Budget 2022 | FM Nirmala Sitharaman says LIC IPO expected shortly

The initial public offering of Life Insurance Corporation of India is expected shortly, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told the Parliament while presenting the Union Budget for 2022-23.

The much-awaited IPO of the life insurance behemoth is expected to be one of the biggest in the country, with the government aiming to raise close to $12 billion by selling a minority stake to the public.

Also read: India seeks regulatory fast track for LIC as it gears up for the country's biggest IPO

Recently Bloomberg reported that the government is looking for a valuation of $203 billion for the life insurance giant, which will make it the second-largest listed company by market capitalisation.

The government is said to be mulling a two-part IPO of LIC due to apprehensions over the equity market's ability to absorb such a large primary issue at one go.

LIC, book managers, and government officials have reportedly been working to file the draft red herring prospectus of the life insurer, which was earlier expected to be filed last month.

Also see: Budget LIVE updates