Int. Insurance links 26.8 (after holiday bumper edition)
Wednesday, August 26, 2009 at 01:57PM Purchase of Friends Provident (link this in with the general consolidation of the insurance industry)
Friends Provident ready to submit to Cowdery's Resolution
Friends Provident is poised to accept a £1.86bn takeover offer by Clive Cowdery's Resolution, with the aim of announcing a deal alongside its interim results tomorrow.
The insurer, which aggressively opposed earlier offers from Resolution, was forced back to the negotiating table by large shareholders with investments in both firms who were keen to see a deal done. One analyst said the Friends Provident management had "misjudged" the mood among its own investors by refusing to countenance a deal.
Friends Provident accepts £1.86bn takeover by Resolution
Friends Provident has accepted a £1.86bn takeover offer from Clive Cowdery's Resolution, ending its initial opposition to the deal.
The insurer was forced back to the negotiating table by large shareholders with investments in both firms who were keen to see the takeover. One analyst said the Friends Provident management had "misjudged" the mood among its own investors by refusing to countenance a deal.
Cowdery: Resolution is already in talks to follow up Friends deal
Clive Cowdery, the insurance tycoon, said takeover talks were ongoing with a number of other firms after securing a £1.86bn deal to acquire Friends Provident through his bid vehicle Resolution.
The Friends Provident deal, announced as the stockmarket opened, provides Cowdery with the springboard for a planned series of three or four acquisitions in the life assurance sector, with a total value of up to £5bn. The aim is to float the combined business off as a separate company within three or four years.
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Prudential raises dividend as chief executive bows out
Mark Tucker bowed out of Prudential today with a dividend hike that bucked the trend set by rivals for lower interim payouts.
The Pru's chief executive, who leaves next month, is handing over to Tidjane Thiam, the current finance director, who committed himself to steering the same steady course as his predecessor once he takes the helm at the insurer.
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Rising wave of piracy sends shipowners' costs soaring
Businesses will have to pay a rising "piracy tax" to maintain global trading networks, according to the Lloyd's of London insurance market.
A report commissioned by Lloyd's found Somali pirates are beating the credit crunch, with rogue crews seizing more than 60 vessels and earning some $80m (£48m) in ransoms.
Separate figures from the International Maritime Bureau showed a doubling of piracy attacks in the first six months of this year, with virtually all the increase due to Somali pirates.
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Aviva sees profits rise but slashes dividend
Aggressive cost-cutting at Aviva coupled with strong overseas sales boosted the insurer's profits in the first six months of the year, but not enough to convince the company to maintain its dividend payment.
Aviva said today it remained cautious about the outlook despite a profit of £747m after tax in the first half of 2009, up from an £84m loss a year ago.
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China Life eyes stakes in AIA and Ag Bank
BEIJING/HONG KONG, Aug 26 - China Life Insurance, the country’s top life insurer, said it is studying possible investments involving IPO candidates Agricultural Bank of China and AIA, aiming to improve its returns.
One of the potential deals could see China Life invest in AIA, the Asia unit of bailed-out US insurance giant American International Group, as part of its broader interest in branded firms.
see also; UPDATE 2-China Life studies investments in AIA, Ag Bank
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Admiral first-half profit up 5%
Admiral has posted pre-tax profit of £105.3 million for the first six months of the year, up 5% on the same period of 2008.
Profit from UK car insurance business soared 18% to £101.2 million and UK turnover leapt 17% to £540.1 million.
The group, which operates the confused.com website, said customer numbers rose 18% to 1.92 million.
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American Community Introduces Small Group Health Plan in Nebraska
American Community Mutual Insurance Company, headquartered in Livonia, Mich., is now offering Latitude, a small group product that allows employers to customize a health plan, to employers in Nebraska.
Sold through independent insurance agents, the new PPO plan for employer groups with 2-50 employees is available in Nebraska for a coverage effective date beginning Sept. 1, 2009. With the addition of Nebraska, the product is available in eight states.
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Greek insurers see limited impact from wildfires
ATHENS, Greece (Reuters)—Greek insurers said on Tuesday they expected claims of property losses from the wildfires that swept through the Athens suburbs to be small, though it was too early to give an accurate figure.
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Willis Names Vic Krauze President of its North American Business
New York, NY, August 25, 2009 – Willis Group Holdings (NYSE: WSH), the global insurance broker, today named Vic Krauze President of Willis HRH, its North American retail business.Krauze will retain his current responsibilities as Chief Operating Officer of Willis HRH and will continue to report to Don Bailey, Chairman and CEO of Willis HRH. As President and COO, Krauze will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the business and establishing more consistent business-wide processes and systems for managing growth at the regional level. The National Partners who head each of Willis HRH’s seven regions will now report to Krauze.
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MMA Insurance Names New Claims Director
UK-based MMA Insurance has appointed Bob Perry as claims director. He will report to Garry Fearn, chief executive of MMA.
Mr Perry will be responsible for all claims functions within MMA including motor, property and casualty claims, anti financial crime and claims supplier management. He joined MMA in May 2009 as interim claims director.
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Wells Fargo Appoints New Managing Director
Wells Fargo Insurance Services of Pennsylvania, a bank-owned insurance brokerage in the US, has appointed James Voltz as managing director, for its Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania Office. In his new role, Mr. Voltz is responsible for operations, carrier relationships, sales, and placement of all commercial and private risk practices.
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Aviva Extends Its Health Insurance Product
Aviva has extended its private health insurance that can now be availed by its individual and small group customers - reported Moneynews.
Earlier, the insurance, which specialises in back and neck problems, was available to Aviva staff and corporate customers only.
Mark Sharpe, clinical development manager at Aviva's UK Health business, has stated that these musculo-skeletal conditions are often the cause of insurance claims and felt Back-Up takes a sensible approach to the issue.
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XL Insurance Names Regional Energy Underwriting Manager
XL Insurance, the global insurance operations of XL Capital, has appointed Peter Bitterlin as regional underwriting manager for Energy.
Mr. Bitterlin in his new role will be heading XL Insurance's onshore energy team for Europe and Asia Pacific, and will be based in London.
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Gulf Bank, Enaya Launch Family Travel Insurance Policy
Enaya Insurance has partnered with Kuwait-based Gulf Bank to launch TravelSmart, a new worldwide family travel insurance policy targeting Gulf bank customers - reported AME Info.
Reportedly, annual premium for worldwide family coverage is KD37 and covers the insured, spouse and their dependant children under the age of 21. The policy insures customers of age up to 75 without any additional premium payments.
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UPDATE 1-Delphi Financial offering priced at $21; shares slump
* Offering priced at 10 pct discount to Monday's close * Says to use proceeds for general corporate purposes
* Shares down as much as 10 pct
Aug 18 (Reuters) - Delphi Financial Group Inc (DFG.N) said its previously announced offering of 3 million class A common shares were priced at $21 a share, a 10 percent discount to their Monday's closing price, sending its shares down as much as 10 percent.
This is the employee-insurance provider's second offering at a 10 percent discount this year. In April, the company offered 10 million shares at $17.50 a share. [ID:nBNG482832]