Eureko To Take Over Greece’s Interamerican

Eureko, the insurance consortium based in The Netherlands, has agreed to purchase an additional 54.38 percent of the shares of Greek life insurance and investment management company Interamerican at a base price of € 19.81 per share ($ 17.03).

It will acquire the entire interest of Interamerican’s founder Dimitris Contominas, who will remain as Chairman, and will join Eureko’s board. The entire transaction is valued at around € 977 million ($840.5 million), and gives Eureko control of almost 80 percent of the company when combined with its present 25 percent stake. It will then be required to make a public offering for the remaining shares at € 20.74 ($17.84), the price it paid for its present stake, which could raise its total outlay to close to $1.2 billion.

Interamerican is the largest player in a largely undeveloped market with branches in several neighboring Balkan countries. Greece, which is in the process of adopting the Euro as its currency, has seen strong growth, which is expected to be bolstered by the move.