India’s LIC hopes to decide on health insurer stake buy by March-end, CEO says, ET BFSI

-Life Insurance coverage Company of India (LIC) hopes to resolve on buying stake in a health insurance firm by the top of March, its chief govt stated on Tuesday.

“I’m very a lot hopeful that inside this monetary 12 months, earlier than thirty first March, some choice might be taken,” Siddhartha Mohanty, the chief govt officer of India’s largest insurer, stated.

LIC will not be trying to purchase a majority stake, the CEO stated, with out sharing additional particulars on the potential deal.

“LIC won’t have a 51% stake. We’re exploring all potentialities,” Mohanty stated.

Competitors in India’s insurance coverage enterprise has risen in recent times as personal insurers have ramped up their presence within the medical insurance market to faucet into rising shopper demand.

LIC sells life insurance coverage insurance policies in addition to pension plans, investment-linked insurance coverage however no medical insurance.

If it enters the well being area via a stake buy, LIC will compete with the likes of Star Well being Insurance coverage, Aditya Birla Well being Insurance coverage, Niva Bupa Well being Insurance coverage and Care Well being Insurance coverage.

Individually, LIC has been in discussions with the Reserve Bank of India on the issuance of longer-term bonds, the CEO stated.

Whereas India points bonds with maturities of 20 to 30 years, and 40 years, LIC stated it eyes longer-term devices, comparable to 50-year or 100-year bonds.

“Our individuals are discussing this now and again with RBI, and they’re additionally contemplating this,” CEO Mohanty stated.

(Reporting by Siddhi Nayak, writing by Ashna Teresa Britto; Enhancing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)