Earlier named the Investment Corporation of India, the company is primarily involved in investing in long-term investments such as equity shares, debt instruments, listed and unlisted, and equity-related securities of companies in a wide range of industries. The sources of income of the Company consist of dividend, interest and profit on sale of investments.^[3] TICL invests in sectors such as banks, cement, chemicals and fertilizers, electricity and transmission, electrical and electronics, engineering, construction and infrastructure, fast-moving consumer goods, finance and investments, healthcare, hotels, information technology, metals and mining, motor vehicles and ancillaries, oil and natural resources, retail, textiles, transportation and logistics, and miscellaneous and diversified.^[4]

TICL was promoted^{[clarification needed]} by Tata Sons in 1937 and went public in 1959 when it became one of the few publicly held investment companies listed on the Mumbai Stock Exchange.^[5]