The Ministry of Commerce and Industry is making changes in the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Policy to facilitate disinvestment of the country's largest insurer,the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), after taking views from the Ministry of Finance.
The current policy related to the sector will not facilitate the disinvestment process of LIC and hence, needs to be revised.
According to the current FDI Policy, 74 percent foreign investment is permitted under the automatic route in the insurance sector. However, these rules do not apply to LIC, which is administered through a separate LIC Act.
As per SEBI rules, both FPI and FDI are permitted under public offer. However, since the LIC Act has no provision for foreign investments, there is a need to align the proposed LIC IPO with Sebi norms regarding foreign investor participation.