Allianz acquires Philippine insurance firm

European insurance giant Allianz is buying a controlling stake in one of the largest insurance firms in the Philippines for an undisclosed amount, the Filipino outfit said Wednesday.

Munich-based Allianz signed a deal to purchase a 51 percent share in PNB Life Insurance, owned by listed Philippine National Bank (PNB), said Caesar Alterejos, chief financial officer of PNB Life.

He declined to reveal the price tag.

The investment in PNB Life, one of the country's 10 largest insurers, will mark the return of Allianz to the Philippines, having pulled out from a joint venture with another local insurance company in 2003.

"They are coming back now because there is a change of environment (in Asia) especially in the Philippines," Alterejos told AFP.

The Southeast Asian archipelago has enjoyed an economic resurgence in recent years, posting growth rates second only to China in Asia.

One of the key aspects of the investment is a 15-year "bancassurance" agreement where Allianz insurance products will be sold through PNB's network of more than 660 bank branches, Alterejos added.

"The Philippines is a very fast-growing insurance market supported by a healthy economic outlook and a large, young population of over 100 million people," a disclosure to the stock exchange quoted Allianz Asia-Pacific chief executive officer George Sartorel as saying.

"The transaction with PNB is a unique opportunity to enter into the market."

PNB Life posted total revenues of 2.142 billion pesos ($47.6 million) in 2014, its website said.

Alterejos predicted the company's revenues would be "substantially higher" this year, without giving exact figures.

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