The German insurer is expanding into Latin America.
(Photo: dpa)
Munich The insurance group Talanx is taking over the Latin American business of the US insurer Liberty Mutual Insurance for the equivalent of around 1.38 billion euros. The business will be handled by the subsidiary HDI International, the MDax group announced on Saturday in Hanover.
The purchase includes Liberty’s private customer business in Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Ecuador and has a gross premium volume of around EUR 1.7 billion. The completion of the transaction is still subject to antitrust approvals and, according to Talanx, is expected for the first half of 2024.
For Talanx, this means a big leap in South America. Last year, the HDI International division generated premium income of around 1.4 billion euros in Brazil, Colombia and Chile. According to Talanx, this has made it number one in property insurance in Chile and number two in Brazil.
“The acquisition fits seamlessly into our strategy of achieving market-leading positions in our core markets through organic and inorganic growth,” said CEO Torsten Leue. In the future, 45 percent of business with private customers and small companies outside Germany will come from Latin America.
Talanx announced that the purchase will improve earnings and return on equity quickly after the closing expected for the first half of 2024. The group does not need a capital increase for this: the purchase of billions can be financed from its own funds, said a spokesman.
Liberty Mutual, a Boston-based mutual insurance company, had put its Latin American business — as well as that in parts of southern Europe — up for sale some time ago and hired investment bank JPMorgan for the job. According to reports, Generali and Zurich were also interested. Liberty’s reinsurance business in South America is not part of the sale.
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