British insurer Aviva said it had agreed to buy Irish insurer Friends First Life Assurance Company for 130 million euros ($151 million) in cash, making it one of the biggest insurers in Ireland.
Aviva said the deal is in line with its strategy to allocate capital in markets where it has scale or a competitive edge and can grow its product offering across life and general insurance, it said.
The deal is expected to be completed by the end of March 2018
The insurer has pulled back from several markets this year to focus on core markets including Britain and Canada.
AVIVA PLC is a multinational UK insurance company based in London, England. It has about 33 million customers in 16 countries. In the UK, Aviva is the largest general insurer and a leading life and pension provider. In addition, the company focuses on the growth markets of China and Southeast Asia, as well as on five markets in Europe and Asia. Aviva is also Canada's second largest general insurer. In December 2012, Aviva agreed to sell Aviva USA Corporation $ 1.8 billion (£ 1.1 billion) to Athene Holding as part of its plan to improve shareholder earnings and reduce group capital requirements.
FRIENDS FIRST LIFE helps customers look after their life protection, pension and investment needs for over 180 years. The company manages assets worth €4 billion. In 2016, its customers paid €602 million in premiums into their life protection, investment and pension plans. Its parent company, the Dutch insurance group, Achmea, is one of the largest mutual insurers in the world and the 3rd largest in Europe.