Despite their economic and social importance, there are relatively few book-length studies of national insurance industries. This collection of nine essays by a group of international experts redresses this balance; providing an extensive geographical and thematic spread, linked via an extensive introduction.

Khuda Buksh, the Pioneer of Life Insurance in Bangladesh is the story of a wizard of insurance who believed passionately in a cause and dedicated his life to it. Buksh chose to serve humanity by sparking a movement in life insurance from 1935-1973 in three countries--India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh--even during political unrest. Revealing a forgotten era in the history of Bangladesh and Pakistan, this biography showcases how Buksh worked tirelessly to establish a life insurance business while overcoming religious and cultural prejudices against the industry. Furthermore, his passion, devotion, and unique sales strategies led him to train, motivate, and manage thousands of salesmen during his career. Buksh's leadership and management style, including business practices developed in India that he introduced to his homeland, East Bengal, are a huge part of the legacy he left. When Buksh became a manager at Eastern Federal Union Insurance Company Limited (EFU), he used inventive techniques to recruit and motivate his sales force and challenge the public's negative perception of life insurance. Finally, he earned a reputation as the country's most magnetic and dynamic sales executive and the wizard of life insurance. Drawing from interviews with dozens of contemporaries as well as years of research, author Muhammad Obaidur Rahim, who is also Buksh's son, traces the roots of life insurance evaluation and development and leadership strategies that helped the industry penetrate nearly every part of society. Along the way, the readers will get a close look at Buksh's involvement in establishing regional rights. For students and scholars specializing in South Asian studies or international business relations, Buksh's story provides a vivid portrait of political and social changes and demonstrates how the life insurance industry influenced a critical period in the history of the Indian subcontinent. The book may also interest professionals interested in studying executives and management techniques.

Originally published in 1897, this early works is a fascinating novel of the period and still an interesting read today. Contents include; The function of Latin, Chansons De Geste, The Matter of Britain, Antiquity in Romance, The making of English and the settlement of European Prosody, Middle High German Poetry, The 'Fox, ' The 'Rose, ' and the minor Contributions of France, Icelandic and Provencal, The Literature of the Peninsulas, and Conclusion..... Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900's and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwor

This book traces the development and analyses the performance of life insurance industry in India, since inception of this sector, using different business indicators over the years. It discusses the evolution and changing features of the Indian insurance industry in 3 phases: phase I from 1818 to 1956, phase II from 1956 to 2000 (known as the nationalisation period) and phase III post 2000 (called the post reform period). The book also measures the relative efficiency and productivity of the life insurance industry in India for the post-reform period, by employing Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA). Despite the fact that the life insurance sector recorded a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 17% in terms of total premiums and 21% in terms of new business premium collections during the post reform period, the insurers continue to grapple with the issue of profitability. Against this background, the book presents results on the factors determining profitability of the life insurance companies using measures of efficiency and competition. By helping regulatory authorities determine the future course of action in the context of entry of foreign insurers and also in establishing a level playing field, the book has important policy implications.

Contributed articles presented earlier at the National Level Seminar on "Recent Trends in Insurance Sector" in November 2006 at Gandhigram Rural University, Gandhigram.