Allianz announced it has inked a deal with Janashakthi Insurance PLC (JINS) to acquire its subsidiary Janashakthi General Insurance Ltd. (JGIL) for 106.3 million.

The transaction will go through pending regulatory approval and is expected to conclude in the first quarter of 2018.

This acquisition makes Allianz Insurance Lanka (Allianz Lanka) one of the country’s largest general insurers, with a market share of approximately 20 percent, said Allianz in a statement.

Allianz said the acquisition will deliver a range of strategic benefits to all stakeholders, including:

• Strengthening Allianz Lanka’s customer reach and service capabilities. With close to a million policyholders across the island, the expanded client base represents a significant growth opportunity for Allianz in Sri Lanka.
• Janashakthi’s general insurance portfolio complements Allianz Lanka’s existing business and represents a strategic fit across both corporate and retail lines.
• JGIL will benefit from Allianz’ capabilities in data science and technology.
• Support of Allianz’ strategic priorities of achieving market leadership positions and high-quality growth in the Asia Pacific region.

Janashakthi Insurance has been operating in Sri Lanka for over 23 years with a focus on motor, fire and health protection for individuals and corporates. It will continue to focus on its life insurance portfolio in order to strengthen its presence in the Sri Lankan life insurance industry.

Allianz noted that the transaction represents one of the largest investments into Sri Lanka, which demonstrates its confidence in this market. The country’s general insurance market has posted a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 12.1 percent between 2010-2016, which is expected to accelerate to 12.5 percent by 2020, according to Allianz Group Economic Research. Such growth will be driven by improving trade and macro-economic conditions, as well as increased insurance penetration, the company noted.

Source: Allianz