LIC 3.0: India’s Biggest Ever IPO Opens On May 4

LIC’s IPO will open on May 2 for anchor investors and from May 4 to May 9 for the general public, with the price band set at ₹ 902-949

Mumbai: The Life Insurance Corporation’s (LIC) initial public offering (IPO) will be  open on May 2 for anchor investors and from May 4 to May 9 for the general public.

Beginning of “LIC 3.0”, says LIC Chairman M R Kumar, referring to India’s biggest public issue, which will be in the price band of ₹ 902-949, with a ₹ 60 discount to policyholders and a ₹ 45 discount for retail investors and employees.

India’s largest insurer LIC is likely to list on the stock exchanges on May 17, a week after its mega IPO closes.

Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said listing of LIC is part of the long-term strategic vision of the government and will highly enhance the value of the corporation in the long-run.

“This (LIC IPO) is right sized, considering the capital market environment and will not crowd out capital supply given the current market environment,” Mr Pandey said on Wednesday.

Even after the reduced size of about ₹ 20,557 crore, LIC IPO is going to be the biggest initial public offering ever in the country, he said.

The employee reservation portion will be 5 per cent of the post-offer equity share capital, and the policyholder reservation portion will be 10 per cent of the offer size.

The LIC board approved a cut in its IPO issue size to 3.5 per cent from 5 per cent, the company said.

The government will now sell 20,557 crores amounting to a 3.5 percent dilution of its stake in LIC for ₹ 21,000 crore, valuing the insurance behemoth at 6 lakh crore.

DIPAM secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said, the size for the LIC IPO is right, given the market constraints. We want to champion LIC as a long term value creator in the equity market.

The decision to list took into account market demand, stabilising market conditions. Indian markets have recovered from initial shocks, while global sentiments are weak, Indian markets