WARSAW, March 26, 2021 - Greenberg Traurig is advising Allianz S.E. which announced it has agreed to purchase the Polish life and non-life insurance operations, as well as pension and asset management business, from Aviva and acquire 51% stakes in Aviva’s life and non-life bancassurance joint ventures with Santander.
The value of the transaction exceeds EUR 2.5 billion. Subject to receipt of required regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to complete within the next 12 months.
Allianz, one of the world’s leading insurers and asset managers, is set to become #2 in Central Eastern Europe in terms of operating profit and in Poland the 5th largest insurer overall and the #2 provider of life insurance.
“We are delighted to assist our client Allianz in this major expansion in Poland and its successful growth strategy in the CEE region. The implications of this historic transaction go far beyond its unprecedented scale and complex nature – this transaction has already set a new market benchmark for the CEE region and redefined the market expectations, which gives a positive outlook as we head for an economic recovery. It also shows why Greenberg Traurig is the unquestionable market leader with respect to M&A transactions in the financial services sector in Poland, changing once again the landscape of the Polish corporate and legal sector,” said Lejb Fogelman, Senior Partner of the Warsaw Office of Greenberg Traurig.
“We are very pleased to that our long-time client Allianz entrusted us to support it in this successful acquisition. This monumental transaction is also another milestone for our leading financial services M&A Practice, which has been at the forefront of the corporate, banking and finance world for 30 years,” added Partner Stephen Horvath.
Greenberg Traurig is providing comprehensive legal advice with respect to the transaction.
The transaction is supervised by Senior Partner Lejb Fogelman who provides strategic advice to the client. Partner Stephen Horvath leads the transaction with Partner Łukasz Pawlak and Local Partners Maciej Pietrzak and Michał Bobrzyński.
They are supported by Partner Robert Gago, Senior Associate Ewa Tabor, Associate Filip Drgas, Associate Marta Kownacka and Senior Associate Anna Celejewska-Rajchert from the Competition Practice. Local Partner Anna Hałas‑Krawczyk and Associate Angelika Makar are responsible for employment matters. The tax team includes London Partner Graham Iversen who is supported by London Associate Kathryn Jones with respect to English tax law advice and Local Partner Maciej Kacymirow with respect to Polish tax matters. The due diligence team included: Senior Associates – Magdalena Medyńska, Anna Wiśniewska, Marek Kłeczek, Agnieszka Stopińska, Magdalena Bachleda-Księdzularz and Associates – Julia Gontarska, Aleksandra Staromiejska and Adam Anduła.
Greenberg Traurig LLP
Greenberg Traurig, LLP is an international, multi-practice law firm with approximately 2200 attorneys serving clients from 40 offices in the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
Greenberg Traurig Grzesiak sp.k. was named the 2019 and 2018 Most Innovative Law Firm of the Year Award for Poland by International Financial Law Review (IFLR) and the 2017 Law Firm of the Year in Poland by Chambers and Partners. The Warsaw office of Greenberg Traurig, LLP provides legal services to clients in Central Europe and beyond and consists of approximately 100 lawyers. Team members are regularly recognized as leaders in numerous practice areas. Chambers Global, Chambers Europe, IFLR1000 and EMEA Legal 500 consistently rank them among the top tiers the areas of Corporate/M&A, Capital Markets, Real Estate, Private Equity, Tax, Banking and Finance, Project Finance, Energy, Dispute Resolution and TMT.
For additional information, please visit www.gtlaw.com.