LIC plans to invest Rs 2,00,000cr across asset classes in FY11

State-owned insurance giant, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) plans to invest Rs 2,00,000 crore across asset classes in FY11, up from the Rs 1,92,000 crore last fiscal.

"We have internally targeted to invest Rs two lakh crore across asset classes by end-this fiscal," LIC's Chairman T S Vijayan told reporters here after announcing a valuation surplus on investments of over Rs 23,000 crore last fiscal.

The targeted premium collection for the year is Rs 2,01,000 crore, he said.

In the first quarter of 2010-11, LIC invested Rs 39,000 crore, of which Rs 10,000 crore was in equities, he said.

Vijayan, however, refused to give the equity component of the targeted Rs 2,00,000 crore investment, saying it depends on the premium collection from the Unit-Linked Insurance Policies (ULIP).

For 2009-10, ULIPs' share in the total premium pie of Rs 1,85,000 crore was 75 per cent and the total equity investments made by LIC stood at Rs 61,000 crore.

If the markets are good, people invest in ULIPs and if the interest rates are good, their preferences turn to non-linked policies, Vijayan said.

LIC also has a headroom to issue infrastructure bonds ofRs 5,000 crore this fiscal but has not yet decided on any timeline for it, Vijayan said.

"Under a new policy, we can issue bonds to the tune of 25 per cent of our incremental investments of Rs 25,000 crore in infrastructure sector last year," he said.

The life insurer is also targeting to invest Rs 1,000 crore in real estate and property this fiscal, Vijayan said, clarifying that it is done under three themes of turning the property into an office, floating a housing scheme for policy holders or as a pure investment to be exited at a later date.

When asked about LIC's expansion plans, Vijayan said the corporation is in "advanced stages" of discussions to set up a wholly-owned subsidiary in Singapore.

On the back of new norms on promoter holdings being announced, Vijayan said LIC is not interested in taking a majority stake in any of its investee companies in the future.

The corporation will be adding more than the usual three to four new policies per year this fiscal due to revisions in ULIP norms announced by industry regulator IRDA coming into effect from September 1.