ERGO, Europe’s 12th-largest insurance company entered the Korean market in 2008 by buying a 65 percent stake in Daum Direct Auto Insurance Co., an online auto insurance unit of Daum Communications Corp. The company’s direct auto insurance unit in Korea, ERGO Daum Direct Auto Insurance Co., received regulatory approval in September 2009 to sell six different non-life insurance products including health, liability, fire and theft insurance. In June, the company introduced two new products, offering coverage for drivers and children. The German...  Lire la suite

Taiwanese authorities on Tuesday rejected a Hong Kong consortium’s bid to buy ailing US insurance giant American International Group’s Taiwan unit Nan Shan Life. The application by Hong Kong-based China Strategic Holdings and Primus Financial Holdings “has failed to get the approval of the responsible authorities,” the Investment Commission said in a statement. Rejection of the bid came as a blow to AIG, once the world’s largest insurer, which has been selling assets to pay back US government loans since its rescue...  Lire la suite

US billionaire Warren Buffett is interested in buying Royal Bank of Scotland’s insurance business Direct Line, a report said Sunday. Spiraling claims from car accidents have led to heavy losses at RBS’s insurance arm and the bank has brought in a team of advisors to help sell the business, according to the Sunday Times. RBS,  which is 83-percent state-owned after being bailed out by the British government,  has been ordered by the European Commission to sell Direct Line to fall into line with competition rules. Berkshire Hathaway,...  Lire la suite

Italy’s insurance giant Generali wants to expand in Asia, notably in India and Vietnam, its president said, financial daily Il Sole 24 Ore reported on Thursday. “We’re looking at India and in the near future our development in that area will reach Vietnam as well,” Cesare Geronzi said after a conference on Wednesday. Geronzi however said Generali does “not have any concrete offers” on the table for acquisitions in Asia and that it would buy “only what is needed.” Generali, the largest foreign...  Lire la suite

Swiss insurance group Baloise said Tuesday it has acquired Belgian firm Avero for 75 million euros (102.4 million dollars), a move that would strengthen its market position in Belgium. “With the acquisition of Avero, Baloise will increase the market share of its Belgian non-life business to around five percent, making it the sixth largest non-life business in Belgium,” said the Basel-based company. The acquisition is expected to be completed by year-end. Following the deal, the brand name Avero would be gradually removed from the...  Lire la suite