Italy’s biggest insurer agreed in January to buy a 25% stake in Future Generali India Insurance from its joint venture partner, debt-laden Future Group, for 145 million euros ($159.37 million), giving the Italian group 74% ownership of the venture
New Delhi:
The Competition Commission of India (CCI) said on Wednesday it has approved Generali Participations Netherlands’ proposal to increase stake in its India unit Future Generali India Insurance Company to 74 per cent from 49 per cent.
Generali Participations Netherlands is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Assicurazioni Generali (Generali Group), the ultimate parent entity of the Generali group of companies.
The Generali Group is a global insurance provider and is present in the general insurance industry in India through Future Generali India Insurance Company (FGIIC).
The proposed combination relates to an acquisition of shares of FGIIC by Generali Participations Netherlands, an existing shareholder of FGIIC.
Generali Participations Netherlands (GPN) proposes to acquire approximately 25 per cent of the equity share capital of FGIIC held by Future Enterprises Limited, pursuant to which GPN’s aggregate (direct and indirect) shareholding in FGIIC will stand increased from 49 per cent to approx. 74 per cent, CCI said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Generali is confident it will finalise the acquisition of a bigger stake in its Indian joint venture Future Generali after an Indian court cleared the path for the deal last week, Chief Executive Philippe Donnet said on Tuesday.
Italy’s biggest insurer agreed in January to buy a 25% stake in Future Generali India Insurance from its joint venture partner, debt-laden Future Group, for 145 million euros ($159.37 million), giving the Italian group 74% ownership of the venture.
“The completion of the acquisition is obviously subject to regulatory approvals. And definitely, this acquisition is still on the table,” Donnet said in a post-results analyst call.
He added he was “confident that it’s going to happen.”
A Mumbai city court late last month put on hold the deal after a legal challenge by some bondholders of Future Group companies that had defaulted.
IDBI Trusteeship, the group representing the bondholders, said that they had rights mandating Future Enterprises not to dilute its stake in Future Generali, a source had said.
However, last week an Indian court cleared the path for the sale, setting aside the city court’s order.
Agencies