Latest news with #Apollo24
The Hindu
3 days ago
- Business
- The Hindu
Bringing down costs, making our economic costs better to help drive profitability, Apollo HealthCo CEO
Excerpts: Medical inflation is often being mentioned about in the industry. In this paradigm, which product serves better – a co-branding card or insurance, considering you have also forayed into insurance recently? Mr. Balakrishnan: I do not see it as a conflict. A credit card is an emergency and convenience-driven device whereas insurance is a purely emergency device for which you have been paying for over a period. It is complementary and one of the reasons why Apollo 24|7 got into both is because card as a payment mechanism and insurance as a protective mechanism are very mandatory, and core to my business. They are not extra-curricular. In fact, they cover my proposition. Our aspiration is to bring in both the provider (hospitals, pharmacy, diagnostics and wellness) and payer (cards, UPI and insurance) under one umbrella. Thus, providing our customers both affordability and best possible services. That is how we endeavour to build our circle of health. How do you look at insurance and co-branding ensuring profitability for Apollo? Mr. Balakrishnan: Our pharmacy business is the primary driver. We do about 59,000-60,000 deliveries every day which touches 1,00,000 if you consider home deliveries utilising through our digital platforms. With respect to diagnostics, we test around 80,000 to 1,00,000 samples every month primarily from our pharmacy customers as well as independent customers. Finally, we do about 3,000 consultations every day. All of it pertains to our digital platforms and not the offline centres. So, this business is growing slowly and steadily unlike quick commerce - we are not growth on steroids. Our growth is built on a sustainable model. We start by focussing on top six cities, then the next ten cities and so forth. While we are servicing 19,000 pin codes, a big chunk of our business is derived from these markets. For me, growing my pharmacy, diagnostics and consult business is core. With credit card or an insurance ensure, I get more repeat business and thereby the core business continue to grow. The insurance customers also become my primary customers. In the sense that we would be able to give them a much better experience within the Apollo ecosystem and other hospitals outside it as well. While we earn some margins from the insurance business, for it is viable as a standalone business, we might not make too much money with credit card business. However, it is imperative to note that we do not lose money with the latter, for the credit card customers become a driver of growth for the three core businesses, that is, pharmacy, diagnostics, and consultations. What is the outlook for profitability? Mr. Balakrishnan: We hope to break profitability between the five units of business, that is, pharmacy, diagnostics, consultations, insurance and cards, by the end of this financial year. We have been bringing down costs dramatically and making our unit economics better. I believe this would help drive profitability much faster. Hopefully, by the third or fourth quarter we should be able to turn this around. As an entity we are positive but as a pure digital line, we are still burning cash. We should be able to eliminate that by the end of this year. How do you see the evolving landscape with quick commerce? Mr. Balakrishnan: We are typically compared with quick commerce entities experiencing breakneck growth and spending a lot of money. Although we would want to build a sustainable model because we feel healthcare is a long-term business and build a much stronger proposition. Although, consumer behaviour is changing with quicker ten-minute deliveries, and we do not live in a vacuum. Thus, we brought in the 19-minute delivery model. However, ours is also a much more complicated and regulated product. It requires validating prescriptions alongside adhering to rules for disbursing medicines. At this point, we have the 19-minute delivery service in top 6 cities and intend to roll it out selectively in others. This has genuinely helped us get better propositions. While it may not be economically viable at this point of time, but it helps get customers. Our focus has been to ensure that deliveries are either within 19 minutes, especially emergencies, or 90% within the same day. Thus, our underlined objectives now also entail quick turnaround time alongside authenticity, discount and accessibility. The faster I can deliver, I become more efficient, and it becomes a better paradigm. What purpose would the recently introduced SBI co-branding credit serve? Mr. Balakrishnan: A typical patient in SEC-A (top socio-economic class in India) would be spending anything between ₹30,000-45,000 on an annualised basis. If we were to take Apollo 24|7 as a yardstick, 27% of the pharmacy transactions happen on a credit card. Further, it is not more than 6-7% at the physical outlets. We observed more people are using digital means to make payments because it convenient and effective. Additionally, with credit cards one can push the expenses to the end of the month. Thus, the first objective was to consolidate the mechanism of payment for purchasers in a more organised way. Secondly, giving value to customers. Partnering with SBI drives better value for our customers. This would be by pooling in our (respective) resources and offering customers up to 25% cash back as savings. This can only be done through a credit card and not a debit card. With UPI as well, the economics would be sustainable neither for the bank nor for us. Furthermore, we are ascertaining that the savings, which is not just at the pharmacy outlet but overall spend, can be ploughed back. Imagine availing cash back and/or points on the entire spending and investing it back for health needs itself. The final objective relates to testing. This is to facilitate pro-active care especially in a market like ours bearing considerable potentiality for non-communicable diseases. We are putting in some annual tests free of cost as part of the proposition. How does the co-branding card help the overall business? Mr. Balakrishnan: We hope to spur the 27% figure on pharmacy transactions through credit cards to about 35-40% because this would help enhance our efficiencies. As for numbers, it would be a steady growth because credit card business also entails underwriting, that is, not everybody gets a card. We hope to touch anything between 7,50,000 to 1 million cards over the next 18 months as we build it slowly and steadily. We intend to target it to our existing customers and are not exploring anybody coming up. The objective is to reach out to our huge (customer) base and rewarding those who engage with us by providing a product that enhances value (for them) and present a loyalty tool for offering them better. Finally, you would also be able to build further value propositions by building a strong core. With respect to co-branding cards in general, does the proposition of deep discounting not affect the unit economics of a company? Mr. Balakrishnan: When this industry started, discount was the only product-market fit. Why would anyone want to learn a new mechanism of buying (medicines) digitally. While the coronavirus pandemic did serve as a catalyst, the paradigm was retained for the (assured) availability of trusted medicines, because the industry is unfortunately plagued by a lot of counterfeit and duplicate medicines. The Apollo brand affirmed trustworthiness. Further, the digital proposition ensured greater reach and trusted medicines were available at any point of time. What is also essential to note is that an offline store can hold 6,000-7,000 SKUs at a given point of time, compared to online where it could be about 60,000. About discounting, it used to be as high at 20-22% when it started off. There has been a constant winding down since then. At present, it hovers at around 14-16% in the digital space at least depending on varied retailers. The sustainability of the model however, according to me, would be in the range of around 13% weighted average. The co-branding card (referring to SBI) ensures a more seamless experience and efficiency. The cost of collecting cash (for deliveries) is very high. Thus, the uptake effectively brings down the cost of operation. It should also not affect unit economics if I am able to grow 30-40% with more repeating customers, instead, the unit economics would start looking better. However, beyond 13-14% in the industry, it will start eating into the unit economics.
Mint
22-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Apollo SBI Card Select offers huge savings on medical expenses: Should you take it?
Do you or someone in the family require regular medical support? It may be in the form of doctor consultations, diagnostic tests, medicines, etc. If yes, you can save money on these medical expenses with the Apollo SBI Card Select. The savings can go up to a whopping 25%. In this article, we will look at the features and benefits of this card and whether you should take it. The Apollo SBI Card Select is a co-branded credit card launched by Apollo 24|7 in partnership with SBI Card. It offers healthcare and wellness benefits across the Apollo ecosystem. It also gives rewards on non-healthcare spends like dining, entertainment, and travel, along with complimentary domestic airport lounge access. The features and benefits of the Apollo SBI Card Select include the following. Welcome benefit: The cardholder gets a welcome benefit of Rs. 1,500 Apollo 24|7 e-gift voucher on payment of joining fee. The voucher can be redeemed offline at Apollo Pharmacy stores and online through the Apollo 24|7 platform. It can be redeemed against medicines, Apollo private label products, FMCG and other healthcare products. Apollo Circle benefits: The cardholder gets complimentary in-built Apollo Circle benefits in the form of value back and savings. The benefits apply when transacting using the Apollo SBI Card Select at Apollo Pharmacy stores and on the Apollo 24|7 website/App. Some of these benefits include: Up to 15% value back on medicines Up to 20% value back on diagnostic services Up to 10% value back on doctor consultations The value back is credited as Health Credits to the Apollo 24|7 wallet. The value of each Health Credit is Rs. 1. Health benefits: You get to enjoy a 1-year complimentary Fitpass Pro membership on payment of the joining fee and doing one retail transaction. The membership gives access to a network of gyms and other fitness centres. On spending Rs. 50,000 within 90 days of card membership, you get a complimentary comprehensive health check-up. The complimentary health check-up can be availed every year on spending Rs. 50,000 within 90 days of card renewal. The reward points awarded on the card are as follows: 10 reward points for every Rs. 100 spent on Apollo 24|7 and Apollo Pharmacy stores. A cardholder can earn a maximum of 5,000 reward points in this category per statement cycle. 2 reward points for every Rs. 100 spent on dining, movies and entertainment, and travel. A cardholder can earn a maximum of 5,000 reward points in this category per statement cycle. 1 reward point for every Rs. 200 spent on other purchases Reward points must be converted into Health Credits on the SBI Card website and App. The value of 1 reward point equals 1 Health Credit. The converted Health Credits will reflect in the Apollo 24|7 wallet. The value of each Health Credit is Rs. 1. Health Credits can be used within the Apollo ecosystem, including Apollo 24|7, Apollo Diagnostics, Apollo Medical Centres, and Apollo Pharmacy. Health Credits can be used to pay for doctor consultations, diagnostic tests, medicine orders, etc. The Health Credits wallet balance will be auto-applied at checkout for eligible transactions. Milestone benefits: On annual spends of Rs. 6 lakhs on the card, the cardholder gets complimentary Noise Smartwatch worth Rs. 7,999. Airport lounge access: The cardholder can enjoy 4 complimentary domestic airport lounge access per year (1 per quarter). The cardholder gets a 2-year complimentary Priority Pass membership worth $99. Fuel surcharge waiver: The 1% fuel surcharge is waived across all petrol pumps in India. The waiver applies to fuel transactions between Rs. 500 and Rs. 4,000. The maximum surcharge waiver is Rs. 100 per month. When you purchase medicines from an Apollo Pharmacy or the Apollo 24|7 platform, you get two benefits. You get 10 reward points for every Rs. 100 spent. The 10 reward points are equivalent to 10 Health Credits. As part of Apollo Circle benefits, you get up to 15% value back as Health Credits in your Apollo 24|7 wallet. Clubbing the two benefits: Reward points (10% value back) on the card and Health Credits (up to 15% value back) on the Apollo Circle membership. When you combine the two benefits, you can get total benefits of up to 25% value back. That is an excellent value back on medicine purchases. Similarly, clubbing the two benefits on doctor consultations gives up to 20% value back and on diagnostic tests gives up to 30% value back. All these benefits will result in a lot of savings on medical expenses. As the Apollo SBI Card Select is a co-branded card issued in partnership with Apollo 24|7, it limits the cardholder to the Apollo ecosystem. The only way to redeem the reward points is to convert them into Health Credits by transferring them to the Apollo 24|7 wallet. The reward rate falls sharply when you use the card outside the Apollo ecosystem. Members who are already a part of the Apollo ecosystem will find a lot of value in this credit card. Others will have to move to the Apollo ecosystem to get good value out of this card. The joining fee for the card is Rs. 1,499 + Taxes. The renewal fee is Rs. 1,499 + Taxes. The renewal fee is waived on spending Rs. 3 lakhs in the previous year. If you or someone in your family needs regular medical support, you may consider the Apollo SBI Card Select. It gives benefits like healthcare discounts and value back within the Apollo ecosystem, a complimentary Fitpass Pro membership, a health check-up, etc. It also offers other benefits like complimentary domestic airport lounge access, complimentary Noise Smartwatch on annual milestone spend, reversal of renewal fee based on spends in the previous year, etc. Overall, it is a good credit card packed with powerful features and benefits. Gopal Gidwani is a freelance personal finance content writer with 15+ years of experience. He can be reached at LinkedIn.
Mint
15-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
SBI Card joins hands with Apollo to launch wellness focused credit card
SBI Card and Apollo HealthCo, which operates Apollo Pharmacy, have extended their strategic partnership to introduce a health and wellness focused co-branded credit card - Apollo SBI Card SELECT card. This one-of-its-kind premium credit card has been thoughtfully designed to address the evolving needs of today's health-conscious consumers, offering a compelling blend of healthcare savings and financial rewards. Customers can easily apply for this card digitally on the Apollo 24|7 app and opt to apply via SBI Card SPRINT, by visiting the SBI Card website SBI Customers can also apply for the card at select Apollo Pharmacy stores. The Apollo SBI Card SELECT cardholders are entitled to enjoy a rewarding shopping experience on transactions, including pharmacy products, health check-up packages, blood tests, and more through the Apollo 24|7 app and Apollo Pharmacy stores. Cardholders get 10 per cent back as reward points, and additionally up to 15 per cent back as health credits, giving them a total value back of up to 25%. Reward points can be converted into Health Credits, which are redeemable across the entire product range of Apollo 24|7 App and Apollo pharmacy stores. Apollo SBI Card SELECT card customers receive ₹ 1,500 e-gift voucher as welcome benefits, redeemable on the Apollo 24|7 app and at Apollo pharmacy stores. They are also entitled to Apollo Circle benefits that provide priority access to services and special discounts on doctor consultations, diagnostic tests and pharmacy orders on Apollo platforms. Additionally, Apollo SBI Card SELECT card customers also get a complimentary 1-year FITPASS PRO Membership, offering access to a wide network of gyms, fitness classes, and wellness programs, across India. Salila Pande, MD & CEO, SBI Card said, 'At SBI Card, we understand the evolving spending needs and aspirations of today's conscious consumers who are focused on good health and well-being. Our collaboration with Apollo HealthCo to introduce Apollo SBI Card SELECT card is firmly aligned with this need. By offering thoughtful healthcare benefits and valuable rewards, we aim to empower our customers to stay committed to their health and wellness goals, while enjoying varied financial benefits.' Shobana Kamineni, executive chairperson, Apollo HealthCo said, 'With the Apollo SBI Credit Card, we're introducing a revolutionary financial product designed to seamlessly connect health and wellness with everyday living. By turning everyday spending into health investments, we're making access to care seamless, intuitive, and affordable. It's our way of saying that healthcare should be earned, saved, and accessed just as easily as any other essential. This is the future of health—and we are proud to build it with SBI Card. Together, we will be the health keeper of the nation.' Disclaimer: Mint has a tie-up with fintechs for providing credit, you will need to share your information if you apply. These tie-ups do not influence our editorial content. This article only intends to educate and spread awareness about credit needs like loans, credit cards and credit score. Mint does not promote or encourage taking credit as it comes with a set of risks such as high interest rates, hidden charges, etc. We advise investors to discuss with certified experts before taking any credit.
Hans India
15-05-2025
- Business
- Hans India
Apollo 24/7 forays into insurance, credit card biz
Hyderabad: Apollo 24|7, India's largest omni-channel digital health platformof Apollo Hospitals Group, has announced a series of major expansions aimed at strengthening its footprint in Telangana and reshaping the healthcare experience through innovation, accessibility, and affordability. As part of its expansion plan, Apollo 24|7 has announced its entry into the insurance and credit card segments. With regulatory approval secured, Apollo 24|7 Insurance, a fully-owned subsidiary, will soon offer Health, Life, and General Insurance products, leveraging its AI-powered platform and rich health data to tailor coverage to individual needs. The company aims to generate Rs80 crore in its first year of insurance operations. Simultaneously, Apollo will also launch India's first health-focused credit card in collaboration with a leading issuer. The card will offer exclusive benefits across medicines, diagnostics, doctor consultations, and wellness services, targeting Apollo's 150 million users. 'Apollo 24|7 is on a mission to make healthcare more affordable, integrated, and preventive. With Telangana as a strategic pillar, we're driving the next chapter of digital healthcare in India,' Madhivanan Balakrishnan, CEO, Apollo HealthCo, told the media here on Wednesday. In a bid to promote preventive healthcare, Apollo has launched the 'Ultimate Health Challenge'—a pioneering initiative that refunds the full cost of health check packages to users who receive 100% positive reports. This effort is designed to encourage early detection and proactive health management. Since launching in 2020, Apollo 24|7 has rapidly evolved into a comprehensive digital healthcare ecosystem. Telangana, especially Hyderabad, has emerged as a key growth region, accounting for 17 per cent of Apollo's nationwide pharmacy sales. With over 900 Apollo Pharmacy stores across the state—500 of them in Hyderabad—the platform fulfills 4.5 million monthly pharmacy orders, making quality medicines available within 1–2 km of most residents. One of the standout achievements in the region has been the successful pilot of Apollo's 19-minute medicine delivery service, a first-of-its-kind healthcare quick commerce initiative. Over 80,000 orders have been delivered within this record time, and the company plans to expand this service across Hyderabad and eventually throughout Telangana.
Time of India
15-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Stocks in news: Patanjali Foods, ITC Hotels, Tata Power, SBI, HUL, Balu Forge
Markets traded within a narrow range on Wednesday following the preceding day's dip but managed to close slightly higher. In today's trade, shares of Patanjali Foods , ITC Hotels , Tata Power , SBI , HUL , Balu Forge among others will be in focus due to various news developments and fourth quarter results. JSW Energy, PB Fintech, Patanjali Foods , Cochin Shipyard , ITC Hotels Shares of JSW Energy, PB Fintech, Patanjali Foods, Cochin Shipyard and ITC Hotels will be in focus as the companies will announce their fourth quarter results. Tata Power Tata Power is looking to spend Rs 25,000 crore as capital expenditure (capex) in FY26 and the company is also keen to bid for two discoms in Uttar Pradesh, CEO Praveer Sinha said. Apollo Hospitals Apollo 24|7, an omni-channel digital health platform, announced its foray into insurance with 'Apollo 24|7 Insurance Services' on Wednesday. Eicher Motors Royal Enfield has posted its highest-ever quarterly sales, clocking 2,80,801 units in Q4 FY25, a 23.2% growth over the same period last year, parent company Eicher Motors announced. Balu Forge Balu Forge Industries reported a 123% year-on-year jump in its Q4FY25 net profit at Rs 63 crore versus Rs 28 crore in the year ago period. Brigade Enterprises Realty firm Brigade Enterprises reported a 20% year-on-year (YoY) surge in net profit at ₹246.8 crore for the fourth quarter that ended March 31, 2025. Shilpa Medicare Shilpa Medicare said Unit-1 Of arm Shilpa Pharma Lifesciences has received Establishment Inspection Report (EIR) From US FDA. The site is classified as Voluntary Action Indicated (VAI). SBI State Bank of India will consider fund raising of up to $3 billion via public offer or other currency in FY26 on May 20. IREDA IREDA filed an insolvency application against Gensol Engineering for default of Rs 510 crore HUL Hindustan Unilever received an observation letter with 'no adverse observations' from exchanges (NSE & BSE) on scheme of arrangement with Kwality Wall's India.
