ICICI Bank on Saturday said that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has approved Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to acquire an aggregate holding of up to 9.99 per cent of the paid-up share capital or voting rights in the bank, according to an exchange filing.
The private sector lender received a copy of the RBI’s approval letter on September 4, 2026, at 9:09 pm. The approval allows LIC to acquire the stake within one year from the date of the RBI letter, failing which the central bank’s approval will stand cancelled. The approval is subject to certain conditions, including compliance with applicable statutory and regulatory provisions.
As of June 30, 2026, LIC had a 4.35 per cent stake in the bank, and if the insurer acquires a 9.99 per cent stake in the bank, its stake will increase to 14.34 per cent. According to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), insurers are allowed to acquire up to a 15 per cent stake in a company, depending on the size of the insurer’s assets.
LIC remains the single largest institutional investor in domestic equity markets, holding substantial minority stakes across major public and private lenders, infrastructure enterprises, and technology firms. Its assets under management (AUM) at the end of the June quarter of FY27 (Q1FY27) were ₹59.39 trillion. The insurer also posted a 6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) increase in its investment income to ₹1.09 trillion in the quarter.
