Innovation from East improves Dutch insurer

Last month, 37 Dutch insurance agents landed in Beijing to visit Anbang Insurance Group and learn about modern methods and applications of technologies such as data analysis in their business.

Associates of Dutch insurer Vivat, the 37 agents traveled at the invitation of Anbang, which had bought out the former from state-owned Dutch banking group SNS Reaal for 150 million euros ($169 million) in 2015.

Their visit is proof that Chinese companies’ overseas M&A’s, or mergers and acquisitions, are not all about expansion and profit. They are also about sharing knowledge, resources, relationships and technologies.

Michael Bieger, CEO of Apple Tree, a Dutch financial advisory, was one of the 37 visitors. He said his colleagues have all worked at the same building with the endowment insurance group of Vivat for 17 years. But since last year, they began to learn more about Anbang and established business cooperation with the latter’s staff.

Bas de Voogd, who runs a 100-year-old insurance broking firm in the Netherlands, said Vivat has turned into a better enterprise, in terms of human resources and team work, after Anbang took it over. “Vivat is changing itself and we’ve more faith now in doing business with it.”

Improvement is also showing in Vivat’s financial per-