Medibank Private will be sold next financial year through an initial public offering (IPO), Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says.

An independent scoping study has found no compelling reason for the Government to own Australia’s largest health insurer, which also supplies pet and travel cover.

“The Government will now proceed to the next stage of preparing for the IPO,” Senator Cormann said. “This includes the appointment of joint lead managers.”

The final timing and structure of the IPO are yet to be determined.

Medibank sales to health insurance members increased 21% to cover more than 140,000 members last financial year, according to its annual report.

Sales of its travel insurance, underwritten by Great Lakes Australia, grew 8% and the pet insurance business, underwritten by Hollard, grew 20%.

Medibank Private’s total revenue increased 9.4% to $5.9 billion, while net profit after tax gained 84% to $232.74 million. The number of people covered grew to 3.8 million.