Generali sells €540m Belgian unit to Athora

Italian insurer Generali is selling its entire stake in its Belgium-based subsidiary, primarily focused on the life segment, for a cash consideration of €540 million.

Generali has entered into a binding agreement with Athora Holding, expected to be finalized during the second half of 2018.

Generali said the transaction is part of the group’s overall strategy to optimize its geographical footprint and to improve its operational efficiency and capital allocation.

Frédéric de Courtois, group CEO global business lines & international, stated: “This deal underlines our continuing efforts to optimize the Group’s international reach across the world.

"After having announced the sale of our operations in Guatemala, Panama, Colombia, the Netherlands and Ireland, this transaction represents yet another important step ahead in our strategy.

"The total value of the deals concluded and those already announced, still subject to regulatory approvals, is over €1.1 billion exceeding our initial target of €1 billion. We will continue to implement this on-going initiative with discipline over the coming months.”

According to the company, the transaction is expected to have a positive impact on the Group’s solvency position by adding approximately 2.6 percentage points to Generali’s Regulatory Solvency II ratio.

The contribution of Generali Belgium to the Group’s net result was €22 million in 2017.

The sale is also expected to generate a capital gain at group level of approximately €150 million that will be booked on closing and is subject to regulatory approvals.

Michele Bareggi, group managing partner at Athora said: “Since our successful capital raise in April 2017, we have been rapidly expanding our presence in Europe. In addition to launching our business with the acquisitions of Delta Lloyd Lebensversicherung in 2015 and Aegon Ireland earlier this month, this transaction is another major step toward our goal of becoming the premier European insurance consolidator and life reinsurance partner.

"Belgium is a target market for Athora, where we plan to deploy substantial capital over the next few years, and Generali Belgium is a perfect fit for our strategy and growth plans in the country.”

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