Vienna Insurance merges Bulstrad and Bulgarski Imoti

The Vienna Insurance Group plans to merge its two non-life insurance subsidiaries Bulstard and Bulgarski Imoti in order to strengthen its market presence in Bulgaria and make better use of synergies.

The merger is expected to be completed during the first half of 2012, pending legal and regulatory approval. After the merger the Vienna Insurance Group will offer all services in Bulgaria, one of its core markets, under the Bulstrad brand.

The Vienna Insurance Group said the decision to merge the two property insurance companies was motivated by the desire to create an integrated and clear presence in the Bulgarian market.

"This will increase our efficiency and make use of earnings-based synergies. The leading position will also be further strengthened by pooling sales functions. In this process, efforts will be focused on providing the best possible service for our customers", commented Günter Geyer, CEO of the Vienna Insurance Group.

The Vienna Insurance Group claims to have secured a 15.4 percent share of the Bulgarian market in the first half of 2011. In the non-life insurance sector the two companies, have a market share of 16.3 percent. During the first half of 2011, Bulstrad achieved premiums of around €43.3m, Bulgarski Imoti achieved premiums of more than €14.1m.

The Vienna Insurance Group is headquartered in Vienna. Outside of its home base in Austria, Vienna Insurance Group is also active, through subsidiaries and insurance holdings, in Albania, Bulgaria, Germany, Estonia, Georgia, Croatia, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Turkey, Hungary, Ukraine and Belarus.

Moreover, Wiener Städtische Versicherung has branches in Italy and Slovenia; Donau Versicherung has a branch in Italy.