Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharam in her budget speech said the initial public offering (IPO) of state-backed Life Insurance Corporation of India is expected to hit the market  soon.

According to a moneycontrol report, the IPO of LIC is expected to be one of the biggest in the country, with the government aiming to raise close to $12 billion by selling a minority stake to the public.

Earlier in November, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey said  at the CII Global Economic Policy Summit 2021 that the “government aims to privatise 5-6 state-owned companies in FY22.”

The state-owned insurer’s Initial Public Offer is expected to raise Rs 10 trillion ($133 billion) via the sale of a 10 percent stake, according to a Bloomberg report earlier.

The sale of a five percent stake would make it India’s largest IPO, while a 10 percent dilution would make it the second-biggest of an insurer globally, it added.

The Centre might allow foreign direct investment (FDI) in LIC to enable a stronger demand of diversified investors.

Various banks are also expected to reach out to anchor investors for LIC’s IPO launch.

The government has selected Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase & Co, ICICI Securities, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Citigroup, SBI Capital Market, Axis Capital, Bank of America Securities, Nomura amongst others to work on Life Insurance Corp. of India’s IPO, reports said.

In last year’s budget address, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had mentioned a disinvestment target of Rs 1.75 lakh crore.