Nippon Life Insurance Co.'s planned capital and business tie-up with German life insurer Allianz can be regarded as its attempt to secure a profit increase overseas, thus finding a means of survival in the seemingly saturated domestic life insurance market.
An important task facing Nippon Life Insurance (Nissay), a predominant insurer at home, is to shore up its overseas business operations. Given this, Nissay's tie-up with Allianz marks an initial step toward achieving its goal of forming an alliance with a powerful foreign insurer, according to observers.
In a statement released by Allianz, Nissay President Yoshinobu Tsutsui said that his firm's planned investment in the German insurer is intended to build long-term cooperative ties between the two firms.
Since assuming the post of president in April, Tsutsui openly stated, "I'll form power unions with excellent financial institutions and life insurance firms across the globe."
The equity tie-up with Allianz is the first practical step toward reaching the goal made under Tsutsui's leadership.
In European life insurance markets, powerful players such as France's AXA and the Netherlands' ING Group are in fierce competition.
Nissay chose Allianz as its partner because the two companies' top management officials have already had ties.
The key factor was that it was easy to achieve trustful relations for the long-term business partnership that Tsutsui sought.
Through its planned capital and business tie-up, Nissay plans to build cooperative relations in a variety of areas, such as Allianz's excellent product-development capability, asset management and employee exchanges.
Through its tie-up with Prudential of the United States, Nissay has expanded its product lineup to include insurance products provided by Gibraltar Life Insurance Co., an affiliate of the major U.S. life insurer, such as foreign currency-denominated pension insurance, which is highly savings-based.
As European life insurance companies have extensive experience in foreign currency-denominated investments, it is highly likely that Nissay will be provided with similar products by Allianz.
The deal is beneficial for Allianz as it can strengthen its core capital. Industry sources said the German firm expects the deal will also improve its business in Japan, where Allianz has lagged behind.
Recently, major Japanese life insurers have entered foreign markets one after another.
For example, Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co. made an Australian life insurer its wholly owned subsidiary, and Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co. contributed capital to German and Chinese life insurers.
Japanese life insurers aim to acquire knowledge of product development and asset management through powerful counterparts in Western countries where existing life insurers are strong.
In other Asian countries, the Japanese companies plan to actively promote their life insurance products through local partners.
(Jul. 7, 2011)
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