Abrdn likely to sell its 1.66% stake in HDFC Life via block deals: Report

Abrdn, a UK-based investment company on Wednesday said it is likely sell its 1.66 per cent stake (35.7 million shares) in HDFC Life Insurance Limited through block deals, reported CNBC citing sources said on Tuesday.

The Edinburgh-based company, which was formerly known as Standard Life Aberdeen, has offered the shares in the price band of Rs 563.20-585.15, the report added. Further stating that BofA Securities India is the sole book runner for the sale of shares.

Abrdn is an active asset manager in the UK, with investments in equities, multi-asset, fixed income, liquidity, sovereign wealth funds, real estate, and private markets In July 2021.

Back in 2022, Abrdn Investment also divested a 5.58 per cent stake in HDFC AMC for more than Rs 2,300 crore through an open market transaction.

According to a Moneycontrol report, HDFC Life shares in the previous month have seen some action after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allowed HDFC Bank or HDFC Limited to increase the shareholding in HDFC Life and HDFC ERGO to more than 50 per cent.

In the meantime, Arbdn has been paring its stake sale for quite some time, and with this stake sale, the former will exit HDFC Life Insurance completely.

It is worth noting that in September 2022, the UK-based firm also sold a 2 per cent stake in HDFC, following which it held a 3.7 per cent equity stake. 

For the third quarter that ended December 31, 2022, HDFC Life Insurance reported a 15 per cent year-on-year (YoY) rise in net profit. Net premium income for the quarter increased by 19 per cent YoY to Rs 14,379 crore. The first-year premium grew by nearly 29 percent on year to Rs 2,724 crore.