INDIA BUSINESS WORLD - JANUARY 1^st - JANUARY 15^th - 2008

HDFC SELLS 7% TO JV PARTNER STANDARD LIFE, PLANS IPO IN '09

HDFC has booked a profit of around Rs 120 cr in a Rs 200 cr transaction involving sale of 7.15% stake in HDFC Standard Life to its British partner. The promoters of HDFC Standard Life have said also said that they will dilute stake through an IPO before 2009.

HDFC chairman Deepak Parekh said the company would structure the issue depending on how regulations work out. On whether the promoters will look at the holding company route, Mr. Parekh said present regulations were in a state of flux and the company would wait for RBI to come out with its guidelines on holding companies. He added that while final structure would depend on the regulations, the company was prepared to look at Indian investors alone.

Private life insurance companies were originally expected to go public within 10-years of incorporation but many of them are yet to break even. "In GAAP terms, the business is making money. It is only because they have to fully provide for first year expenses that companies are showing losses," said Mr Parekh.

HDFC's stake transfer to Standard Life does not depict the market value of HDFC Standard Life as HDFC had agreed to let Standard Life hike stake up to 26% at an agreed price.

Until recently, Standard Life could not even hold the entire 26% in the insurance venture that other companies were allowed to because Standard Life's holdings in HDFC were reckoned as indirect shareholding. But the headroom to invest became available in May `06 after Standard Life sold its holding in HDFC to Citigroup making it the single largest shareholder.

A statement issued by HDFC said the two partners have realigned their shareholding in HDFC Standard Life Insurance company "As a result, HDFC has today sold 7.15% of the equity of HDFC SLIC to Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) 2006 at a preagreed price. Post this, Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) 2006 will hold 26% of the equity capital of HDFC SLIC, the maximum allowed under current regulations."

"HDFC and Standard Life are committed to the continued growth of HDFC SLIC and an IPO of the business before 2009," a statement issued by the company said. The statement added that HDFC and SLAC have also agreed that any future sale of shares by HDFC to Standard Life (Mauritius Holdings) 2006, if and when permitted by law would be at a fair value. HDFC Standard Life is one of the largest overseas operations of the Edinburgh-based insurer that has been through some tumultuous times in recent years. When the insurance industry was opened up in 2000, Standard Life was steadfast in retaining its holding in HDFC even though this meant holding a maximum of 18% in the joint venture. This was because Irda rules prescribe that if a foreign partner holds shares in the parent, the entitlement to hold 26%in the insurance subsidiary would stand reduced to that extent.

HDFC Standard Life has a new business market share of 9.2% in the private sector with total premium income of Rs. 2,856 crore in the year 2006-07. The company plans to aggressively grow its business in the coming years. HDFC SLIC has over 12,000 employees and more than 1,00,000 financial consultants covering over 700 cities in India.