After LIC, Government Eyes Export Credit Agency's IPO By March 2023

Export Credit Agency, ECGC Ltd's Chairman-and-Managing Director (CMD) M Senthilnathan on Tuesday said the listing of the export credit agency on the stock exchange is likely to happen in the last quarter of the current fiscal year.

Last year, the government said it would start listing the state-owned entity soon, and the Initial Public Offering (IPO) would hit the market during the next financial year.

According to Mr Senthilnathan, the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) had mentioned that the listing of ECGC will happen after the IPO of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC).

"The initial review of ECGC has been done by DIPAM, and the next direction is expected from them. Initially, we were told that the listing will happen somewhere around the last quarter of the current financial year. So, I think they will be on time," Mr Senthilnathan told reporters.

ECGC Ltd is a wholly-owned central public sector enterprise set up to improve the competitiveness of exporters by providing them credit risk insurance and related services for exports.

The state-owned entity on Tuesday introduced a new scheme to provide enhanced export credit risk insurance cover to 90 per cent to support small exporters under the Export Credit Insurance for Banks Whole Turnover Packaging Credit and Post Shipment (ECIB-WTPC & PS).

The scheme is expected to benefit several small-scale exporters availing of export credit with banks which hold the ECGC WT-ECIB covers. It will enable the small exporters to explore new markets/new buyers and diversify their existing product portfolio competitively.

"We expect this to bring up the percentage of accounts with up to Rs 20 crore, thereby lending further stability to the ECGC portfolio," said Mr Senthilnathan.

"By giving 90 per cent cover to banks, we expect more small companies to get export credit from banks, benefiting these industries greatly. We expect banks to provide more concessions. The net effect will be a benefit to exporters, involving a reduction in interest rate," he added.

This new scheme will enable the banks holding ECGC's WT-ECIB cover to explore the possibility of further reducing interest rates.

A release said that the enhanced cover percentage should be made available to the State Bank of India as per the previous year's premium rate, given its favourable claim premium ratio.

However, for other banks, it said there might be a moderate increase in the prevailing premium rates.

The enhanced cover shall be available for manufacturer-exporters availing fund-based export credit working capital limit up to Rs 20 crore, excluding the gems, jewellery and diamond sector and merchant exporters, the release said.