New Delhi: Disinvestment Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey Monday said the public issue of Life Insurance Corp is a success as the issue was subscribed nearly 3 times at close today. Pandey said he is optimistic about listing day gains. Investors bid for 47.8 crore shares compared with the total 16.2 crore shares on offer. Among LIC’s over 250 million policyholders, bids were six times oversubscribed.
Policyholders were offered a discount of Rs 60 per share while employees and retail investors were offered 45. The price range for the issue has been set between ₹902 and ₹949 per share and LIC is likely to be listed on May 17. In the grey market, LIC shares were trading at a premium of less than Rs 40, down from nearly Rs 100 earlier.
A clutch of foreign investors and several domestic mutual fund houses had bid for its anchor book which had closed on May 2nd. The 66-year-old company dominates India’s insurance sector, with more than 280 million policies. It was the fifth-biggest global insurer in terms of insurance premium collection in 2020, the latest year for which statistics are available.