Kotak Life Insurance, Aria tie-up to help nominees manage death claim amount

“We faced this problem during Covid-19. In the time of Kovid, the number of claims of all insurance companies had increased up to five times. With so many families going through their own challenges, good financial advice wasn’t easy to find. It was usually women who enrolled Insurance policies,” says Subhasish Ghosh, joint president (financial institutions, employee benefits, marketing and alliances), Kotak Life.

Two entities – Kotak Life and Aria – will be the first to launch a pilot over the next few weeks, where Kotak Life will also be involved in monitoring the process. The project will be led by Varia, an initiative by women RIAs who are part of Ariya.

“Generally, people misunderstand planning and advice to be just an investment plan. It is not just that, it is also about the logistics of getting the money through transfer of property, will, nomination etc. The second part is the woman or the person who is left out, what are the other types of financial risks they have. then comes the target and Financial PlanningThen you plan the investment,” says Renu Maheshwari, a board member at Aria and co-founder of Finoscholarz.

Ghosh says Kotak Life decided to go with Ariya because they wanted to work with an organization that would always operate in a trusted capacity.

RIAs charge their clients a fee and there is no commission-linked fee that clients are required to bear for any investment products.

Maheshwari says it may take about a year to implement a financial plan, especially if the family is mourning the loss of a family member.

“A widowed woman can be quite emotional in the beginning. So, the initial time is spent just talking, empathizing with them, letting them settle down. It is about consolidating finances gradually. Gradually, as we consolidate their finances, seek more documentation, etc., it is often the case that there is much more money available than they knew. It also helps them to gradually feel better and become more comfortable with the RIA. In the meantime, it’s okay to have the money lying in the bank Fixed deposit (FD),” explains Maheshwari.

So, will such customers be charged any fee? Initially, there was no intention of charging Ariya members any fees, as Maheshwari says the initial process is more about consultation and mentorship. “It is only when they enter into an agreement with an RIA that advisory fees will come into the picture,” she adds.