ICICI Bank said on Friday it offloaded ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company shares worth Rs 2,250 crore to further strengthen its balance sheet. The 1.8 crore shares sold on Friday were of a face value of Rs 10 each, representing a 3.96 per cent stake in ICICI Lombard General Insurance. After the transaction, ICICI Bank’s stake in ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company decreased to 51.9 per cent, from 55.86 per cent at the end of March 2020. Shares in ICICI Lombard General Insurance Company declined to as low as Rs 1,250.10 apiece on the BSE on Friday, marking a fall of 2.07 per cent compared to their previous close of Rs 1,276.50.
At 12:05 pm, ICICI Lombard General Insurance shares traded 1.88 per cent lower at Rs 1,252.45 apiece on the BSE, underperforming the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex index which was up 1.13 per cent.
Shares in ICICI Bank were up 2.64 per cent at Rs 361.30 apiece at the time.
ICICI Bank said last month that it will look at further strengthening the balance sheet as opportunities arise, as it reported a 26.04 per cent increase in standalone profit to Rs 1,221.36 crore for the quarter ended March 31.