French banking group BNP Paribas has announced the sale of its 25 per cent stake in AG Insurance to Belgian insurance giant Ageas for £1.9bn ($2.2bn).
The transaction gives Ageas full ownership of AG Insurance, Belgium’s leading insurance company. Prior to the deal, the stake was held through BNP Paribas Fortis, the Belgian retail banking arm of the French lender.
Ageas was formerly known as Fortis, which was bailed out by the Belgian government during the 2007–2008 global financial crisis. Fortis later sold its Belgian retail banking operations to BNP Paribas, leading to the creation of BNP Paribas Fortis.
As part of the wider transaction, BNP Paribas will increase its shareholding in Ageas from 15 per cent to 22 per cent, at a cost of £1.1bn.
Commenting on the deal, Ageas Chief Executive Hans De Cuyper said full ownership of AG Insurance would strengthen the group’s operations in Belgium.
“Taking full ownership of AG Insurance enables us to further advance our Belgian operations, building on the reconfirmed bancassurance partnership with our long-standing partner, BNP Paribas Fortis,” he said.
The agreement will also see AG Insurance enter a long-term investment partnership with BNP Paribas Asset Management, deepening collaboration between the two financial groups.
BNP Paribas Chief Executive Jean-Laurent Bonnafé said the partnership presents strong growth opportunities.
“We see significant potential in the growth prospects of BNP Paribas Fortis’ bancassurance business through the partnership with AG Insurance, as well as the deployment of our new asset management platform’s expertise created through the combination of BNP Paribas AM and AXA IM,” Bonnafé stated.
In 2024, BNP Paribas strengthened its asset management business with the £5.4bn acquisition of AXA’s investment management arm, positioning it to provide services to AXA and other insurers and pension funds.
BNP Paribas said the latest deal, expected to close in the second quarter of next year, would generate a net capital gain of £820m after tax and is forecast to add about £40m to net profit annually.
