Ergo to finalise life policies sale in India

Munich Re’s primary insurance unit, Ergo Versicherungsgruppe, will exceed a premium forecast for its international business and said it’s in advanced talks to sell life policies in India and China. “We are well under way to reach about €4 billion ($4.9 billion) in total premiums this year,” said Jochen Messemer, management board member responsible for the insurer’s international operations.

That beats the €3.9-billion target set by Munich Re, the world’s biggest reinsurer, in a March report for the squeeze-out of Ergo’s minority shareholders. “Profitability is clearly a priority,” Messemer, 44, said in an interview. “We stick to our target to return to positive earnings at the international unit this year, if no extraordinary effects influence the results.” The Dusseldorf-based company, which generates a fifth of gross written premiums from outside its home market, is focusing its international expansion on Europe and Asia, Messemer said.