Life Insurance Corporation of India eyes ~3% growth in new business margin

It also announced plans to acquire a majority stake in standalone health insurance.

The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), the country's largest insurer, has forecast a 2% to 3% increase in its new-business margin for fiscal 2025, reported Reuters. 

The company also announced plans to acquire a majority stake in a standalone health insurance company, although details remain undisclosed. 

LIC’s CEO, Siddhartha Mohanty, confirmed the acquisition plan during a recent media briefing, noting that "work is going on" to finalize the deal.

In May, LIC indicated its interest in pursuing inorganic growth opportunities in the health insurance sector. For the June quarter, LIC reported a 23.7% year-on-year (YoY) rise in its value of new business (VNB), which measures expected profit from new premiums. 

The company’s net VNB margin for the period also increased slightly to 13.9% from 13.7% the previous year.

LIC's first-quarter profit rose by 9.6% YoY to INR 104.61b, driven by the sale of high-margin non-participating policies and robust growth in its group business.