Max Financial seeks CCI nod for HDFC Life merger plan

Max Financial Services today said it has filed a joint application seeking CCI's approval for amalgamation of Max Life Insurance Company and Max Financial Services into HDFC Standard Life Insurance Company.
The company in a filing to BSE said that on September 7, 2016, it has filed a "joint application" with the "Competition Commission of India (CCI) seeking its approval" to the merger plan.
In August, the board of HDFC Ltd had approved the merger of Max Life and Max Financial Services with its insurance arm HDFC Standard Life Insurance Company (HDFC Life).
Set to formulate the country's biggest private sector life insurer, the amalgamated entity is expected to have total premium of about Rs 26,000 crore and assets under management would be over Rs 1 lakh crore.

In the private life insurance space, only ICICI Prudential Life Insurance had reported AUM of Rs 1 lakh crore.
Once all the approvals will be cleared and the scheme will come to effect, HDFC's shareholding in HDFC Standard Life--the merger entity-- would be at about 42.5 per cent and the insurance firm would no longer be its subsidiary.

The life insurance business of Max Financial Services, currently held in Max Life, would demerge into HDFC Life, as per the scheme.
The merged HDFC Life would become a listed company, with HDFC Ltd and Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) 2006 Ltd, as the promoters.

The proposed transaction is expected to become effective in next 12-15 months.
Max Financial Services stock closed 2.7 per cent down at Rs 579.10, while HDFC closed 1.87 per cent lower at Rs 1427.70 on BSE.