IDBI FEDERAL LIFE IN TALKS FOR 100% STAKE SALE

MUMBAI: IDBI Federal Life Insurance, a three-way joint venture between IDBI Bank, Federal Bank and Belgian insurer Age as, is exploring the possibility of a 100% stake sale, which would potentially lead to a complete exit for all three stakeholders, two people directly aware of the matter said.

IDBI Federal has initiated the process of hiring investment banks to manage the sale and received proposals from Citibank and Credit Suisse, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity.

“The company is seeking a valuation up wards of ₹3,000 crore, including a control premium,” said the first person mentioned above.

“Given that IDBI Federal has Ban cass ur an ce partners in I DB I Bank and Federal Bank, the sale is expected to attract significant buyer interest given the large captive customer base the company has,” the second person said, adding that the company expects bids from all the major domestic insurers, especially those not promoted by banks.

An I DB I Federal spokesperson declined to comment. Emails sent to IDBI Bank and Federal Bank were not answered till press time. Citibank declined to comment and an email sent to Credit Suisse also remained unanswered till press time.

An Ageas spokesperson responded saying, “we do not comment on market rum ours. We are however in continuous dialogue with our partners about the development of our JVs”.

In June, IDBI Bank, which owns 48% in the joint venture, said it would sell ₹5,000 crore of non-core assets this fiscal to reinforce capital.