(Alliance News) - On Friday, UniCredit Spa announced that, having received all necessary approvals from the relevant authorities, it has completed the internalization of its Italian life bancassurance business, acquiring full control of its joint ventures with CNP Assurances SA and Allianz Spa.
Following the closing of the acquisition, CNP UniCredit Vita Spa has been renamed UniCredit Life Insurance, while UniCredit Allianz Vita Spa has become UniCredit Vita Assicurazioni.
Alessandro Santoliquido has been appointed CEO of both companies, in addition to his role as Head of Group Insurance.
ULI and UVA are expected to merge in 2026. The new Italian life bancassurance company resulting from this merger will represent a significant expansion of the Client Solutions factories and will hold a leadership position in high-value segments such as unit-linked policies and term life insurance.
In accordance with relevant regulations, UniCredit plans to apply for recognition of the Danish Compromise once it is classified as a Financial Conglomerate.
Following longstanding partnerships with two of the world's most renowned insurance groups, CNP Assurances and Allianz, the internalization of the Italian life bancassurance factories will enable UniCredit to build an efficient company in a fee-based sector where UniCredit is already a leading player. The move is expected to unlock business synergies, further strengthen service levels and value for customers, and drive substantial business growth.
The current structure of the Italian non-life bancassurance business will not be affected and will continue to operate through the UniCredit Allianz Assicurazioni joint venture under the terms communicated to the market in January 2022.
The impact of the transaction on the Group's CET1 ratio in the second quarter is expected to be around -25 basis points. This impact is anticipated to be neutralized once UniCredit is fully recognized as a Financial Conglomerate subject to supplementary supervision and obtains the application of the Danish Compromise.
UniCredit expects the two transactions to contribute substantially to a EUR0.4 billion increase in annual insurance revenues by the 2027 financial year, compared to 2024.
Alessandro Santoliquido, Head of Group Insurance at UniCredit, commented: "This transaction marks a fundamental step in our journey to create a leading life insurance company in Italy. Our goal is to become the market benchmark not only in terms of size, but also for efficiency, product innovation, and quality of customer service. Our commitment now is to complete the merger as quickly as possible, so we can enter the next phase of growth by offering customers the best solutions available."
In 2024, the two companies, UAV and CUV, collected approximately EUR8.6 billion in Gross Written Premiums (with a 7.2% share of the entire Italian life insurance market), with total technical reserves of about EUR45.6 billion. In Italy, in 2024, UniCredit's life bancassurance business generated around EUR580 million in distribution fees (13.4% of UniCredit's total net fees in Italy), in addition to over EUR100 million in profits from its holdings in the two companies.
By Michele Cirulli, Alliance News Reporter
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