JBA Risk Management, a UK-headquartered provider of flood risk and catastrophe modelling, is set to launch a new office in Bangalore next month.
The move is designed to address the increasing demand from India’s insurance and financial sectors for advanced flood risk analytics and climate intelligence, as climate-related exposures become a growing concern for the industry.
The Bangalore office will be led by Mansi Kalra (pictured), who currently manages JBA’s Singapore operations.
Kalra will oversee both the India and Singapore offices, with the India team expected to expand to four members by year-end.
India’s general insurance market has seen steady growth, with gross written premiums reaching approximately ₹3.08 trillion in 2024, a 6% rise from the previous year, according to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI).
Property insurance, in particular, is projected to maintain robust growth, with industry forecasts pointing to a compound annual growth rate of 8.3% through 2028.
The expansion comes at a time when Indian banks and insurers are placing greater emphasis on climate risk, especially flood risk, which has been identified as a factor in rising non-performing assets.
Planned infrastructure projects across the country are also expected to drive demand for detailed feasibility studies and environmental risk assessments, areas where JBA has experience.
Kalra commented that launching the India office marks an important step as the company looks to strengthen its connections and improve its support for clients in a rapidly evolving market.
“Bangalore is the perfect base from which to grow, providing access to a wealth of local talent in areas such as data science, climate modelling, and geospatial analytics, as well as close proximity to the head offices of key clients and partners, including insurers, reinsurers, banks, and consultancies,” she said.
JBA Risk Management will also participate in the 19th India Rendezvous in Mumbai in January, engaging with clients and industry stakeholders.
In addition to its expansion, JBA Risk Management has released an updated version of its India crop catastrophe model.
The new version aims to help insurers better estimate potential losses at the crop and district level, responding to ongoing challenges in pricing and loss forecasting caused by extreme weather and localised risks.
The model leverages the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) to simulate crop growth under varying weather conditions, offering a more realistic approach to yield and loss estimation than models based solely on historical averages.
The updated model now covers 69 crop types across India’s two major planting seasons.
JBA reports that recent testing against insurance data showed capped loss ratios averaging 93%, with some states such as Assam and Haryana – outside certain protective schemes – projected to exceed 100% loss ratios.
