he government is considering to introduce insurance bonds as an alternative to bank guarantees, Finance Secretary T V Somanathan said here on Tuesday. Somanathan made the announcement during a meeting between industry captains and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is on a two-day visit to the financial capital. ”Government is exploring on instituting insurance bonds as alternatives to bank guarantees,” an official statement said. Bank guarantees are usually asked for while extending a loan and typically require a collateral. An insurance bond is also a surety but it does not require any collateral. As per reports last year, insurance regulator Irdai was also looking at the option of insurers offering surety bonds in the context of road projects.