A glimpse of our first office in Asia
As you have already seen, 2023 was a special year for us at Prudential: not only it marked our 175th anniversary but it also signals 100 years since our first office opened in Asia.
Prudential’s first international branch opened in August 1923 in Kolkata, India and it was from this first step overseas that the company expanded across the continent. With this special birthday in mind, Archive Manager, John Porter, found a photograph album that provides a fascinating insight into life inside this pioneering branch office.
Bound in a simple, buff-coloured album, with ‘INDIA’ handwritten in bold, black letters on its cover, the document contains a series of black and white photographs dating from 1931 to 1951. Most of the photographs are portraits of the various branches that were established across India and those countries that are now Pakistan, Myanmar and Sri Lanka. These branches formed what was known as the ‘India, Burma and Ceylon Branch’, with a head office based in Clive Buildings in Kolkata.
One image that stands out is the photograph of the company’s then General Manager (the equivalent of CEO today), Sir Joseph Burn, and his wife, taken at Ballard Pier in Mumbai on 31 January 1931. The photograph captures Sir Joseph’s stop-off in India on his way to Singapore, where Prudential was to open its very first office – the beginning of the businesses we have in Singapore and Malaysia today.
Two of the most intriguing images are of the interior of the Kolkata office. The first photograph, captioned ‘Calcutta Office from the counter’, shows a rows of hardworking clerks behind their desks.
The second photograph, captioned ‘Calcutta Office from the back’, takes us further into the office. This image gives an insight into the volume of paper that had to be meticulously processed by hand, many years before the advent of full mechanisation in the workplace.
The amount of paperwork isn’t surprising given the growth of the Indian business: by 1929 new business written for the year already exceeded £1 million (equivalent to £50 million today). The business continued to grow and its remarkable success inspired the company to open more branches around the world. It was only the nationalisation of insurance companies following independence that led Prudential to withdraw from the country in 1956.
In 1998 Prudential returned to India through a separate joint venture with ICICI Bank, establishing the Prudential ICICI Asset Management Company Limited. In 2022 Prudential increased its presence in the country with the establishment of PRU India Health which is focused on making health and wellness more affordable and accessible to consumers. On its launch, CEO Arjun Mallik said, “Prudential is moving even closer to fulfilling our Purpose – of helping people get the most out of life – by bringing together a talented and experienced team committed to making health insurance and wellness more accessible and affordable for Indians, in a manner that is meaningful and relevant in today’s world.”
It is fitting that Prudential continues to have a presence in India, where the company’s international story began 100 years ago. These black and white photographs provide a rare glimpse of those first brave steps overseas – the success of which paved the way for us to become who we are today.