HDFC gains as Standard Life to hike stake in insurance JV

Standard Life will pay Rs 1,705 crore to raise its stake in HDFC Life Insurance to 35%

Shares of HDFC were up 1% at Rs 1244 on the Bombay Stock Exchange after Standard Life received approval from the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) to increase its stake in HDFC Life Insurance by 9% to 35%.

Standard Life will pay Rs 1,705 crore for the 9% stake, valuing the insurance joint-venture at Rs 18,951.4 crore.

HDFC Life is a joint venture between HDFC and Standard Life, a provider of financial services in the UK. Currrently, Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) holds a 26 per cent stake in the joint venture.

According to HDFC, after the deal, its holding in HDFC Life Insurance will be 61.65% and that of Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) will be 35%.

The stock opened at Rs 1242 and touched a high of Rs 1244. At 9:20am, over 40,000 shares were traded on both the stock exchanges.