Prudential set to buy 75% Bharti Life 3500/cr in India
Business
Prudential, a major UK insurer, is set to buy 75% of Bharti Life Insurance for 3,500 crore rupees to boost its presence in India.
Because Indian rules don't let a foreign insurer be a promoter in two life insurance companies at once, Prudential may be required to reduce its stake in ICICI Prudential Life from nearly 22% to under 10%.
They're asking regulators for 12-18 months to complete the stake-dilution process.
ICICI Bank backs ICICI Prudential Life
ICICI Bank, which owns over half of ICICI Prudential Life, says it's sticking with the company and will keep supporting it.
After the news broke, ICICI Prudential's shares took a hit but quickly recovered.
The whole deal still needs regulatory approval before anything changes.