Belgian insurer Ageas has retained advisors to discover a bid for British motor and residential insurer esure, 4 individuals acquainted with the matter advised Reuters, as a part of plans to consolidate the UK private traces market.
Germany’s Allianz has additionally been engaged on a suggestion for esure in latest weeks, stated two of the individuals, talking on situation of anonymity.
There’ll solely be one foremost spherical of bidding, with a deadline within the subsequent few weeks, the third particular person stated, cautioning {that a} deal will not be assured.
Bids for esure, owned by personal fairness agency Bain Capital, might be round 1.5 billion kilos ($1.94 billion), a fifth particular person stated on Tuesday. All 5 individuals have been talking on situation of anonymity as a result of the method is personal.
Spokespeople for Bain, Ageas, Allianz and esure declined to remark.
The UK insurance coverage market has been consolidating, with Britain’s Aviva looking for regulatory clearances on its 3.7 billion pound acquisition of Direct Line that was agreed final December.
Ageas pursued Direct Line earlier than it was taken over by Aviva and has stated it needs to develop in UK normal insurance coverage.
Learn extra: Aviva Agrees to Buy UK Insurer Direct Line for £3.7 Billion
Esure is smaller than Direct Line and makes use of the identical expertise platform as Ageas, which makes the goal notably enticing to Ageas, sources beforehand advised Reuters.
For Allianz, shopping for esure would develop its presence within the UK market, after it purchased the overall insurance coverage companies of L&G and LV= in 2019. Allianz can also be in unique talks to accumulate Viridium in a $3 billion plus deal, in accordance with the Wall Road Journal. Allianz declined to touch upon the report.
Esure, whose merchandise embody cautious driver model Sheilas’ Wheels, was fashioned in 2000 by former Direct Line founder Peter Wooden. Bain took esure personal in a 1.21 billion pound deal in 2018 after the corporate was listed on the London Inventory Trade in 2013.
($1 = 0.7732 kilos)
(Reporting by Amy-Jo Crowley and Alexander Huebner, enhancing by Anousha Sakoui, Tomasz Janowski and Susan Fenton)
