Listing of state general insurers may be staggered.

 Here is why Two to be listed in FY18, others insurers' IPO to be done in subsequent financial years M Saraswathy (more) Special Correspondent, The public listing of five non-life general insurance companies will most likely be spaced out. New India Assurance and General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC Re) will probably be hitting the capital markets in FY18 while others will be listed in subsequent years. Last month, the Cabinet gave its nod to list five non-life general insurance companies as part of government's move to reduce its stake to 75 percent from 100 percent in the insurers. Oriental Insurance Company, National Insurance Company, New India Assurance, United India Insurance and national reinsurer General Insurance Corporation of India, or GIC Re are the five insurers who will be listing. “The aim is to complete the process of listing of at least two players by March 2018. Solvency and underwriting performance are the top criteria,” said a senior ministry official. The reasoning behind this more staggered listing process is to give investors enough time between each initial offer.

 All these PSU insurers will also have to deal with minor hiccups like convincing their employee unions and take them into confidence before the IPO drafts are filed with the respective regulators. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance  is the first insurance company to get listed on the stock exchanges. It listed on September 29, 2016. While it is trading at a healthy price currently, it had listed below its issue price of Rs 334 a share on both Bombay Stock Exchange and National Stock Exchange even after the public issue was oversubcribed by 10.5 times. After the Cabinet nod, the insurers have begun discussions to get a banker on-board for the Initial Public Offering (IPO). The timeline of the IPO will also be given by the government and once appointed, the bankers will take the deal forward. After bankers begin the process of valuation and take a decision on how much divestment of stake will be done, the respective boards of the insurers will meet to give their approval to the structure.

 Following this, the insurance companies will need to take an approval from regulatory bodies like Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi). Post this, a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) will be filed with Sebi for approval. Once this final approval is secured, roadshows will begin to gauge investor appetite for the IPO.

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