As per the agreement, Crédit Agricole Assurances will acquire the remaining 25% stake in GNB Seguros, a Portugal-based non-life insurance company, from Novo Banco
Crédit Agricole Assurances now the 100% owner of GNB Seguros. (Credit: Pixabay/Nappiness.)
Crédit Agricole Assurances, an insurance subsidiary of French cooperative financial institution Crédit Agricole, has agreed with Novo Banco to acquire the remaining stake in GNB Seguros from Novo Banco.
As per the agreement, Crédit Agricole Assurances will acquire a 25% stake in GNB Seguros, a Portugal-based non-life insurance company.
Novo Banco to distribute GNB Seguros’s insurance policies in Portugal
The agreement also includes a 22-year non-life insurance distribution agreement with between Novo Banco and GNB Seguros to distribute GNB’s insurance policies in Portugal.
Founded in 1996, GNB Seguros is one of the leading five property and casualty bank insurers in Portugal. By the end of last year, the company is claimed to have earned more than €78m in premium.
The insurer’s main product lines are home, auto and health insurance. The firm also provides unemployment (mainly credit linked), repatriation and accident policies.
Novo Banco is one of the main distributors of GNB Seguros’ insurance products, taking advantage of its large retail network and more recently, they are also being distributed through Credibom, Credit Agricole’s Portuguese entity for consumer finance.
Crédit Agricole Assurances CEO Philippe Dumont said: “Our international development, and particularly in Portugal, is fully in line with our strategic ambitions in non-life insurance.
“With this acquisition and the distribution agreement with the Novo Banco network, Crédit Agricole Assurances consolidates its position on the Portuguese market, while strengthening our international bancassurance model.”
In October 2018, Crédit Agricole Assurances had agreed to acquire a 25% stake in GNB Seguros, increasing its stake from 50% to 75%. The remaining 25% stake was held by Novo Banco.
The French insurer stated that the deal was its willingness to develop its non-life business in Portugal and reinforces its partnership with Novo Banco.
In July 2018, Crédit Agricole Assurances had partnered with Italian bank Credito Valtellinese, which confirms its strategy to partner with external banks to strengthen its international presence.