PB Fintech's earnings.