Two of China's most active external investors considered taking large stakes in Allianz.
China’s Ultra acquisitive HNA Group and the Anbang Insurance Group seriously contemplated buying into German insurer Allianz SE this year.
The separate talks, which were at an early stage and did not result in formal bids, were called off due to expected regulatory hurdles in Germany and China and the fact that Allianz showed little interest. This according to a report in German newspaper Suddeutsche Zietung (German language).
The Chinese conglomerates, who have substantial international investments, looked at buying a majority stake in the world’s fourth-largest insurer by market value, which is worth over $95 billion.
Doing Business
Anbang’s recent overseas acquisitions include one of Allianz’s former businesses. The Chinese firm bought Allianz Life Insurance Korea and asset management firm Allianz Global Investors Korea for more than $3 million last year.
The HNA Group, which includes aviation, real estate, financial services, tourism and logistics in its stable, recently increased its stake in Germany's largest bank, Deutsche Bank, to over 9 percent.
The report concluded that any bid would have ran into political and regulatory roadblocks as the insurer is a German stalwart that holds a huge amount of capital and is an important pillar for local pensions.
