USA
Russia
Insurance for Olympic medals
Financial services investor backs Russian insurance software company
US-based Liberty Mutual Insurance recently announced that it would be working with the US Olympic Committee to insure each of the medals won by US Olympic and Paralympic athletes competing in the Sochi 2014 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games and the Rio 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Iran EU lifts ban on Iranian oil tanker insurance
The European Union has amended a key part of its Iranian sanctions package imposed in July 2012, by lifting its ban on the provision of insurance for tankers carrying crude oil from Iran. EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels agreed to suspend the sanctions for six months. Iran currently sells crude oil to only six countries: China, India, Japan, South Korea, Turkey and Taiwan. The EU has also suspended its ban on the import, purchase or transport of Iranian petrochemical products and related services. The lifting of the sanctions was timed to coincide with the entry into force of the deal on Iran’s nuclear programme, agreed upon in Geneva last November. EU foreign affairs chief, Catherine Ashton, states that negotiations on a comprehensive solution would commence in February. Japanese buyers of Iranian crude can now start using international protection and indemnity insurance (P&I) clubs for the provision of insurance for tankers carrying Iranian crude. P&I clubs can offer insurance of up to $7.7 billion (R 84 billion) per VLCC, but they halted cover for tankers carrying Iranian oil after the EU imposed sanctions against Tehran in June 2012.
At present, the process of replacing a lost or stolen Olympic or Paralympic medal requires the athlete to file a request through the US Olympic Committee. Through the new insurance policy with the US Olympic Committee, Liberty Mutual Insurance will ensure that 2014 and 2016 US Olympic and Paralympic athletes are not held financially responsible for the loss of these prizes.
Africa M&A value in sub-Saharan Africa increases
The value of merger and acquisition (M&A) deals targeting sub-Saharan African firms increased by 20.8 per cent in 2013, reaching a total value of $26.7 billion according to specialist intelligence service, Mergemarket.
London-based financial services investor, EMF Capital Partners has invested in Russian insurance software company, Virtu Systems. This marks the first deal from the EMF New Europe Insurance Fund (NEIF), which targets investments in the insurance and related sectors of non-EU Eastern Europe. With this, NEIF becomes Virtu’s largest shareholder. Virtu is one of the most popular and widely used front-office systems in the Russian insurance market, used by insurers including domestic and international companies. The investment will allow the company to respond to increasing demand and create a new product range, with the aim of eventually entering international markets. The company is focused on providing online communications and data exchanges between insurers and their distribution channels. The majority of insurance products in Russia are still sold in paper form and communication between agents and insurance companies is slow and inefficient. “Automating the insurance sales process is a significant cost saving and efficiency opportunity for the industry as a whole,” said Peter Lovas, CEO of EMF Capital Partners.
“With investors realising the opportunity to capitalise on Africa’s growth and emerging middle class, opportunities are being swept up at a faster pace each year,” the company reports in its latest sub-Saharan Africa M&A trend report. A total of 215 deals were completed in 2013, with the most targeted M&A country by value being Mozambique. Driven by its energy and gas sector, it took a 35.8 per cent market share from only seven deals, valued at $9.6 billion. South Africa recorded 124 deals valued at $8.5 billion taking a 57.7 per cent share by volume. Nigeria, Tanzania and Angola were the next most active M&A countries for the region. Despite concerns around the United States’ planned monetary tapering, global ratings agency Fitch announced that it expects Africa’s growth to rise above five per cent in 2014.
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