Shares of PB Fintech, the parent of Policybazaar, fell nearly 8 percent in early trade on Friday after a large block deal worth about Rs 1,741 crore saw 2.37 percent of the company's equity change hands. The transaction comes after reports that Singapore's sovereign investment firm Temasek Holdings was planning to pare its stake in the online insurance aggregator.

PB Fintech shares were trading at Rs 1,553.6, down 7.6 percent in morning trade. The stock has declined about 14 percent so far this year, compared with a 7 percent fall in the Nifty 50. The company has a market capitalisation of over Rs 72,000 crore.

According to exchange data, 1.08 crore shares changed hands at Rs 1,601 apiece through a block deal. The deal was executed at a discount of nearly 4.8 percent to Thursday's closing price of Rs 1,682.10. The identities of the buyer and seller were not immediately disclosed on the exchanges.

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The transaction closely matches the terms of a proposed stake sale reported on Thursday. According to media reports, Temasek Holdings, through its subsidiary Macritchie Investments Pte, was looking to sell up to 1.19 crore shares, or about 2.6 percent of PB Fintech, via a block deal worth around Rs 1,909 crore.

Before the transaction, Macritchie Investments held a 6.47 percent stake in PB Fintech. Citigroup Global Markets India was reported to be the sole placement agent for the deal, while Temasek was expected to remain subject to a 60-day lock-up on its residual stake after the sale.

PB Fintech has witnessed several large shareholder exits in recent months. In May, co-founders Yashish Dahiya and Alok Bansal sold about 38 lakh shares, or roughly 0.8 percent of the company, through a Rs 654 crore block deal. During the same month, Chinese technology giant Tencent also exited its remaining 1.05 percent stake in PB Fintech through a separate Rs 805 crore block transaction.

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