Articles by Anirban Sen, Pamela Barbaglia and Kane Wu

Global M&A Activity Shatters Records, Topping $5 Trillion in 2021

LONDON/HONG KONG – Global merger and acquisition (M&A) activity shattered all-time records in 2021, comfortably erasing the high-water mark that was set nearly 15 years ago, as an abundance of capital and sky-high valuations fueled frenetic levels of dealmaking. The …

UBS, DWS Move to Submit Final Bids for NN Group’s Asset Management Arm: Sources

UBS and German asset manager DWS are pressing ahead with final bids for the asset management arm of NN Group after Europe’s biggest insurers pulled out of the auction, three sources familiar with the deal told Reuters. Prudential Financial Inc …

Generali Raises Bid for Aviva Poland in Battle with Dutch Insurer NN: Sources

MILAN – Italian insurer Generali has nudged up its bid for Aviva’s Polish arm, valuing the business at almost 2.5 billion euros ($3 billion), in a last-ditch effort to prevail over Dutch insurer NN, two sources familiar with the matter …

Credit Suisse Faces Questions from Regulators, Insurers After Collapse of Greensill Funds

ZURICH/TOKYO – Credit Suisse faces questions from regulators and insurers as it grapples with the fallout from the collapse of $10 billion worth of funds linked to British financial services firm Greensill Capital. The Swiss bank has hired external firms …

Aviva Pushes Back Deadline for Final Offers for Polish Operations: Sources

LONDON – Aviva has pushed back the deadline for final offers for its Polish operations to late March as the British insurer is still haggling with Spanish lender Santander over the renewal of a key distribution agreement in Poland, sources …

Goldman Eyes More Business From Europe’s Insurers With Barclays Hire

Goldman Sachs has poached Barclays’ insurance banker Marguerite Bion to win more business from Europe’s biggest insurers as industry consolidation heats up amid anemic profitability and tightening regulation. Bion, who started her career at Citigroup in 2001 and spent the …

Update: UK Insurer RSA Receives $9.4B Takeover Offer From Intact Financial, Tryg

RSA is in talks with a consortium of Canadian insurer Intact Financial and Danish insurer Tryg about a possible break-up deal that values the British firm at about 7.2 billion pounds ($9.46 billion). RSA said its board would be minded …

Italy’s Generali Eyes Possible Acquisition of U.S. Asset Manager Brightsphere: Sources

Assicurazioni Generali SpA has approached Brightsphere Investment Group Inc about a possible acquisition of the U.S. asset management firm, people familiar with the matter said on Friday. A deal would expand the U.S. footprint of Italy’s top insurer while enabling …

When UK Insurers, Banks Emerge from Lockdown, Their Employees Face New Normal

Limits on elevators, thermal imaging and temperature checks will greet a first wave of traders and bankers in Britain preparing to return to offices under new norms to tackle the coronavirus. Britain’s financial sector is working to bring staff back …

Global M&A Plunges 28% in Q1 as Coronavirus Hits Economies

Global mergers and acquisitions activity plunged 28% in the first quarter to its lowest level since 2016 as the devastating economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic took hold in March, compounding a slow start to the year for dealmakers. Deal …