IPO guidelines for general insurers in 2-3 months: Irda

General insurers will have to wait a little longer than their life insurance counterparts to come out with initial public offers (IPOs).

“While the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irda) will come out with the draft guidelines for general insurance companies in a couple of months and final norms for life insurers may be out by this month only”, Irda Chairman J Hari Narayan told reporters on the sidelines of a Ficci conference on health insurance here.

He mentioned health insurance portability will be in place by the beginning of October and it will take about two-three months for Irda to come out with a standard definition of critical illness.

“With regard to life insurance companies, the work on IPO guidelines is more or less complete and we would be going for gazetting those as regulations very shortly, perhaps toward the end of this month,” he said.

Irda had come out with draft guidelines on IPOs by life insurers last month, inviting comments from stakeholders.

In the draft guidelines, a clause by Sebi for a three-year track profitability record was proposed to be removed for life insurers. However, the interested company should have maintained the prescribed regulatory solvency margin during the preceding six quarters. Only the firms who complete 10 years in operation were proposed to be allowed for the IPO. The sector was opened for private sectors in 2000. Those which have completed 10 years in operation include ICICI Prudential Life, HDFC Standard Life and SBI Life Insurance.

“As regards non-life companies, there is a little more to be done and that may take two-three months,” Hari Narayan said.

Earlier at a function, he called for a new model of health insurance that would cover both surgical and out-patient treatment, including childbirth related procedures.