Prudential buys Thanachart insurance arm
Takeover of the Thailand business to further consolidate ownership throughout the region
Prudential, Britain's biggest insurer by market value, plans to buy the life insurance business of Thanachart Bank in Thailand for £368 million (HK$4.5 billion).
The deal is part of Asia's insurance industry consolidation, highlighted by Richard Li Tzar-kai's purchase of ING's insurance business in Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand last month.
"It has been a very active year for the industry," said Barry Stowe, the chief executive of Prudential Asia. "You can understand why people would be interested in buying with the market outlook being so positive."
Prudential will pay Bangkok-based Thanachart, which is partly owned by Canada's Bank of Nova Scotia, £358 million in cash and an additional £10 million 12 months later.
"Usually assets that would come to the market, won't be as good," said Stowe, who added that he expected more mergers and acquisitions in the industry especially as banks might need to shed their capital-intensive insurance businesses to meet regulatory requirements.
The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and expected to be finalised early next year. The 200 employees from Thanachart will be evaluated before they join the new owner.
