In line with the disinvestment process, the government will reduce its stake in state life insurer LIC through an IPO, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced during her Union Budget speech on Saturday, February 1.
"Government will list LIC on the stock exchanges," said the FM.
This could be the country's biggest initial public offering in recent times, the government will list Life Insurance Corp of India in the next financial year starting April.
The proposal of LIC's IPO listing will be a big-ticket disinvestment proposal to push revenues of the government.
The current year disinvestment could not go beyond Rs 18000 crore. The listing of the company is going to be complicated as it has huge investments in real estate, art and equity market, which may prove to be time-consuming for valuation purposes, an official said.
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India's largest life insurer LIC's surplus for 2018-19 increased by 9.9 per cent to Rs 532.14 billion. This was the first time that LIC's surplus crossed the 500-bln-rupee mark.
