Mumbai: Although analysts are upbeat about the prospects of general insurer ICICI Lombard General Insurance Co. Ltd’s initial public offering (IPO), some have concerns that the offering to raise up to Rs5,700 crore may have been steeply priced.
The ICICI Lombard IPO, a pure offer for sale, will see ICICI Bank and Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd sell around 86.24 million shares. The initial share sale values the firm at Rs30,000 crore at the upper end of the price band of Rs651-661 per share. The issue opens on Friday and closes on Tuesday.
The IPO valuation is a significant mark-up from the valuation of Rs20,300 crore in May, when Fairfax sold a 12.18% stake to a bunch of buyers, including private equity firm Warburg Pincus. The sale fetched Fairfax around $383 million (around Rs2,372.5 crore then).
“We are positive on ICICIL (ICICI Lombard) for long term as non-life Insurance sector in India provide huge opportunities for growth due to significantly lower penetration and…