Funds managed by DPI (“Development Partners International LLP”) and AfricInvest, leading Africa-focused private equity funds and DEG, FMO and PROPARCO, the European development finance institutions, announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement to sell 100% of Assur Africa Holding (“AAH”) to the AXA Group (“AXA”) for a total consideration of approximately €198 million. AAH holds a 77% stake in Mansard Insurance Plc (“Mansard”), a leading and well-established insurance company in Nigeria. The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2014.
Mansard is one of the premier insurers in Nigeria, offering a diverse range of life and non-life products to both institutional and retail clients. Mansard is listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and is the largest listed insurer by market capitalization on the exchange. Mansard operates strong institutional and retail insurance service platforms, insuring leading Nigerian and multinational companies on the institutional side and operating various distribution channels on the retail side. Mansard is also building wholly owned asset management and health insurance businesses which are expected to become leading players in their sectors within the coming years.
Mansard has a strong track record of delivering high growth and solid financial performance, and spearheaded by its highly skilled and experienced management team, is well-positioned to deliver future growth and establish its position as the leading insurance company in Nigeria.
The AXA Group is a worldwide leader in insurance and asset management, with 157,000 employees serving 102 million clients in 56 countries. This transaction will allow AXA to further strengthen its presence in Africa and enter the fast-growing Nigerian insurance market, in line with its strategy. Lazard Frères acted as the seller’s lead financial advisor. Exotix also acted as a financial advisor and Norton Rose Fulbright acted as legal counsel to the sellers on the transaction.
Idris Mohammed, Partner, DPI said: “DPI, along with its fellow shareholders AfricInvest, DEG, FMO and PROPARCO is proud to have been part of building the premier insurance brand and platform in Nigeria. Driven by an exceptionally strong and motivated management team, and backed by the technical and financial resources of AXA, Mansard is well positioned to harness the significant growth opportunity in insurance and other financial services presented by Africa’s largest consumer market. We wish the management team and AXA continued success in delivering on this potential.”
Hakim Khelifa, Executive Partner, AfricInvest commented: “AfricInvest is pleased that the sale of our holding in Mansard Insurance, with whom we have worked over the past eight years, has helped us to realize strong returns for our investors, while at the same time helping to build a world class African financial institution. Capitalizing on Mansard's healthy balance sheet, strong capital base, experienced management team and solid diversified customer base, AfricInvest has worked alongside the company and its other strategic investors to deepen insurance penetration in Nigeria and throughout West Africa. We now look forward to following the success of Mansard as it transitions to an exciting future on the global stage in the hands of its new owners."
DEG, FMO and PROPARCO commented: “The insurance penetration in Africa is the lowest globally and better access to insurance products is key to protect individuals from financial impacts of hazardous events. Mansard has become one of the most innovative insurance companies in Africa and has established distribution channels to increase the accessibility to insurance products for millions of Nigerians. We are proud of having been part of Mansard’s success story and to have contributed to the Company’s high ESG standards and achievements. We wish the Company and the management team every success going forward.”
