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Wiener Städtische intends to sell Romanian insurer Unita to UNIQA Group Austria
Autor: Bancherul.ro
2008-05-29 13:21
On 28 May 2008, Wiener Städtische Versicherung AG Vienna Insurance Group and UNIQA Austria Group have on principle reached consent – subject to the approvals by the authorities and especially the approval by the European anti-trust authority – concerning the takeover of the Romanian insurance company Unita VIENNA INSURANCE GROUP S.A. by UNIQA Group Austria, said the company in a statement.

UNIQA Group Austria intends to acquire 100 percent of the share capital of the Romanian non-life insurer. It is planned to close the intended transaction in the third quarter of the current year.

Vienna Insurance Group CEO Günter Geyer on the transaction: "We have announced to sell our Romanian Group company Unita already some time ago and commissioned JPMorgan to initiate the bidding process. On the basis of the offers submitted we have now decided to enter into sales negotiations with UNIQA.”

In the year 2007, the Romanian companies of the Vienna Insurance Group increased their premium volume by 74.5 percent and in the first quarter of 2008 this success was continued.

The Group companies of the Vienna Insurance Group (including Asirom for the first time) achieved a premium volume of around EUR 200 million and hence an increase of nearly 90 percent. With an increase of more than 100 percent, profit before taxes was also very satisfying.

The Vienna Insurance Group is one of the leading insurance groups in CEE headquartered in Vienna. Outside of its home base in Austria, Vienna Insurance Group is also active, through subsidiaries and insurance holdings, in Albania, Bulgaria, Germany, Estonia, Georgia, Croatia, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Hungary, Ukraine and Belarus. It also has branches in Italy and Slovenia.

In the Austrian market, the group is represented through Wiener Städtische Versicherung AG Vienna Insurance Group, Donau Versicherung, Sparkassen Versicherung* and Bank Austria Creditanstalt Versicherung. Furthermore, it has a minority holding in Wüstenrot Versicherung.