The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India in June had permitted LIC to increase its stake from 10.82 per cent to 51 per cent in the IDBI Bank. As per current regulations, an insurance company cannot own more than 15 per cent in any listed financial firm. LIC has been looking to enter the banking space by acquiring a majority stake in IDBI Bank as the deal is expected to provide business synergies despite the lender's stressed balance sheet. With the culmination of the deal, LIC will get about 2,000 branches through which it can sell its products, while the bank would get massive funds of LIC.