SWITZERLAND/GERMANY- Zurich Financial Services has completed the e1bn, 75.9% acquisition of the insurance holdings of Deutsche Bank including the Deutscher Herold Group, Bonnfinanz, and DGV.

The deal is the second in a series of three between Deutsche and Zurich, one of which includes the sale of Zurich Scudder Investments to Deutsche Bank.

The third part of the transaction is the sale of Zurich’s asset management activities in Germany and Italy, Zurich Invest, to Deutsche Bank and the sale of Deutsche’s insurance businesses in Italy, Spain and Portugal to Zurich, both transactions expected to close before July.

While Deutscher Herold will keep its independent legal structure, brand presence and headquarters in Bonn, operationally it will be integrated into the Zurich Group. At the end of 2001, the two had combined gross written premiums of e5.2bn.

Following the deal, Deutscher Herold and Zurich will get access to Deutsche Bank’s retail and private banking customers in Germany as the bank’s exclusive provider for insurance products. Deutscher Herold and Zurich will in turn offer Deutsche’s asset management products to their retail and private clients in Germany.

Speaking about the transaction, Axel Lehmann, Zurich’s CEO of continental Europe, said: “it provides an excellent platform from which the group will grow its life insurance and wealth accumulation business in Continental Europe and take advantage of the growing pension market business.”

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