Axis Bank, the third-largest Indian bank, agreed to acquire a 28.5% stake in Max Life Insurance, a life insurance company, from Max India, which is engaged in the business of investments and providing consultancy services to group companies, for $212m. Axis Bank expects the transaction to complete in six to nine months, subject to regulatory approvals. “We continue to believe in the long term prospects of India’s under-penetrated life insurance space, current environment notwithstanding. We see this joint venture creating immense value for our stakeholders given our long standing, high performing partnership with Max Life. We believe this transaction will allow us to deepen our working relationship leading to better integrated teams and infrastructure and a superior alignment in our approach," Amitabh Chaudhry, Axis Bank Managing Director and CEO.