Pacific Century sells FWD stake to reinsurer
Swiss Re paying US$425 million for minority holding in Richard Li's insurance company amid an expansion push across the region
Reinsurance company Swiss Re is investing up to US$425 million to acquire a minority stake in FWD Group, the insurance business that Richard Li Tzar-kai's Pacific Century Group bought from ING last year.
Zurich-based Swiss Re, the world's second-largest reinsurance provider, will initially own 12.3 per cent of FWD, and make additional investments to fund the Hong Kong company's planned expansion across Asia.
Li, the chairman of Pacific Century, said yesterday: "As we look to build FWD for the long term, Swiss Re's commitment to Asia is entirely consistent with our aspirations to create a leading life insurer across the region."
The deal with Swiss Re represented more good news for Li this week. On Tuesday, the government approved the application of PCCW affiliate HK Television Entertainment for a free-to-air television programme service licence. Li is also the chairman of PCCW.
In 2007, Li sold his stake in Pacific Century Insurance to Fortis but re-entered the business through Pacific Century Group's US$2.14 billion purchase of ING's insurance operations in Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand in an acquisition that was completed in February. The name of that business was changed to FWD in August as part of the takeover deal because ING kept its brand for its own banking operation.
Julian Lipman, FWD's chief operating officer, said Swiss Re's participation as a long-term investor would help the company "in its quest to build a pan-Asian life insurance platform".