JD Capital Makes a Ten-Billion Acquisition of Hong Kong Ageas Insurance
2015-08-31
On August 31, JD Capital (430719) announced that it has reached an agreement with European Ageas Group to acquire Ageas’s Hong Kong subsidiary, Ageas Insurance Company (Asia) Limited (hereafter referred to Hong Kong Ageas Insurance) with about 10.7 billion HK dollars.
Cross-border acquisition: a breakthrough in insurance business layout
Hong Kong Ageas Insurance, set up in 1985, is a subsidiary wholly owned by the European Ageas Group. As one of the major insurance companies in Hong Kong, the well-reputed company now engages in life insurance service, providing individuals and organizations in Hong Kong with abundant insurance products, including whole-life insurance, endowment insurance, investment-oriented insurance, term insurance as well as accident, health and disability insurance. The company boasts a professional team of over 2,800 agents and independent financial advisers. By the end of 2014, the total asset of Ageas Insurance reached around 37 billion HK dollars.
JD Capital positions insurance business an important component of its strategy, and this acquisition marks a breakthrough in the layout of its insurance businesses. JD Capital plans to take advantage of its capital to make long-term and continuous strategic investment in this business.
Strategic coordination: a stride forward in comprehensive investment
This acquisition will achieve fruitful strategic coordination between the two sides. Firstly, after the acquisition, Ageas Insurance will serve as an insurance financial platform for JD Capital in the Hong Kong market, a facilitation of JD Capital’s internationalization endeavor. Secondly, when JD Capital properly manages and controls risks and carries out to the letter the insurance asset-liabilities match management, it will be able to make the best of its investment advantages to enhance the investment return and customer value of Ageas Insurance. Thirdly, with its operational experiences and strengths in Internet financial businesses such as P2P, online marketing of financial products and third-party payment, JD Capital will propel the implementation of Ageas Insurance’s innovative Internet strategies. These strategies are expected to bring about groundbreaking improvements in product form, channel support, and ways to attract customers, so as to better meet customers’ demands. Fourthly, Ageas Insurance’s advantageous experiences, technologies, and talents in the insurance business will effectively support JD Capital’s domestic insurance business in risk control and management, underwriting and claim handling risk control, product development and pricing, channel establishment and training, IT system construction, etc.
This acquisition marks a milestone for JD Capital. It carries forward JD Capital’s by a large extent towards the goal of internationalization and of becoming a comprehensive investment management organization. At the same time, the new platform and the improved layout will generate ever-greater value for the customers and shareholders of JD Capital.