Nine Life Insurers to Hold AGMs by Mid-January, 10 Announce Dividends

Most life insurance companies are set to hold their annual general meetings (AGMs) by mid-January in the current fiscal year, an unusually early timeline for the sector.

Of the 14 life insurance companies currently in operation, nine are preparing to complete their AGMs by mid-January. Such a large number of life insurers holding AGMs within the first six months of a fiscal year is rare, industry officials said.

MetLife, Rastriya Beema Company, Himalayan Life Insurance and Asian Life Insurance have yet to make their dividend proposals public. Excluding these firms, 10 life insurance companies have announced dividend proposals for the previous fiscal year (FY 2024/25). All of them—except Life Insurance Corporation (Nepal)—have already fixed dates for their AGMs.

Life insurers are required to conduct an annual actuarial valuation of their assets and liabilities, a process that largely depends on Indian actuaries. In previous years, insurers said delays in receiving regulatory approval even after completing actuarial valuations had prevented them from holding AGMs by mid-January.

Chief Executive Officer of National Life Insurance, Suresh Prasad Khatri, said companies were able to schedule AGMs within the timeframe this year because the approval process at the regulator, the Nepal Insurance Authority, moved faster. He added that the authority’s decision to appoint subject experts to expedite the approval process also helped.

Of the 10 companies that have proposed dividends, six have focused solely on cash dividends. Sun Nepal Life Insurance, Nepal Life Insurance, National Life Insurance and Prabhu Mahalaxmi Life Insurance have proposed distributing both bonus shares and cash dividends, while the remaining companies have opted only for cash dividends.

Nepal Life Insurance and Life Insurance Corporation (Nepal) have proposed the highest cash dividends at 21.05 percent each. Life Insurance Corporation (Nepal) has proposed a 21.05 percent cash dividend inclusive of tax, while Nepal Life Insurance has proposed a total dividend comprising 5 percent bonus shares and a 16.05 percent cash dividend, including tax.