Premature surrender and withdrawal of life insurance policies in India have surpassed maturity payouts over the past five years, indicating a growing trend of policyholders exiting long-term policies before their full tenure, according to data presented in the Lok Sabha.
The Indian government is accelerating its sale of minority stakes in state-owned companies, including a significant offer for sale (OFS) in Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) expected "very soon," to meet its 80,000 crore mobilisation target and reduce its holdings to 75 per cent in most listed PSUs by year-end.
The United Forum of IDBI Officers & Employees has voiced "profound concern" over the Centre's reported decision to proceed with the strategic disinvestment of its controlling stake in IDBI Bank to Fairfax Financial Holdings, urging a parliamentary review of the proposed sale.
The initial public offer (IPO) of SBI Funds Management Ltd was fully subscribed on the second day of bidding, receiving bids for 1.17 times the shares on offer, with strong interest from non-institutional investors and anchor investors.
State-owned Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has reported a net profit of over Rs 23,400 crore for the January-March quarter, making it the highest profit-making firm in the Indian financial sector during this period, surpassing major banks like SBI and HDFC Bank.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) is reportedly planning to launch its much-anticipated initial public offering (IPO), estimated at around Rs 30,000 crore, in September, potentially valuing the exchange at over Rs 5 lakh crore.
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) announced a significant 23 per cent increase in its net profit for the March quarter, reaching Rs 23,420 crore, alongside a rise in total income and premium collections.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) is set to launch India's largest initial public offering (IPO), estimated at Rs 30,000 crore. This mega public issue will surpass previous records held by Hyundai Motor India and Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), marking a significant event in the Indian stock market. The move comes as India's primary market shows signs of recovery after a period of slowdown.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) is expected to file its preliminary IPO papers with Sebi next week, marking a significant step forward for the long-awaited public offering which has been delayed for nearly a decade due to regulatory issues.
India's mutual fund industry has significantly increased its share of public trading in the stock market, widening its lead over the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) for the fifth consecutive year. While LIC's share of free-float listed shares has fallen to 7.42% as of March 2026, the mutual fund industry's share has surged to 22.92% from 7.06% in 2012.
Eight of India's top-10 most valued firms saw their combined market valuation increase by Rs 1,87,497.45 crore last week, with Bharti Airtel emerging as the largest gainer, reflecting a positive trend in the equities market.
The combined market valuation of four of India's top-10 most valued firms, including State Bank of India, Bharti Airtel, Tata Consultancy Services, and Larsen & Toubro, eroded by Rs 1 lakh crore last week amidst a volatile and range-bound equity market.
The Maharashtra government is nearing the acquisition of the Air India building in south Mumbai after the Finance Department transferred Rs 1,600 crore to the Public Works Department. The agreement with Air India Assets Holding Limited is expected to be signed within two weeks, providing much-needed office space for state government departments.
Male central government employees are entitled to 15 days under service rules and provisions in the private sector depends on the company's policy.
Shares of Indian life insurance companies, particularly SBI Life Insurance and Canara HSBC Life Insurance, saw significant declines after the Department of Financial Services (DFS) secretary, M Nagaraju, stated that banks are being asked to avoid exclusive tie-ups with their own insurance subsidiaries and instead remain neutral.
Indian insurance companies are bracing for reduced profitability in Q4FY26, primarily due to the rationalisation of GST on retail life and health policies, leading to a loss of input tax credit, coupled with volatility in equity markets impacting investment income.
New business premium of life insurance companies grew 18 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to Rs 35,417 crore in February, driven by robust growth at the state-owned Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) due to a favourable base.
India's privatisation push, once projected as a cornerstone of economic reform, has suffered another setback, with the Centre set to call off the IDBI Bank stake sale, highlighting the political and structural constraints shaping the country's disinvestment policy, experts say.
The government on Friday received financial bids for the strategic disinvestment of IDBI Bank, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (Dipam) said in an official statement on X.
'LIC will reduce but not fully exit its stake in IDBI Bank, which remains an important bancassurance partner,' says LIC of India' MD and CEO R Doraiswamy.
The committee formed under the Life Insurance Council to review the commission structure in the life insurance sector has recommended capping distributor commissions or deferring them to ease acquisition costs. The recommendations will be sent to the insurance regulator -- Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai).
The loss of input tax credit (ITC) following the rationalisation of the goods and services tax (GST) on individual life and health insurance from 18 per cent to nil is may weigh on the profits of life insurers in the third quarter (Q3) of 2025-26 (FY26).
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said the country needs big and world-class banks, and discussions are on with the Reserve Bank and lenders in this regard.
Both the life and non-life insurance segment posted over 20 per cent premium growth in November for the first time in this financial year (FY26), supported by the reduction in goods and services tax (GST) on premiums from 18 per cent to zero and a favourable base effect.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said that raising the FDI limit to 100 per cent in the insurance sector will help attract more capital, improve competition and increase insurance penetration by making policies more affordable.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday allayed apprehension that privatisation of state-owned banks would hurt financial inclusion and national interest. She said the bank nationalisation done in 1969 has not yielded the desired result as far as financial inclusion was concerned.
The government on Monday appointed R Doraiswamy as head of state-owned insurance behemoth Life Insurance Corporation of India
The All India Insurance Employees' Association has opposed the government directive seeking to open up top posts in the state-owned insurers to the private sector, saying this would lead to greater private influence and "eventual privatisation".
'The informal sector can grow at a 100 per cent rate -- we have to plan big.'
Canadian firm Manulife and Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), an Indian automaker with interests in financial services, have signed an agreement to form a 50:50 life insurance joint venture (JV) with a total capital commitment of up to Rs 3,600 crore each totalling Rs 7,200 crore.
The reduction in goods & services tax (GST) on individual life and health insurance premiums has been called a "landmark step" for making insurance affordable and inclusive. In a panel discussion at the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit 2025, Anup Bagchi, managing director (MD) & chief executive officer (CEO) of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance; Mahesh Balasubramanian, MD & CEO of Kotak Life Insurance; Tarun Chugh, MD & CEO of Bajaj Life Insurance; and Ratnakar Patnaik, MD of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), listed what else the industry needs to reach more people.
But selectively, with regulatory scrutiny and special approval, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
After overtaking foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) in market ownership, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) have further solidified their dominance. DII ownership reached a new all-time high of 17.82 per cent as of June 2025, up from 17.62 per cent at the end of March 2025, according to an analysis by Prime Database.
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries has retained its position as the highest-ranked Indian company on the 2025 Fortune Global 500 list, according to the latest rankings released by the publication. The oil-to-telecom-and-retail conglomerate has been ranked at No.88 on the latest list, down from 86th position in 2024.
Opening up the corner office is fine, but will the government be able to attract talent without giving a market-rate salary?, asks Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Equity markets this week will turn their focus on the RBI's interest rate decision, Q1 earnings from several blue-chip firms and tariff-related news for further cues, analysts said. Moreover, trading activity of foreign investors and trends in global equity markets will also drive investors' sentiment.
CPGRAMS -- an online platform available to citizens 24x7 to lodge their grievances to public authorities on service delivery -- has existed for close to two decades. But it has never been this active, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Promoters' ownership in private listed companies declined to an eight-year low of 40.58 per cent as of June 30, 2025, following a net share sale worth Rs 54,732 crore during the quarter, according to data from primeinfobase.com, an initiative of PRIME Database Group.
Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) reported encouraging results for the April-June quarter (Q1) of FY26. The net premium income of India's largest life insurer was Rs 1.2 trillion, up 5 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y), in Q1. Renewal premium grew 6 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 59,900 crore, while first-year and single premium grew 1 per cent and 4 per cent Y-o-Y respectively to Rs 7,500 crore and Rs 51,900 crore.
Some of the key names include: Maruti, M&M, Ashok Leyland, Britannia, Ultratech, JK Cement, Havells, Voltas, Amber, Metro, Trent, LemonTree, Indian Hotels, Niva Bupa, HDFC Life, IGL, Acme Solar, Suzlon, Swiggy, Delhivery, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance, Shriram Finance," according to a report by Motilal Oswal Financial Services.
