Generali acquires AXA’s Greek activity

Italian insurer Assicurazioni Generali is expanding its presence in Greece through two deals, with France’s AXA Group and Greece’s Alpha Bank, it was announced on Thursday.

AXA Group said that it has agreed to transfer its activity in Greece to Generali for a total net price of 165 million euros. The deal includes its activity in life and general insurance policies and the tag amounts to 12.2 times the price per earnings ratio of 2019. AXA said the transaction continues the streamlining policy of the French group, based on its general strategy, and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of the year pending approval by the regulatory authorities.

At the same time, Alpha Bank said that it is entering an exclusive cooperation agreement with Generali for the sale of the Italian insurer’s products on general and health insurance through the Greek lender’s network. The original application of the deal is for 20 years and relies on a growth strategy with an emphasis on digital media. “This new cooperation makes the most of the acquisition of the Greek branch of AXA’s activity in Greece by Generali, an important investment in Greece by an international insurance group,” Alpha said.

The new contract is expected to generate revenues of more than €1 billion euros in that period, with over 85% channeled through Alpha. The estimated present value of this cooperation is over €300 million for the Greek bank. Estimates put the total amount of registered premiums three times higher by the end of the 20-year period, which will also lead to a similar increase in the commission the bank will collect.

The agreement provides for value creation through the combination of a fixed payment, commissions, bonuses for achieving sales levels and contribution in the funds to promote this cooperation. The focus will be on innovation in products, digital channels and the improvement of the customer experience, as well as the increase in automatic communication between the networks of production and promotion in order to improve the efficiency of points of sale.

Generali Hellas Chief Executive Panos Dimitriou said that “the creation of synergies and the creation of a business and insurance ecosystem is a strategic pillar of our operation.”

Source: ekathimerini.com