LV and Legal & General are offloading their general insurance business to German insurance group Allianz.
LV already started the process in December 2017 when it sold a 49 per cent stake in its general insurance business to Allianz for £500m with a second stage of the transaction due to take place at the end of 2019 for £213m.
Allianz has now purchased the remaining 30.1 per cent stake for £365m, bringing its total holding to 100 per cent.
The transaction will close on December 31, 2019 and following completion Alan Cook (chairman), Richard Rowney (chief executive), David Neave and David Barral (non-executive directors) will step down from the board of LV=GI, while retaining their seats on the board of LV.
Richard Rowney, LV group chief executive, said: "We have successfully grown the value of our general insurance business to in excess of £1bn and this deal enables us to realise that value for the long-term benefit of our members as well as strengthening our overall capital position.
"We have recently announced plans to convert to a company limited by guarantee which will provide greater flexibility and freedom to compete over the medium to long term as we continue to build on our heritage and strong brand to create a better mutual for the future, where being a member has more meaningful benefits."
Meanwhile, L&G has also sold its GI business to Allianz for £242m.
L&G’s general insurance unit, which sells home, travel and pet insurance, has been up for sale for several months.
Jon Dye, chief executive of Allianz UK, said: "This is a good outcome for all the parties involved and acquiring a high quality business with 2m customers to combine with the LV general insurance business is a strong result."
In 2018, L&G’s general insurance business generated £410m in gross written premiums.
The L&G deal is expected to complete in the second half of 2019, subject to regulatory approvals.
amy.austin@ft.com
What do you think about the issues raised by this story? Email us on fa.letters@ft.com to let us know.
