Kamal Ghorui
MUMBAI: Life Insurance Corporation of India on Monday approved a 1:1 bonus share issue, a move that will double its paid-up equity capital and is expected to improve stock liquidity and retail participation, while leaving its financial strength unchanged. The board, at its meeting on April 13, cleared the bonus on a record date to be announced later, subject to shareholder approval. The bonus will improve liquidity in the scrip and help govt in selling shares through a follow-on public offer, considering that the shares trade at a discount to the issue price of Rs 949. LIC’s authorised equity share capital stands at Rs 25,000 crore and its paid-up equity share capital stands at Rs 6,325 crore. Following the proposed bonus issue, the paid-up capital will rise to Rs 12,650 crore. The insurer reported reserves and surplus of Rs 1,46,441 crore as of Dec 31, 2025 and a profit after tax of Rs 33,998 crore for the nine-month period ended Dec 31, 2025. LIC chief executive and MD R Doraiswamy said, “Since listing in May 2022, LIC has been paying dividends consistently and also increasing the dividend per share over a period of time from Rs 1.5 per share to Rs 12 per share,” adding that the company has been evaluating mechanisms to reward shareholders.
