LIC IPO latest: Centre expected to launch issue in last week of April, check price, issue date, size here

The initial public offering (IPO) of Life India Corporation of India (LIC) is expected to be launched in the last week of April. According to reports, the Union government is also considering to increase the stake on offer.

The Centre has suggested mid or end of April as the date for the public issue to the top ministers' panel. The panel, which includes include Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Road, Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, will soon give the go ahead to officials for the IPO.

LIC IPO Date:

Currently, all top investors are patiently waiting for the much-awaited public issue of the Indian markets, which is expected to be the largest in Indian history. According to a News18 report, the embedded value of LIC has been calculated at Rs 5.39 lakh crore as of 30 September, 2021. The valuation of the LIC public issue is expected to be three to five times that of the embedded value.

Furthermore, the government had planned to launch the LIC IPO by 31 March earlier. But the war between Russia and Ukraine, resulting in unexpected volatility in the stock market, forced the government to push back the timeline. However, reports state that the government is likely to launch the LIC IPO between 25 to 29 April.

Other details:
The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) will be meeting few investment bankers to discuss the matter today, according to CNBC-TV18. The government can file the updated draft with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) only after the meeting.

The Centre is aiming to raise around Rs 60,000 crore by selling its 5 percent stake in LIC. It can sell up to 7.5 percent stake in the corporation without seeking an exemption from the stock market regulator, as per reports. The government may decide to offload stake between 5.5 percent and 6.5 percent of its stake.

The Centre has kept aside approximately 50 percent of LIC IPO for the Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIB). For Non-Institutional Investors (NII), the reserved portion will be around 15 percent of the shares, while the retail quota of LIC IPO is fixed at 35 percent of the offer. Meanwhile, one-third of the anchor investor portion will be reserved for domestic mutual funds.

Additionally, 5 percent of the issue will be reserved for employees and 10 percent for policyholders. Employees and policyholders will get a chance to book their slot in the LIC IPO at a discounted price.