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Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is looking to enter the health insurance market and is exploring acquisition opportunities. This move comes as the government considers allowing composite insurance companies, which could streamline operations and reduce costs for insurers.

What Does LIC Chairman Say?

LIC Chairman Siddhartha Mohanty said, "There is an expectation that composite licenses may be permitted by the new government, and we have done some internal groundwork. While we lack expertise in general insurance, we are interested in health insurance and are also considering opportunities for inorganic growth."

Composite Insurance Licenses

In February 2024, a parliamentary panel suggested introducing composite insurance licenses to make it easier for insurers to operate.

Long-Term Health Benefit Covers

Currently, life insurance companies can only offer long-term health benefit covers.

Insurance Act

To provide hospitalization and indemnity cover, an amendment to the Insurance Act would be required.

India's Insurance Market

India's insurance market is highly under-penetrated. At the end of 2022-23, less than 2.3 crore health insurance policies were issued, covering 55 crore lives.

Government-Sponsored Programs

Of these, nearly 30 crore were covered by government-sponsored programs, and almost 20 crore were insured through group insurance. The government and regulators want to see more health insurance coverage, and LIC's entry into this market is expected to help achieve that goal.

IRDAI Data

According to IRDAI data, during FY23, life insurers issued under 2.9 lakh new policies covering almost 3 lakh lives.

LIC Q4 Results: Net Profit

Mohanty shared these insights while announcing LIC's financial results for FY24. LIC reported a net profit of Rs 13,762 crore for the quarter ending March 2024, slightly higher than the Rs 13,427 crore reported in the same quarter last year.

LIC Q4 Results: PAT

For the last fiscal year, LIC saw an 11 per cent increase in profit after tax (PAT) to Rs 40,676 crore.

LIC Dividend Announcement

LIC has recommended a final dividend of Rs 6 per share for the financial year 2023-24, pending shareholder approval.

LIC Interim Dividend

An interim dividend of Rs 4 per share was already declared and paid during the year, bringing the total dividend to Rs 10 per share.