Echo Reinsurance has appointed Rajil Khare (pictured) as senior underwriter for the Indian sub-continent amid growing competition among global reinsurers seeking a larger presence in India's insurance market.
Khare took up the role on 22 June. Echo Re secured approval in March to establish a branch in Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City), India's international financial services hub.
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Echo Re's GIFT City operation is the company's first branch outside Zurich. The move signals a greater commitment to a market the reinsurer has served for more than a decade.
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India has become a focal point for international reinsurers as regulators open the sector to additional foreign participation and capital. The development of GIFT City has given overseas carriers a framework to establish local operations and work more closely with cedants.
The country's insurance market remains smaller relative to the size of its economy than many developed markets. Industry participants view that gap as a source of future premium growth across life and non-life business.
Swiss Re expects India's insurance market to grow at an annual real rate of 6.9% between 2026 and 2030. The projection exceeds expected growth rates in several larger insurance markets and helps explain why reinsurers are increasing their presence in the country.
India also raised the foreign investment limit in the insurance sector to 100% earlier this year. The change has added momentum to expansion plans among international insurers and reinsurers.
Khare joins Echo Re from Liberty General Insurance, where he served as senior vice president and headed reinsurance and commercial underwriting data analytics.
Before joining Liberty, he held underwriting and reinsurance roles at HDFC Ergo General Insurance. He joined the insurer in 2021 as assistant vice president for reinsurance and underwriting before progressing to deputy vice president and later vice president.
At HDFC Ergo, Khare managed reinsurance programmes across multiple business lines and oversaw commercial underwriting activities within the property portfolio.
He also worked at AXA XL as a treaty underwriter covering property, marine, casualty and crop business. Earlier roles included positions at XL Catlin and HDFC Ergo involving facultative placements, underwriting and data analysis.
Several international reinsurers have entered GIFT City during the past year. MAPFRE Re, PartnerRe, Santam, Kuwait Re, and ADNIC have either launched operations or announced expansion plans.
The activity reflects a broader shift towards local underwriting and client servicing rather than cross-border participation alone. Reinsurers have increasingly sought on-the-ground teams to strengthen broker relationships, improve market access and support business development in India.
Echo Re's appointment of Khare forms part of that wider trend. The move adds local underwriting experience at a time when international reinsurers are building teams and competing for opportunities in one of the world's fastest-growing insurance markets.
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