Allianz in 440 Million Euros Deal for Italian Insurer P/C Book

March 17, 2014 by Oliver Suess and Daniele Lepido

Allianz SE, Europe’s biggest insurer, agreed to buy Milano Assicurazioni SpA assets from Unipol Gruppo Finanziario SpA for 440 million euros ($612 million), the Munich-based company said.

The deal includes a 1.1 billion-euro premiums portfolio, 729 agencies and 500 employees, Unipol said. Allianz initially announced the purchase agreement to buy a part of the property/casualty business in a statement Saturday.

Unipol has to sell divisions or companies that generate 1.7 billion euros of gross premiums to comply with antitrust requests after it won control of Fondiaria-SAI SpA. That move is part of a plan by the Bologna, Italy-based company to merge with Premafin Finanziaria SpA, Fondiaria and its unit Milano Assicurazioni to become Italy’s second-biggest insurer after Assicurazioni Generali SpA.

“The agreement reached with Allianz allows Unipol Group to comply with the extraordinarily stringent measures ordered by Italy’s Competition Authority after the bailout of Fondiaria-SAI Group,” UnipolSai Chief Executive Officer Carlo Cimbri said in a statement.

Allianz CEO Michael Diekmann said in an interview in October that tougher financial regulation will create takeover opportunities for Europe’s biggest insurer.

–With assistance from Sonia Sirletti in Milan.