Sun Life gets CCI nod to hike stake in Birla Sun Life

Competition Commission has approved Canadian entity Sun Life's additional 23 per cent stake purchase in its Indian joint venture Birla Sun Life Insurance.
Canada's Sun Life Financial will raise its stake in the insurance joint venture Birla Sun Life Insurance (BSLI) to 49 per cent from 26 per cent at an investment of Rs 1,664 crore.
Birla Sun Life Insurance (BSLI) is a joint venture between Aditya Birla Group and Canada's Sun Life Group.
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has cleared the Sun Life India's proposal to hike stake to 49 per cent in BLSI.
As per the share sale and purchase agreement, executed in December last year, Sun Life India would buy additional 23 per cent stake from Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd.

For this case, the CCI considered "life insurance market in India", as the relevant market.
A number of foreign players, including French insurance giant Axa, Standard Life and Japanese Nippon, have announced raising their shareholdings in their respective insurance JVs in India after the government allowed 49 per cent FDI in the sector last year.