Japan's largest life-insurer, Nippon Life is eyeing 26 per cent stake in Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Life Insurance Co.
The planned deal will reduce Reliance Capital's stake in Reliance Life Insurance to 51 per cent from 74 per cent.
The Prime Minister's visit to Japan reinforces the strategic focus of global partnership between India and Japan.
Insurance behemoth Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is the fourth largest insurer in the world, according to a ranking based on life and accident & health reserves of companies in 2022 by S&P Global Market Intelligence. The state-owned insurer is ranked after Allianz SE, China Life Insurance Company, and Nippon Life Insurance Company. According to the report, LIC's reserves stood at $503.7 billion. Germany's Allianz SE ($750.20 billion), China Life Insurance Company ($616.90 billion) and Nippon Life Insurance Company ($536.80 billion) are the top three insurance companies in the world.
Readying itself for a bank licence, Anil Ambani-led group's Reliance Capital on Wednesday said Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Bank and Nippon Life would become its strategic partners in the proposed banking venture, with each having 4-5 per cent stake.
The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group's financial services arm Reliance Capital on Friday said it has received approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for its proposed 26 per cent stake sale in Reliance Life Insurance to Japan's Nippon Life.
While most analysts had valued Reliance Capital's stake in Reliance Life Insurance at Rs. 285 per share, or about Rs. 7,000 crore, this deal values it at Rs. 468 per share of Reliance Capital, which is a huge premium.
The Piramal group and Zurich Insurance have decided to jointly bid for Reliance General Insurance, a subsidiary of Reliance Capital. The groups had earlier submitted separate bids for the general insurance business of bankrupt Reliance Capital. Both Piramal and Zurich will hold 50 per cent each in the proposed special purpose vehicle (SPV).
Deal with current owner Exide may be signed next week
If they act now, they can reshape the strategic map of Asia without firing a shot. If they wait, the next opportunity will come only after a serious Taiwan Strait incident -- by which time the price will be far higher, and the room for boldness far smaller -- the opportunity may well be lost by then. The question is no longer whether this can or should be done, points out Varun Arya.
The Anil Ambani Group's financial services arm Reliance Capital on Wednesday said it has received in-principle approval from insurance sector regulator Insurance Regulatory Development Authority for its proposed 26 per cent stake sale in Reliance Life Insurance to Japan's Nippon Life.
Reliance Capital Ltd (RCL), part of the debt-ridden Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Group, has received 10 more bids, including from SBI Life, for its subsidiaries, sources said. Earlier this month, the Committee of Debenture Holders had extended the last date for submission of expression of interest (EoI) to December 17, 2020. Following this, 10 new bids have come in for Reliance Capital's assets, taking the total number of bids to 70, the sources said.
"This is a huge positive and is expected to bring in $8-10 bn capital in the industry."
RCap had proprietary investment book of Rs 2,000 crore (Rs 20 billion) as on end-March and owns stake in a host of companies.
In the largest foreign investment in life insurance after the Reliance-Nippon deal last year, Japan's Mitsui Sumitomo (a unit of MS&AD Insurance Group Holdings) will buy 26 per cent stake in Max New York Life (MYNL) for Rs 2,731 crore (Rs 27.31 billion).
The company also expects to benefit in its proposed banking foray through partnership with Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank and Nippon Life Insurance
The Sensex ended up 48 points at 28,386 and the Nifty gained 13 points to close at 8,476.
Exuding confidence in setting up a profitable banking venture, industrialist Anil Ambani on Tuesday said the proposed bank will help lower Reliance Capital's debt to one-fourth of current levels and would be listed as a separate entity in three years.
Licence winners are expected to be announced by the first quarter of 2014.
