Fairfax Financial Holdings, under Prem Watsa, closed a ₹52,878‑crore deal on 20 October 2026 to take a 60.72 % controlling stake in IDBI Bank, a move approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.
The bank’s troubled past began in May 2017 when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) placed IDBI under its Prompt Corrective Action framework after the lender’s net NPA rose above 13 %. In January 2019, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) acquired a 51 % controlling share, reclassifying IDBI as a private‑sector bank for regulatory purposes.
The disinvestment process opened with the government inviting expressions of interest in October 2022 for the 60.72 % stake, comprising 30.48 % held by the state and 30.24 % by LIC. Multiple bids came in by January 2023, but only after July 2024 did prospective buyers—Fairfax, Emirates NBD, and others—pass the Home Ministry’s security checks and RBI’s fit‑and‑proper assessment.
In February 2026, Fairfax and Emirates NBD submitted financial bids, yet the offer fell short of the reserve price, prompting a temporary pause in March. By April, the government re‑launched the process, and revised bids arrived in July, clearing the technical hurdles.
For an IDBI teller in Delhi, the sale means a shift in corporate culture and new opportunities for career progression, as Fairfax plans to introduce global best practices.
With the Cabinet’s approval in October, the RBI will now finalise the transfer of shares, after which Fairfax will assume operational control, while the government remains a 34 % shareholder, setting the stage for a new era in the bank’s strategy.