New Delhi: The government will include the largest insurance company in the country on the Stock Exchange at the end of March, the top official said on Thursday.
Draft papers for Public Offers of LIC PERSBUAL (IPO) are being completed and will be submitted with market regulators as soon as possible for their approval.
“The amount of LIC Disinvestment will be included in this year (budget) because we aim to register before March 31,” Department of Investment and Management of Public Assets (Depam) Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey told PTI.
LIC IPO is very important to meet the Disinvestment target set for the current fiscal end of March 2022.
The budget for 2021-22 has set a dysinvestment target of 1.75 lakh crore, due to RS 32,835 Crore collected in the last fiscal.
From Rs 1.75 Lakh Crore, Rs 1 Lakh Crore is from selling government shares in public sector banks and financial institutions, and RS 75,000 Crore will be the receipt of CPSE disinvestment.
So far this fiscal, Rs 9,330 Crore has been embraced through minority shares in PSU.
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) earlier this week reported earnings after RS 1,437 crore tax for the first half (April-September) from the current financial year, compared to Rs 6.14 Crore in the period last year.
The new business premium growth rate reached 554.1 percent on H1 FY22, such as the previous 394.76 percent.
The government in September took 10 trader bankers, including Goldman Sachs (India) Securities Pvt Ltd, Citigroup Global Markets India Pvt Ltd and Nomura Financial Advisory and Securities (India) Pvt Ltd, to manage the initial public offering Mega Behemoth insurance.
Other selected bankers include the capital market of SBI Ltd, JM Financial Ltd, Axis Capital Ltd, Bofa Securities, JP Morgan India Pvt Ltd, ICICI Securities Ltd., and Mahindra Capital Box Co.
Ltd.
Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas has been appointed as a legal counsel for the IPO.
The government is in the process of deciding the quantum of shares will be divested through the IPO.
It also contemplates that allows foreign investors to pick up shares in LIC.
According to SBI rules, foreign portfolio investors (FPI) are permitted to buy shares in public offers.
However, because the LIC law has no provisions for foreign investment, there is a need to harmonize LIC IPO with SEBI norm regarding foreign investor participation.
LIC to register on the Exchange on March 31: Dipam SECY
