(Bloomberg) — India’s largest ever public offering drew anchor investors including Norway’s sovereign wealth fund and the Singaporean government, raising 56.3 billion rupees ($736 million) ahead of its full initial public offering.

The 123 anchor investors joining Life Insurance Corp. of India’s IPO committed to purchase shares at 949 rupees each, the top end of a marketed range, according to a stock exchange statement Tuesday. The list includes the Singapore government and Norway, in accordance with a Bloomberg News earlier report. Also, 15 domestic mutual fund accounts for 71%. Starting Wednesday, retail investors will place orders to list the company, which could generate as much as 220 billion rupees.

LIC’s IPO, which had previously been touted as India’s Aramco (TADAWUL:) moment in reference to the $29.4 billion listing of Gulf oil giant Saudi Arabian Oil Co., is testing the depth of India’s capital market. While India’s government has pared back its original fundraising goal by about 60% — as the war in Ukraine eroded investor appetite — the offering will still be the nation’s biggest.

Founded in the late 1950s, LIC is the country’s oldest insurer, and had the market to itself until the government opened it up to private competition in 2000. It remains India’s largest insurer with a sales agent in almost every neighborhood across the country of about 1.4 billion people. It is anticipated that the listing will attract small-town investors as well as loyal policyholders who feel a strong emotional connection to the company.

Continue reading: Small-Town Retail Investors Help to Support Mega India’s Demand

LIC has a 60% market share of India’s 24-company-strong life insurance market, but its hold is shrinking as private players like HDFC Life Insurance Co. and SBI Life Insurance Co. chip away at its dominance. LIC is struggling, but the private sector has gone on an aggressive expansion spree to grow individual policy premiums during the Covid-19 pandemic.

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