NSE Could Soon Become LIC's Fifth-Biggest Equity Holding

Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) is on track to add another heavyweight to its investment portfolio. Once the National Stock Exchange (NSE) IPO gets listed, the insurer's stake in the exchange is expected to rank among its five largest listed equity investments.

LIC owned 26.53 crore NSE shares at the end of the March 2026 quarter, representing a 10.72% stake in the exchange. Going by an estimated share price of ₹2,100, that investment works out to roughly ₹56,105 crore.

That would put NSE ahead of some of India's biggest listed companies in LIC's portfolio, including Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank.

Only Four Companies Would Rank Above NSE

Reliance Industries would continue to occupy the top position in LIC's listed portfolio.

The insurer's 6.8% holding in Reliance is currently valued at around ₹1.18 lakh crore. State Bank of India comes next, where LIC owns an 8.78% stake worth about ₹83,219 crore.

Larsen & Toubro follows with a stake valued at ₹70,927 crore, while ITC is close behind at nearly ₹57,672 crore.

At an estimated value of ₹56,105 crore, LIC's investment in NSE would move into the fifth spot once the exchange begins trading.

Bigger Than Several Blue-Chip Holdings

The estimated value of LIC's NSE investment is already higher than many of its long-standing holdings.

Its stake in HDFC Bank is currently valued at about ₹49,738 crore, while Bharti Airtel accounts for roughly ₹44,850 crore.

LIC's investments in Infosys and ICICI Bank stand at ₹44,871 crore and ₹44,220 crore, respectively. Tata Consultancy Services follows at ₹41,846 crore.

The insurer also owns a 10.18% stake in ONGC, which is presently valued at around ₹29,935 crore.

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Returns Have Varied Across LIC's Portfolio

Not every large investment has delivered the same outcome over the past two years.

Among LIC's major holdings, Bharti Airtel has been one of the strongest performers, gaining around 89% since the start of 2024. State Bank of India has advanced roughly 62%, while ICICI Bank has risen 35%.

Larsen & Toubro and ONGC have both returned about 20% during the same period.

On the other hand, Reliance Industries has delivered relatively modest gains of nearly 2%. HDFC Bank has slipped around 8%, while ITC, Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services have fallen by approximately 38%, 32% and 44%, respectively.

For comparison, the Sensex has gained about 6.3% and the Nifty 50 has risen 10.4% over the period.

According to Prime Database, the total value of LIC's investments in NSE-listed companies stood at ₹15.11 lakh crore as of March 31, 2026. That represented 3.71% of the market capitalisation of all listed companies, marginally lower than 3.72% recorded in the previous quarter. The overall value of the insurer's listed equity portfolio also declined 13.63% sequentially.