The Lion Is In The Street

The name Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is synonymous with insurance and savings in the country. Even today, despite higher financial awareness and availability of a myriad other asset classes, the elders of the family advise young professionals and businesspeople to buy an “LIC policy”. The fact that the insurer has 28.60 crore policyholders, as on March 31, 2021, according to the draft red-herring prospectus (DRHP) of its initial public offer (IPO), stands testimony to LIC’s strength. If all the LIC policyholders are put together, they will form a country with the fourth-largest population in the world. Whether it’s advisable to buy life insurance for savings is a matter of debate for another time, but there’s no doubt about the influence LIC has had over Indian savers over the last about 65 years of its existence. Lion’s Share LIC...