IDBI Bank Falls 15%: Has Privatization Been Called Off?
- Share.Market
- 2 min read
- Published at : 16 Mar 2026 01:01 PM
- Modified at : 16 Mar 2026 02:09 PM
Shares of IDBI Bank were trading 15% lower on Monday, after media reports suggested that the Centre might have called off the disinvestment process. The exchanges have sought clarification from the bank, and are awaiting a response.
IDBI Bank was supposed to be privatized and the Central government was supposed to divest its stake. However, this process might be shelved as the financial bids submitted by potential buyers were believed to be lower than the reserve price set by the government.
The key bidders include Canadian investor Prem Watsa’s Fairfax Financial Holdings and Emirates NBD, the Dubai-based banking group among others. Both of these potential bidders aslready have a major exposure in the banking sector.
Emirates NBD is eyeing a controlling stake in RBL Bank after receiving approval from the Competition Commission of India to purchase up to a 60% stake for about ₹27,000 crore. Moreover, Fairfax Financial Holdings is already the promoter of CSB Bank , where it holds approximately a 40% stake after acquiring control in 2018.
The privatization process, along with the transfer of management control, was announced in the Union budget of February 2021 and was originally to be completed by FY26. The divestment involves selling a combined 60.7% stake held by the Government of India and the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). Media reports suggest that the combined stake has a valuation of ₹72,000 crore. This transaction was expected to be among the largest banking-sector privatisations in India!
In January 2023, investors including Fairfax Financial Holdings, Emirates NBD and Oaktree Capital Management cleared the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) fit-and-proper criteria. Kotak Mahindra Bank also expressed interest.
Financial bids were received in February 2026; however, the deal now appears to be called off temporarily as the bids are said to be below the reserve price amid global market uncertainties.
IDBI Bank is a mid-cap stock with a market capitalization of over ₹85,000 crore. It has a dividend yield (TTM) of 2.60%. Let’s take a look at its CRISP Analysis:
IDBI
