The Colombian company signed an agreement to acquire the shares of Insurance Banistmo, whose participation in the Panamanian market is 8%.
From a statement issued by Grupo Sura:
Suramericana SA, a subsidiary of SURA Group which specializes in the industry for insurance, health and occupational hazards, signed a contract for the acquisition of Insurance Banistmo, which, once the relevant authorizations have been obtained, will allow the Company to consolidate its presence in the Central American market, adding this operation to Seguros SURA Panama.
In Central America microinsurance coverage is minimal, with rates well below the rest of Latin America.
Throughout the region, Guatemala leads they way in such services with 0.58%, followed by El Salvador (0.13%), Nicaragua (0.12%), Panama (0.06%) and Honduras (0.05%) . According to a study by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Salvadorans prefer micro-life insurance (112,000 people) and health insurance (78,000 people).
The Superintendency of the Financial System in El Salvador (SSF), has authorized the company Suramericana SA to buy insurer Aseguradora Suiza Salvadoreña S.A. (Asesuisa).
The purchase of the leading insurer Aseguradora Suiza Salvadoreña S.A. by Suramericana SA was announced last year in 2011, but has been awaiting authorization from the competent authorities.
Panama and El Salvador are seen by Grupo Sura as countries "with political, social and macroeconomic stability" for their expansion projects.
The president of Colombia's Grupo Sura, David Bojanini, said his holding company plans regional procurement in countries that provide economic, political and especially legal security.
"They are looking at countries like Mexico, Panama, Peru, Chile, Salvador and Uruguay, but we are now in the process of consolidating the investments to be made," the businessman said in an interview with Larepublica.co.
The insurance subsidiary of Suramericana Investment Group will invest $100 million to acquire insurer Asesuisa.
The company hopes to conclude negotiations by next March.
The acquisition is part of the company´s expansion plans, said company president, Gonzalo Pérez.
Reuters reports, "This is the second acquisition of Suramericana Insurance so far this year, after the insurer bought Proseguros in January, a company located in Dominican Republic."