ICICI Bank said that the sale of stakes in the two insurance subsidiaries by the banking group is for further consolidating its balance sheet as opportunities arise

ICICI-Bank-bandra_kurla_complex

ICICI Bank complex in Mumbai. (Credit: Sumedh/Wikipedia.org)

India-based ICICI Bank has divested a stake of 1.5% in ICICI Prudential Life Insurance and a stake of 3.96% in ICICI Lombard General Insurance to raise an amount of about INR31bn ($410m).

The sale of stakes in the two insurance subsidiaries by the banking group is for further consolidating its balance sheet as opportunities arise as announced during the release of its quarterly results in late May.

ICICI Bank sold 21,500,000 equity shares, priced at INR10 ($0.13) each of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance for a sum of INR8.4bn ($110m). After the sale of the shares, the bank’s shareholding in ICICI Prudential Life Insurance has been reduced to nearly 51.4%.

The life insurance business, which began operations in 2001, is promoted by ICICI Bank and Prudential Corporation Holdings, an indirect fully-owned subsidiary of UK-based life insurance company Prudential.

ICICI Prudential Life Insurance provides a range of products in the protection and savings category which are said to suit the various life stage needs of customers. As of 31 March, 2020, the life insurance company had assets under management of INR1,529.68bn ($20.11bn) and a total sum assured of around INR14.8trillion ($0.19trillion).

ICICI Bank sells nearly 4% stake in ICICI Lombard General Insurance for $300m

Last week, ICICI Bank announced the sale of 18,000,000 equity shares, priced at INR10 ($0.13), of ICICI Lombard General Insurance for a sum of INR22.5bn ($300m). Following the sale of the shares, the private sector bank reduced its stake in its general insurance subsidiary to about 51.9%.

ICICI Lombard General Insurance offers its customers with motor, health, personal accident, fire, marine, engineering and liability insurance, via multiple distribution channels.

In March 2020, the general insurance company joined forces with BharatPe, an India-based QR code-based payment app, to launch the ‘COVID-19 Protection Insurance Cover‘ for shopkeepers across India following the coronavirus outbreak in the country.