The Singapore government has reportedly acquired a 1.5% stake or 1,64,30,820 equity shares in India’s ICICI Prudential Life Insurance Company for $111.5m.
The shares were purchased by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte from ICICI Bank, reported Insurance Business Asia.
Go deeper with GlobalData
In 2015, Singapore state investment firm Temasek purchased a two per cent stake in ICICI Prudential.
ICICI Bank now holds 51.40% of the ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, which is a joint venture between the bank and the British insurer Prudential.
The bank, according to the reports, in a stock exchange filing said that that the transaction strengthened its balance sheet.
It also sold around 4% of shares in ICICI Lombard General Insurance, its general insurance arm, through block deals for about RS22.5bn.
Earlier this month, ICICI Bank announced the plans to dispose of up to two per cent stake in the life insurance unit. The sale was anticipated to help ICICI Bank to raise around $174m based on ICICI Prudential Life shares price of $6.06 as on 13 June 2018.
According to data on the BSE, ICICI Bank owns a 54.88% stake in the JV while Prudential holds 25.83% shareholding as on 31 March 2018.
The remaining equity in the company is owned by public and institutional investors.
