News : Travel Insurance UK

IPO in 4 group firms, insurance stake sale possible: ICICI Bank

Keen to create value for its investors, ICICI Bank today said it could make initial public offerings in four subsidiaries or sell stake in its insurance ventures once the government raises sect oral FDI limit.

The bank would take a call on the subject once the laws are amended to hike foreign direct investment in insurance sector from 26 per cent to 49 per cent, ICICI Bank CEO and Managing Director Chanda Kochhar told PTI.

This would help create value for the stake holders; she clarified while pointing out that ICICI Bank's share price had increased three times in the last six months to about Rs 750 a share. At this price, ICICI's market capitalisation is about Rs 80,000 crore compared to market leader SBI's about Rs 1.20 lakh crore.

"Still we are way off from the peak of over Rs 1,450," she rued but said that she would strive to do everything to add value in the group for the shareholders.

"In all these four (ICICI Prudential Life, ICICI Lombard, ICICI Securities and ICICI Home Finance) possibility exists, but nothing that we have finalised currently. So, nothing you would see immediately," she said, when asked about the time frame she envisaged in terms of monetising investment in these entities.

She, however, was non-committal on any preferential treatment for its existing shareholders in the IPOs saying they would anyway share the value unlocked from this exercise.