AXA to sell its operations in Central and Eastern Europe for €1bn

Insurer AXA has entered into an agreement with UNIQA Insurance Group (UNIQA) to sell its operations in Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Under the terms of the agreement, AXA will sell 100 percent of its life & savings, property & casualty and pension businesses in Central and Eastern Europe for a total cash consideration of €1 billion.

The completion of the transaction is expected to result in a positive impact on AXA Group’s Solvency II ratio of around two points. No significant net income impact is estimated for AXA Group from this transaction.

Thomas Buberl, chief executive officer of AXA, said: “This transaction marks another step in the simplification of AXA’s footprint, we are convinced that AXA’s operations in Central and Eastern Europe will benefit from UNIQA’s strong presence and local expertise in the region to create new growth opportunities with a continued focus on delivering enhanced customer value propositions. I would like to thank the management teams and all the employees of our Polish, Czech and Slovakian operations, for their continuous engagement over the years and wish them all the success for the future.”

Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals, and is expected to be finalized by Q4 2020.