Talks on Lippo Life acquisition fail
Talks on Lippo Life acquisition fail
JAKARTA (JP): Negotiations over the planned acquisition of
publicly listed PT Asuransi Lippo Life by German insurance giant
Allianz have failed to produce any agreement, a senior executive
of the German company said here on Wednesday.
Manfred Wittau, also the president of PT Asuransi Allianz
Utama Indonesia, said on Wednesday that a number of meetings had
been held with the founders of the insurance unit of the Lippo
Group to hammer out the acquisition plan, but both parties failed
to reach an agreement.
"We have stopped our discussions without any conclusions,"
Wittau told the media.
He said acquiring local insurance companies was part of
Allianze's strategy in strengthening its foothold in the
Indonesian insurance market.
But he said the approach to acquisition would be carried out
carefully.
"Allianz never approached or looked for an insurance company
to acquire. But if any came to us we would be happy to consider
it," he said at the soft opening of PT Asuransi Allianz Utama
Indonesia's one-stop insurance outlet in the Summitmas building.
The company's director, Laurence Warburton, said the outlet
would offer a comprehensive range of insurance services, namely
policies in general, life and health insurance.
"Customers and agents will be able to obtain their policies in
less than 24 hours and have their claims processed faster," he
said.
Allianz operates two companies in Indonesia: general insurance
firm PT Allianz Utama Indonesia and life insurance firm PT
Asuransi Allianz Life Indonesia.
Established in 1989, PT Allianz Utama, one of the leading
foreign industrial insurers, covers large-scale public and
private sector investment projects.
PT Allianz Utama is presently focusing more on its retail
insurance clients as a lot of private as well as public
investment projects in the country have been put on hold due to
the economic crisis, said Warburton.
Retail insurance clients include policyholders on life, motor
vehicle, house and small and medium-businesses.
Allianz AG of Germany has offices in 17 countries throughout
the Asia-Pacific region. Singapore and Hong Kong were selected as
the company's regional centers to manage its operations.
Singapore hosts Allianz Insurance Management Asia Pacific,
Allianz Reinsurance and Allianz Risk Management, while Hong Kong
hosts Allianz Asset Management. (udi)