Germany’s Allianz withdraws offer to acquire Singapore’s Income Insurance

The decision comes after public outcry and government scrutiny over the importance of balancing commercial interests with social responsibility

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Allianz is a German multinational financial services company and the largest insurance company in the world. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 6:39pm, 16 Dec 2024

German insurance giant Allianz has withdrawn a S$2.2 billion (US$1.68 billion) offer to acquire a majority stake in Singapore’s Income Insurance following the city state’s move to block the deal.

The deal’s announcement in July raised public concerns about Income’s ability to continue its social mission after the acquisition.

Income, which has about 1.7 million customers and offers life, health, and property insurance, was founded in the 1970s to offer protection to low income segments of the population.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said in October the city state would block Allianz’s bid due to concerns over the “structure and terms of the deal”, but remained open to a new agreement if these concerns were addressed, which Allianz said at the time it would attempt to do.

Allianz said on Monday that, following the Singapore Government’s announcement on October 14 and subsequent changes to the Insurance Act, it has withdrawn its pre-conditional voluntary cash offer to acquire at least 51 per cent of the shares in Income. The changes allow Singapore’s Monetary Authority to consider the views of the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) during regulatory approvals for insurers that are either co-operatives or linked to one.

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said in October, he would block a deal between Allianz and Singapore’s Income Insurance. Photo: AFP

“We respect the Singapore Government’s decision,” Renate Wagner, board member of Management of Allianz SE and responsible for the Asia-Pacific region, said in a statement on Monday.