D-SIIs 2025-26: IRDAI Names LIC, GIC Re and NIACL

4 April 20261 min read

Why in the news

The insurance regulator has again named three insurers as systemically important for 2025-26, with no change from past years.

Designated D-SIIs: LIC, GIC Re and NIACL.
Reason: their critical place in the national economy, hence enhanced regulatory supervision.
Identification parameters: size of operations (revenue, premiums, AUM), global presence and lack of substitutability.

Insurers seen as too big to fail; distress could cause a contagion effect and unsettle the whole financial system.
Interconnectedness: they lend to and invest in banks and other institutions, which would lose a big capital source if they failed.
Market significance: they supply essentials such as reinsurance and large life covers.

Measure	What it means
Higher loss absorbency	Often higher capital levels as a buffer against shocks
Intense supervision	More frequent checks on risk management, governance and intra-group deals
Resolution planning	Recovery plans, or living wills, so they can be stabilised without a taxpayer-funded bailout

Test yourself

1. Which three insurers did IRDAI designate as D-SIIs for FY 2025-26?

The notes list LIC, GIC Re and NIACL.

2. D-SII status reflects which idea about the insurer?

D-SIIs are too big or too important to fail.

3. Which is a parameter IRDAI uses to identify a D-SII?

Size, global presence and lack of substitutability are the criteria.