The Life Insurance Corporation of India’s investments in Adani group companies may be in the spotlight, but recent data shows that some of the largest investments in entities controlled by billionaire Gautam Adani are not from the state-owned insurer, but from major US and global insurers.
In June 2025, a month after an investment of $570 million (Rs 5,000 crore) by Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) in Adani Ports & SEZ, US-based Athene Insurance led a debt investment of Rs 6,650 crore (USD 750 million) in Adani’s Mumbai International Airport, along with several leading international insurance companies.
Apollo Global Management – the parent company of Athene – said in a June 23 statement that its managed funds, subsidiaries and other long-term investors had completed a USD 750 million “investment grade rated” financing for Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MAIL).
This was Apollo’s second major financing for MIAL, following the previous financing that provided operational flexibility to deleverage.
Adani’s global debt story
Other fundraises included Adani Green Energy Ltd, which raised about $250 million from a group of global lenders including DBS Bank, DZ Bank, Rabobank and Bank SinoPac Co Ltd.
In total, the group signed new credit facilities of more than $10 billion for its port unit (APSEZ), renewable energy business (AGEL), flagship company (Adani Enterprises Ltd) and power transmission unit (Adani Energy Solutions Ltd) in the first half of the year, according to an August report by S&P Global Ratings.
LIC’s investments in the Adani group came into the spotlight after The Washington Post reported that government officials were influencing LIC’s investment decisions amid hesitations among global investors.
LIC pushes back
On Saturday, LIC called the report “false, baseless and far from the truth” and said the investments in the Adani group companies were made independently and in accordance with the policies approved by the board of directors, after detailed due diligence.
India’s largest insurer has over the years made investment decisions for companies based on fundamental data and detailed due diligence. Investment value in India’s 500 largest companies has grown tenfold since 2014 – from Rs 1.56 lakh crore to Rs 15.6 lakh crore – due to strong fund management.
The exposure to the Adani group is less than 2 percent of the conglomerate’s total debt of Rs 2.6 lakh. Moreover, Adani is not LIC’s largest holding company; Reliance Industries Ltd, ITC and Tata Group are.
LIC owns 4 per cent (worth Rs 60,000 crore) of Adani shares, compared to 6.94 per cent (Rs 1.33 lakh crore) in Reliance, 15.86 per cent (Rs 82,800 crore) in ITC Ltd, 4.89 per cent (Rs 64,725 crore) in HDFC Bank and 9.59 per cent (Rs 79,361 crore) in SBI. LIC owns 5.02 per cent of TCS worth Rs 5.7 lakh crore.
Adani hits back
While former LIC chairman Siddhartha Mohanty said the government never directly or indirectly interferes in LIC’s investment decisions, Adani Group CFO Jugeshinder Singh lashed out at the publication, saying, “Washington Post writing about finance is like Jeff Bezos and me writing about how to have a full head of hair – 100 percent moronic.” Both Singh and Bezos are bald.
“As Wolfgang Pauli said, ‘It’s not even wrong,’” Singh said in a post on X.
Adani officials said the article contained factual errors and noted that there was no refinancing requirement as reported. Instead, the company launched a $450 million buyback in June to pay off debt early.
Analysts note that global insurers are increasingly investing in infrastructure assets for their stable returns, with India’s fast-growing infrastructure sector – led by the Adani Group – attracting strong international interest.
Published on October 26, 2025
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