LIC would be most valuable company in India, if listed: FM

LIC handed over a dividend of Rs 2,501.76 crore to the government for 2015-16

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) would have been the most-valued company in the country if it was listed.

“If you were a company listed on the stock exchanges, you would perhaps be the most-valuable company in the markets of the country and one of the most formidable ones in the world,” he said during LIC’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations.

He added LIC, with its huge network, had the ability to reach out to the masses and there was hardly anyone who was untouched by it. 

The Union finance minister also addressed the challenges the country faced in terms of social security.

“To improve and becoming a pensioned and insured society, a great component would be social security. In these circumstances, the importance and relevance of LIC and other life insurers will only expand and their business will grow further,” he said further.

LIC handed over a dividend (valuation surplus) of Rs 2,501.76 crore to the government for 2015-16. The insurer also announced a special diamond jubilee reversionary bonus during this event and launched the Bima Diamond Plus, which is a money-back policy. 

Their market share rose to 76.99 per cent on basis of number of policies and to 73.67 per cent based on first year premium as on July 31, 2016.