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Informist, Friday, Feb. 6, 2026

 

--Divest secy: Got fincl bids for IDBI Bank privatisation 

 

NEW DELHI – The government has received bids for the strategic disinvestment in IDBI Bank, Divestment Secretary Arunish Chawla said on microblogging site X. "They will be evaluated as per the prescribed procedure," the secretary said. 

 

Under the privatisation plan of IDBI Bank, the government will divest its 30.48% stake, along with Life Insurance Corp. of India's 30.24% holding. The government invited expressions of interest to sell the 60.72% stake in IDBI Bank in October 2022, but there has been limited progress since, with prospective buyers failing to obtain the "fit and proper" clearance from the Reserve Bank of India. This hurdle was cleared in the second half of 2025.

 

Informist reported in November that Kotak Mahindra Bank appears to be the front-runner to buy the 60.72% stake, with a few other buyers in the fray, including Emirates NDB, Fairfax Financial, and Oaktree Capital Management of Canada. 

 

After the proposed strategic sale, the government's and LIC's shareholdings in IDBI Bank will fall to 15% and 19%, respectively. If IDBI Bank is privatised, it will be only the second strategic disinvestment the government has successfully carried out after Air India.

 

The government is keen to conclude the sale of IDBI Bank in the current financial year, as it will benefit from current valuations. Since seeking initial bids from interested investors in October 2022, the share price of IDBI Bank has more than doubled. Friday, the bank's shares ended at INR 106.86, up 3.8% from the previous close. At the current market price, the government will get over INR 350 billion from the sale of its 30.48% stake and LIC will get INR 347 billion from its 30.24% stake.

 

This single transaction will exceed the entire miscellaneous capital receipts target for 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) of INR 338.37 billion. A senior finance ministry official, however, told Informist that the transaction will likely be completed in FY27, and that appears to have encouraged the government to set an ambitious miscellaneous capital receipts target of INR 800 billion for FY27. End

 

Reported by Priyasmita Dutta

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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