Aviva strategy goes on with Italy sales
INSURANCE GIANT Aviva has exited Italy with two deals that will let the business focus on its key markets as part of an international withdrawal.
The firm, which has been on a selling spree for months, said that it had netted a combined £754m from the sale of two arms.
CNP Assurances will buy Aviva’s Italian life insurance business, while Allianz snaps up the general insurance business.
It is less than four months since the firm sold its 80 per cent in Aviva Vita, an Italian life insurance joint venture. Together the three sales have netted the company £1.1bn.
It follows further sales in Turkey, France, Singapore and Vietnam, all in the last six months.
The business said it is also looking at its options in Poland and other international joint ventures.
“2020 was a year of significant change for Aviva. We have taken major steps forward in simplifying the business, most recently with the sale of Aviva France and today’s announcement of the sale of the rest of our Italian operations,” said chief executive Amanda Blanc.
“Our strategic focus is now on the UK, Ireland and Canada where we have leading positions.”
The announcement came alongside Aviva’s results for the year, showing a £23m drop in operating profit to around £3.2bn.
It declared a total dividend of 21p for 2020, up from 15.5p a year earlier. Ms Blanc said that the performance in 2020 demonstrated the growth potential in its core markets. It saw record sales in several areas. In the UK, its savings and retirement business saw a £1bn jump in net flows to a record £8.5bn.