Twenty one private insurance companies have not floated shares for public subscription despite clear instructions by the concerned authorities to go public within three years of their inception, official sources said.
These companies are-American Life Insurance Company (MetLife), Alpha Islami Life Insurance Ltd, Baira Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Best Life Insurance Ltd, Chartered Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Diamond Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Golden Life Insurance Ltd, Guardian Life Insurance Ltd, Homeland Life Ins. Co. Ltd, Jamuna Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Mercantile Islami Life Insurance Ltd, NRB Global Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Protective Islami Life Ins. Co. Ltd, Sunflower Life Ins. Co. Ltd, Swadesh Life Insurance Co. Ltd, Zenith Islami Life Insurance Ltd, Trust Islami Life Insurance Ltd, Bangladesh Co-operative Ins.Ltd, Islami Commercial Ins. Co. Ltd, South Asia Ins. Co. Ltd, Sikder Insurance Co. Ltd
According to the insurance act 2010, the a paid-up capital of minimum Tk 30 crore for life insurance and Tk 40 crore for non life insurance are needed to to float public shares. But in 2019, Bangladesh Stock Exchange Commission (BSEC) in its amended act fixed the minimum requirement of paid-up capital at Tk 50 crore for all insurance companies go public.
“Some insurance companies could not float public shares due to deficit in their paid-up capital,’’ an official of a private insurance company said, requesting anonymity. Some companies are not going to the stock market despite having paid up capital, he added.
Homeland Life Insurance Company Ltd has met the requirement to go public but has not yet done so.
Asked, Azizul Islam Talukder, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Homeland Life Insurance Company Ltd told The News Times that in 2004 there were some problems with share trading among the directors. So the company cannot go to the capital market. Homeland Insurance will be enlisted after solving the issues.
S M Nuruzzaman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Zenith Islami Life Insurance said “We have some problems. We have appealed to IDRA for time. We are working to enlist in the stock market.”
Shamser Hassan, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of South Asia Insurance Company Ltd said, “We are trying to enlist in the stock market. We hope to float IPO soon.”
S M Shakil Akhtar, Executive Director and spokesman of Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IDRA) said there are some insurers who have not yet go public despite clear instructions from the authorities.
“We are watching them. Some companies are expected to float public shares by December this year. A few others will do it by June next year,” he told The News Times.
